Waxing your nether regions is agonizing enough without ingrown hairs and irritated skin wreaking havoc between appointments. If you've accepted ingrown hairs as inevitable, it's time for a reevaluation — baby-soft, bump-free skin is possible with these bikini-wax insider secrets.
1. Exfoliate before and after.
Slough the area two days before and the first three days after a wax to aid in removing dead cells on the skin's surface and allow hairs to push through easily, suggests Cindy Barshop, a waxing expert at VSPOT Medispa in New York City, which specializes in down-there waxing.
Joshua Zeichner, a New York City-based dermatologist, recommends using physical scrubs, which will help separate the free edge of hair from the skin, making them easier to remove during the waxing process. "Stay away from strong chemical exfoliators, as they can cause skin irritation and increase your risk of a burn from the hot wax," he says. "Instead, stick to mild scrubs that contain hydrating ingredients that keep the skin barrier as healthy as possible."
Our recommendations? The Tata Harper Smoothing Body Scrub and First Aid Beauty's KP Bump Eraser Body Scrub with 10% AHA .
2. After your wax, moisturize.
Smooth on a lotion that includes alpha hydroxy acids, because they can loosen dead skin that could create ingrowns, says Stephen Webster, a clinical professor of dermatology at the University of Minnesota. Try Eucerin Intensive Repair Very Dry Skin Lotion. You can also try applying a cream that inhibits hair growth, such as Jergens Naturally Smooth.
3. OK, after all that, you still got ingrowns. Now what?
Repeat after us: I will not pluck my ingrown hair. You could get scarring or an infection if you do. Instead, treat the ingrown hair with Tend Skin Liquid. It contains acetylsalicylic acid, which will exfoliate the skin around it and allow the hair to be set free.
4. Calm redness and inflammation.
If your skin is irritated, douse it in a lotion or oil that has aloe in it to soothe and moisturize the bumps, like Johnson's Baby Oil Gel With Aloe & Vitamin E, Parissa Azulene Oil, which has a calming chamomile derivative, or Ouai's After Sun Body Soother. After that, if your bikini line is still angry as hell, try skim milk — the lactic acid in it helps soothe skin. Soak a thin cloth or a paper towel in a mixture of half skim milk and half cold water, and hold it on your skin for ten minutes. Repeat this every few hours. If that doesn't help, try hydrocortisone cream on the area twice a day until it's healed.
Now read more about hair removal:
- Tweezist Instagram Account Shows Ingrown Hairs Being Extracted
- The 10 Biggest Hair-Removal Mistakes
- I Tried a Bikini Facial So You Don't Have To
Done reading? Now watch every method of leg hair removal:
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