by Shikha

Created on: June 16, 2008

From where I lie, I can see the boiling brown liquid spitting scathing bubbles into the air. She dips a knife into the fluid and then slowly moves towards me with it. I cringe in fear waiting for what was about to happen. She slides the hot knife on my hands, my hairs standing on ends and my nerves pricked at the heat. She places a cloth on my hand, rubs it and pulls it off along with my hair and skin cells. And my mouth forms a perfect O in a silent scream.

Sounds like a scene from a horror movie but this one is enacted everyday in beauty salons across the world.
No pain, no gain. And waxing is one of those torturous things we will go through with clenched teeth to become more beautiful!

NATURAL
Waxing is popular against other methods of hair removal because it is fast, removes hair from the roots and it takes longer for the hair to grow back, maybe up to six weeks. It can be used on almost any body part including the face and does not involve any harsh chemicals. Many beauticians use only melted sugar.

BUT DOES IT MAKE HAIR SOFTER?
Waxing involves pulling the hair off from its shaft. Since the hair follicle itself is removed repeated waxing decreases the growth of hair in the waxed area. Also when the hair roots are weaker what grows back appears to be finer hair.

Another reason why hair that grows back appears to be softer is that unlike shaving which leads to a prickly and unsightly stubble in just a few days, waxing does not cause stubbles. Shaving just cuts off hair from the middle of the shaft and the cut end of the hair grows back blunt; just like you cut off a tree and leave a pointed end. Depilatory creams work the same way. Hair is removed at the surface and one end of the hair is still present under the skin waiting to grow back all crooked and pointy.

Waxing does not just make hair softer but the skin as well. It is a kind of exfoliation where along with hair dry and dead skin cells are also removed making your skin soft and smooth.

SIDE EFFECTS
Every good thing has a few side effects. Make sure that you know them before you opt for waxing. Ingrown hairs occur when the waxing is done in the direction opposite to hair growth. There may be burns or cuts. So go to an experienced beautician. However pain is the biggest complaint people seem to have against waxing but it depends on a person's tolerance limits. No harm in trying once!

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