I started thinking seriously about this subject a few days ago.
What happened you might ask?
Well,
My brother went to a salon to get his chest and abdomen waxed.
All of it.
He asked me what I thought before making the appointment and, frankly, I was against it.
He’s my younger brother, he’s almost 18 years old.
There’s a huge age difference between us and that’s why I still see him as my little brother on whom pain should definitely not be inflicted.
I was against the whole thing of getting so much of his hair removed from the root. The idea of him going through that pain was not something I was fine with.
Moving forward to the moment when he came back from the beauty salon, I asked him all about it.
His chest and abdomen were really red.
However,
I must admit that the results were great. We are a bit of a hairy family and his waxing session definitely made a difference.
He said it was really painful. The pain made him sweat a lot while strips of wax were pulled continuously.
Even so,
He was happy and he’s going to continue waxing once every 3 weeks. He’s a bit obsessed about his looks.
Waxing for Men: The Must-Know Things
1. It’s painful
I’ve already talked about this in my introduction.
Waxing means removing hairs from the root. Pulling the root from its follicle.
If you have been shaving and you want to switch to a slightly longer-lasting method, it’s going to hurt the first time quite a lot.
It also depends which areas you want to get smooth.
The underarms are obviously one of the most sensitive areas, together with the intimate area.
I don’t know about the back but I reckon it’s not nearly as painful.
If you haven’t used any hair removal until now, your hairs might be a bit long for waxing.
It they’re too long it’s going to be a lot more painful. That’s why you should trim them.
2. You should let a professional handle your first experience
Or someone who has handled wax before.
This is pretty important because the strips need to be pulled fast and parallel to the skin.
Otherwise,
Most of the wax remains on your body, you make a mess, and few hairs are removed while still being painful.
All professionals have seen enough men sitting on their table so they definitely know what they’re doing.
Just take deep breaths and try to relax.
3. Choose hard wax
Whether it’s microwavable hard wax or the type that needs a warmer, hard wax is the way to go.
It handles coarse hairs without breaking them.
If you want to be even more specific, go for wax for coarse hairs. There are even waxing kits for men + women.
If you want a bit of help, just so you know what you should be looking for, check out this post on the best waxing kits.
One more thing,
Always test the temperature of the wax. You don’t want it to burn your skin.
Obviously,
You apply the strip in the direction in which the hair is growing and pull with a swift in the opposite direction.
4. Always apply a moisturizer
The chest and back areas require a bit of attention because otherwise you might suddenly suffer from a breakout.
After all the hairs are removed, remove the residues using oil (baby oil or any other type of oil).
Then,
Apply a rich moisturizer to comfort the irritated skin.
5. Exfoliate
This step is just as important.
Always exfoliate before removing the hairs.
After that,
You can apply talcum powder or baby powder to absorb the moisture so that the wax can stick better to the skin and hairs.
Make sure to exfoliate 2-3 times a week, at the beginning on dry skin or at the end of a shower on wet skin or even both as I do these days.
It will hopefully keep your skin free of ingrown hairs and looking amazing.
Even if you don’t need to wax your back, I think it’s good to consider exfoliating your back, as well.
What’s the bottom line?
I’m all for waxing for men.
I certainly appreciate men that take good care of themselves and their bodies.
However,
I don’t agree with waxing your face. That’s where I draw a big bold line.
Are you looking for an alternative to waxing? Something easier to pull off at home but still with the same results?
Try an epilator for men.
