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What is IPL Hair Removal? A review.

Body hair. Pretty much everyone has it, and most of us (especially women) want to remove most of ours.


We shave, pluck or wax our armpits, upper lip, eyebrows, monobrow, leg hair, arm hair, bikini line. Might as well jump into a vat of wax and roll onto a giant wax strip to remove all the body hair.


Do you know that 35% of women surveyed in 1 study said that hair removal was their least favourite beauty routine task?


Yeah I believe that. Quite frankly, I'm surprised it isn't higher.


How much time and money do we spend on removing body hair?


Too long if you ask me.


In one study, women spend 1728 HOURS, which is the equivalent of 72 days, shaving their legs during their lifetime. And this figure is based off that the average woman spends 4 minutes to shave, and needs to shave 6 times a week.




According to one source, the cost of hair removal at home is costs us a lot more than time if we start shaving at the beginning of puberty (normally 13), and finish around menopause (around 50). If you buy cheap razors in a multipack, thats $3,848 in your lifetime on cheap af razors with another $1,332 if you use shaving cream. If you opt for name brand, single product per packet razors thats $4,884 a lifetime. If you invest in premium razors thats $6,786 a lifetime.


Another source reckons women spend $10,207USD if they shave, or $23,000 if they wax. But it's not just money we're stripping away. According to that same source, we'll spend around 10 minutes removing that body hair per session, and waste 50 billion litres of water shaving in our lifetime.


Isn't there a better solution?


You smart duck. Of course there is! That's why it's the title.


I've gone ahead, and said screw shaving, and waxing. They hurt, they're expensive, and I just don't like them.


So I started doing IPL hair removal. Specifically, I've been using Happy Skin which is an Australian home IPL company based Sydney (like me!).


They offer two IPL home treatments so I've been using the Happy Skin Classic as it has over 300K flashes which will last me 10 years. At $299, and the starting age of 24, thats $897 total spent if I stop at menopause.




What is IPL and how does it work?


IPL stands for Intense Pulsated Light, and is where broadband pulsed light source targets the melanin in the hair follicle to heat it up, and destroy the hair follicles to prevent it from growing again. It is also used to treat superficial pigmentation, and redness.


They are not lasers so you will not get the same results as laser hair removal. Happy Skin customers state they report seeing visible results within 3-4 uses with complete hair fallout after 12 weeks. You will need to use it once a week for 3 months, then once every 2-3 months after that.


Who can use IPL hair removal?


IPL hair removal works best on those with light to medium tone skin with dark hair. This is because light is attracted to, and is absorbed better by dark pigments. For example, on a hot, sunny day you'd avoid wearing dark colours as you'll get hotter than wearing lighter clothes which reflect light.


It is highly not recommended for darker skin types, dark freckles, moles or tattoos the IPL treatment may burn, and blister the skin.




How to prepare for using IPL like Happy Skin?


Make sure you don't have any fake tan, or sunburns as IPL treatments will burn your skin. Just don't.


You need to shave the areas you intend to use the IPL treatment as IPL only works on hair in the growing phase i.e before it's breached the dermise. Exfoliate the skin to open up the pores, and remove the dead skin. Then moisturise like your life depended on it.



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