STYLE@LXG: A hairy matter

Okay girlfriends let’s be honest: Hair. If it’s not on your head, eyebrows or eyelashes – is not acceptable. Period.

Unwanted hair could ruin that perfect dress, which in turn ruins what could have been a perfect night! Nothing is more alluring than a confident woman, who knows her skin is smooth and silky.At the same time, nothing is more off putting than hair legs clad in a mini skirt --- eeek!

While there are many ways to go about removing unwanted hair, I personally prefer epilating. Shaving only removes the hairs above the skin, leaving the roots in the follicle. Waxing, while it does remove all the hairs from the roots, can get pretty expensive. 

This brings us to epilation. This tried and tested method removes the hairs from the roots and provides lasting smoothness at a fraction of the price of waxing. I can safely proclaim that this is the most value-for-money option I have yet to come across. 

Most of us keep away from epilation because it is perceived to be painful and not as effective as waxing. Girlfriends, let me tell you, this only happens to people who use cheapo epilators and lets face it, beauty comes with its own share of pain. 

I’ve put together some reasons on why epilating is the way to go for getting the best results. Thanks to the people at Braun for providing some of the information: 

·        Epilation provides lasting smoothness: With epilation, you get smooth skin that lasts up to 4 weeks. That’s because removing hair from the root means that hair takes longer to grow back than removal with surface methods like shaving and creams. ·  

·         Epilation is great for sensitive skin: Epilating in the bath is the new hair removal solution for modern women everywhere. It is ideally suited for sensitive skin and those new to epilating. As the tweezers on an epilation head do not pull the skin directly when removing hair, there is minimal effect on the skin.

·         Epilation helps hair grow back less noticeably: As hairs are removed at the root, hairs grow back with softer, narrower tips than hairs removed with a razor, so they feel softer and finer to the touch. Second, as hair grows back at different speeds depending on the phase of the hair growth cycle they are in, there is also less hair to be removed after the first few sessions.

·         Epilation can be more efficient than waxing: While both epilation and waxing remove hairs from the root, waxing can press hairs flat against the skin, making them harder to lift and remove.

We are giving away TWO Braun Epilators this month!

Want to take part? then simply:
1. Tell us why you want to win (on this blog and on our FB page)
2. Like this post and our FB page (we like LIKES)
3. Share this post. The more you share, the better your chances.

GOOD LUCK!

LADY@LXG: Hair Be Gone - Soprano Part 3!

A big hello! For those of you following my quest for hairless underarms, you will be happy to know that I had my third session of Soprano in July! 

And just like I raved to Dr. Pang, I was thrilled as I only had to shave once that entire month, and this is only because since I used to epilate (even though I stopped a few weeks prior to my first session) I had a few very fine, almost invisible, baby hairs growing, so Dr. Pang, increased the intensity of the machine and zapped them all away! 

I seriously love this machine! Its fast, painless and fuss-free and at the end of just five sessions, I will walk away not ever having to worry about having to shave again. Its such a relief to be able to just don on a sleeveless top without ever having to worry if I need to shave or epilate. 

The procedure is very fast, only around 10-minutes or less and completely painless. Just expect to feel some mild heat in the treated area. Remember to stop waxing or epilating about a month prior to your treatment as the laser needs to kill the hair at the root (hence the sprouting of baby hairs for me) and shave before you go, but if your shave isn’t close enough, the nurses will give you a brief dry shave so don’t worry, they will then apply some cooling gel and the doctor will begin the treatment.

Dr. Pang is really helpful, so if you have any concerns or would like more information, feel free to talk to him.

 

For more information about the procedure, check out my first post where I get a bit scientific, explaining how laser hair removal and IPL differ.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, please call Dr. Aaron Pang at The Sainte Chapelle Clinic, #B1-10, Marina Square. 6 Raffles Boulevard, S039594. Tel: 63363128. http://stchapelleclinic.com/

My next session is coming up during the first week of August so stay tuned for more updates!

LADY@LXG: Hair Be Gone!!!

Hair, hair everywhere, except where I would rather have it be...

There is nothing more off-putting than a hairy woman. As sexist as it may sound, I do believe that if a woman wants to wear short skirts and sleeveless tops, she should ensure that she is hair-free in those areas, simply for hygienic, if not aesthetic reasons. 

I usually resort to shaving and epilating my underarms, but I wanted to find a permanent solution for my unwanted hair. I really didn’t like how my underarms looked darker after shaving and how I couldn’t apply deodorant directly after, and that’s how I came across SopranoXL. 

  

 SopranoXL is completely painless and safe for even those with tanned or darker skin tones, unlike IPL which can cause burns. This is because IPL devices emit non‑coherent polychromatic light and although the wavelength can be adjusted with filters, the spectrum is too broad and they don’t offer sufficient precision. While laser hair removal on the other hand uses “selective photothermolysis” through a device that makes light converge into a narrow beam with a single wavelength - making it more stable, measured and focussed. 

Here’s some basic science to explain how they both work to kill unwanted hair: lasers and IPL use photoepilation to kill unwanted hair follicles by converting light rays to heat in order to “burn” the hair follicle without injuring the skin. The rays target the melanin that pigments the hair. Unlike those of us with fair skin, those with darker skin contain melanin in both their hair and skin -  this means, darker skinned folk require high‑precision devices that can distinguish between melanin in the hair and melanin in the skin, or they could get burned.

For this experiment, I will be having five sessions of Soprano at The Sainte Chapelle Clinic with Aesthetic Doctor Aaron Pang, to see if all the hype about this machine is well deserved. I had my first session on the 14^th of May and two weeks later, my underarm hair growth has reduced tremendously. I only have to shave once a week and it remains perfectly hair-free for the whole week or more. 

If you are interested in ridding your hair from problem areas, seven sessions of SopranoXL for the underarms at The Sainte Chapelle Clinic is priced at $2300 (before GST), although the doctor usually recommends an eighth complimentary touch-up session to ensure permanent hairless-ness.

I will be undergoing a session every month from May till September 2013 and will post an update after each session to give you an idea on what to expect, how it feels and if its worth the investment. Today’s post is a bit wordy and scientific, only because I want you to understand why I chose SopranoXL over the more common and much cheaper IPL and why you should perhaps consider doing so too. In my next post, I will take you through the procedure and give you tips on what you should and should not do before the procedure.

For more information, contact Dr. Pang or his very helpful staff at The Sainte Chapelle Clinic, #B1-10, Marina Square. 6 Raffles Boulevard, S039594. Tel: 63363128. http://stchapelleclinic.com/