Waxing Poetic

Each month, you send in waxing questions for our resident hair removal expert, Shala Dveirin. This month she’s answering several of your questions, covering time between waxes and heating it up.

Q. Sandy asked a question about leg waxing and you told her to wait 7-10 days after shaving for the hair to be long enough to wax. In my experience, four weeks growth is needed for the hair to be long enough to wax. I use Cirepil Ease wax and pellon strips. Should I really be getting hair out after only one week? Also, I have heard several times recently that it is recommended clients have waxing done about every 14 days. I just think hair is far too short at the two week point...do I really not know what I am doing after all this time? Or is the two-week turnover just a way to double income?

Thanks, Tonya

A. For a first wax, no client of mine will wait 30 days before waxing. If you have someone who is a regular shaver, just have them stop for 7-10 days to get enough hair growth. After the intial wax, ideally they should come in every four weeks. As for your second question, I’ve found that the only time people can do waxing every two weeks is with a brow wax. Typically it’s every month. Even with brow waxes, if clients will wait an extra two weeks for the first couple of months, then they’ll be able to go a full month without a problem.

Q. My friend, also an esthetician, told me to use the Flora wax on a high setting – “7” because it spreads better and I have been doing that. The wax sometimes clumps and is very difficult to remove with the pellon strip. I asked her why and I put both waxes on my arm so she could see what I was talking about. There was a discernable difference in the color.  The new wax was blue green as it should have been and the “bad” wax was almost avocado green. She said it looked like the wax was burned. Is that possible? And what temp is best for that particular wax.  I know all wax pots are different. As a comparison, I keep my Cerepil blue on just below 4 and it is perfect. Thanks for your assistance.

Gaye

A. The "7" setting seems a little high, but I don’t know the machine you’re using and they all heat differently. Your best bet is to talk to the manufacturer of the wax. They should have recommendations for the best temperature to heat the wax. You can also ask them about the coloring and if it could be burned. That’s more of a chemical question, and they should be able to tell you.