This is the memoir of a habitual shaver, now full blown wax-a-holic. The truth is…I started shaving way too early and wished someone would have warned me that shaving your hair makes it grow back in thicker and darker over time. However, the truth of the matter is I was not told this until about five years ago at the age of 22.
I am your typical female except I was blessed with more hair than most…a tummy trail, a bikini line that continues well into my mid inner thigh and even more. Was I always like this? No. Back when I was 18 years old I remember getting my belly button pierced and the guy telling me that I should stop shaving my tummy trail because if I kept doing it, that it would grow back in twice as thick as it was then. Well, I didn’t listen and now here I am 9 years later even hairier than when I started shaving.
I have done it all tweezing, depilatory creams, bleach, at home waxing kits, and shaving but they all have their own set of side effects or were not very effective at removing the hair. When it came to tweezing it just took too long and only really worked on small areas like eyebrows and maybe your upper lip, plus…it hurts and doesn’t last super long. Depilatory creams burned my skin and hurt in sensitive areas. At home waxing kits were another fail as one brand did not work and the other hurt so bad I couldn’t finish but one or two strips. Not to mention shaving the easiest of all…but I always ended up with horrible ingrown hairs, razor bumps and skin irritation. Plus halfway through the day I could feel the hair already growing back in and it almost felt pointless for the short term results.
At the age of 17, I had my first Brazilian wax with the permission of mom for my Spring Break trip to Panama City, Florida. I went to a fancy salon in the suburbs of Atlanta and paid over $70 for the service. I still remember how I felt that day and how long it lasted and how smooth I was without any irritation or side effects. At that time I was too young to be able to afford regular waxes at the cost of $70 a pop. I also remember wishing I could afford to do it regularly because the results were so incredible and lasted for so long!
At the age of 24, I finally had a job where I could afford regular waxing maintenance and started visiting a local waxing place in Jacksonville called The Wax Strip. Brazilian waxes here were walk-in only and they used a soft wax with traditional cloth strips. Ladies and gents…if you are unfamiliar with soft wax and cloth strips this means the technician smooths down the cloth strip it forms a bond with the hair and the skin causing the top layer of skin to be removed along with the hair. Talk about painful! I would leave and be smooth but my skin was so red and sensitive that I couldn’t go out into the sun even days after the service. About 3 to 4 days after their waxing service the ingrown hairs would appear…I tried exfoliating and using the one product they recommended to help with ingrowns called Tend Skin but this did not work and dried out my skin making it even more irritated. At this point I had reached my breaking point…I felt like I was alone with my hair removal issues and I was having such a hard time achieving great results.
It was hard not to feel down about myself and I still preferred waxing to shaving because of the long lasting results. After a year of trying soft wax and cloth strips on my skin I was finally fed up and switched back to shaving, until one day when I was searching for Brazilian waxing places in Florida and came across Brazils Waxing Center.
Apprehensive, I figured it was worth a try after reading the great reviews online. I booked my appointment over the phone and scheduled a Brazilian wax at their Jacksonville location. At the first visit to the facility I was impressed with the spacious lobby and clean rooms. The ladies at the front desk welcomed me and answered any questions I had, then walked me to my private studio wax room.
My technician for the service was Tracey and she was very gentle and thorough. Tracey walked me through the entire process and talked about Brazils all-natural, vegan hard wax and how to get the best results. The coolest thing about their wax…it’s pink! As my first hard waxing experience I must tell you this wax will change your life! It only adheres to the hair and not the skin…the wax hardens within a few seconds and then is removed – no cloth strips needed! The best part is the pain was so much less than any Brazilian wax I had ever experienced! Plus Brazils is known for being clean freaks and sterilizing their rooms so I didn’t have to worry about them double dipping their sticks or cross contaminating the wax. They bring you a fresh pot of wax into the service room every time! Plus the Brazilian wax is only $45 so it’s the absolute best quality waxing service you can get for the price!
The wax itself went by very quickly and then I went to the lobby to check out. I was told by Tracey during the service about Brazils wonderful all-natural skin care line Elate. Knowing I was prone to ingrowns after hair removal, I bought the 4 piece kit which includes a cleansing African Black Soap, a glycolic exfoliant called Prevent, a soothing serum called Repair and a moisturizing shea butter. I went home that evening and as suggested used steps one and three and when I woke up the next morning I was blown away with the results! Baby smooth skin without irritation! How incredibly sexy and confident I felt! There really is nothing like it.
Its official, I am hooked…here I am now two years later a full blown wax-a-holic. I have finally found a home at a waxing center that believes in real beauty and that it is more than just skin deep. Brazils is a body positive waxing center and they appreciate every body. Everyone is welcome and they wax men and women, young and old from head to toe.
To this day, I am still so thankful I found Brazils and that I finally have a place to go to that I can count on for consistent waxing results! Book your appointment with Brazils today and find out why everyone is ditching their razors and joining in on the #brazilslifestyle ! Trust me, you won’t regret it.
Yours truly…the wax-a-holic.
