One of the things on a girl's mind in spring is depilation. And the most complicated hair to remove is the one down under. The area doesn't get much fresh air, gets chafed by wet swimsuits and underwear, and that makes it very prone to irritations, rashes, and ingrown hair.
By trail and error I found out that the two best things to a smooth bikini line is a razor + time. From angry rashes and ingrown hair I went to a perfectly smooth bikini line !
Training your skin to avoid rashes and bumps:
Earlier, on holidays by the beach I used to shave my bikini area and jump into my swimsuit. The wet bikini chafed the area, and the salt in the sea or the chlorine in the pool didn't help matters. So the next day I wanted to give the angry follicles a day's rest from shaving, but the stubble that had grown irritated them even more. I didn't know which was worse, and I usually ended up shaving again, and lying around in a way that my panties wouldn't chafe me even more !
Then by chance I discovered the right way to do it. I shaved the bikini area much before the day I would wear a swimsuit, like
a month earlier. I shaved every 3 days or so, and took care to wear soft cotton briefs that don't chafe and let the ventilation through, trousers from natural fabrics that were not tight, and skirts. I still had a bit of irritation for the first few days, but not as bad as in the chaffed-by-a-wet-swimsuit-time. From time to time I gently exfoliated the area to get rid of the ingrown hair.
After a month or so of this, the skin toughened up. Rashes, bumps, ingrown hair, all disappeared. Very soon I was able to shave my bikini line every day, and I never got a rash again !
Why a razor ?
It's cheap, painless, and you can do it at home. I don't recommend hair removal creams since they are full of chemicals that the skin absorbs. And since the hair grows out stubbly anyway, I don't see their advantage over shaving.
Waxing can be great, but you need an experienced person to do it for you, and not every woman is daring enough to try it. Epilators are complicated to use in the area. So, razors rule !
How to shave:
- Start by wetting the area, preferably 5-10 minutes before shaving. When the hair absorbs water, it gets softer and easier to shave off.
- Disinfect the razor with rubbing alcohol.
- You don't need to buy expensive shaving products, those meant for men are good enough if they don't contain SLS. My fav shaving thing is olive oil + sugar + cinnamon. The olive oil makes the razor glide on smoothly and condtions the skin, & it's antiseptic too; the sugar makes a gently exfoliation to prevent ingrown hair, you might want to leave it out in the first few times whough. The cinnamon is antiseptic, but do check if you're not allergic to it. I've also used a bit of mashed avocado: spread it over the area, leave it on for a minute, and rinse off. The oils from the avocado will remain on the skin and will make the razor glide as well as condition the area.
- At first, shave in the direction of the hair growth, doing each area only once. When you skin has toughened after a week of shaving, first shave in the direction of the hair, and then against it to remove fine stubble. At the end of the training period you'll be able to shave against the hair growth as snugly as you can, and get the maximum smoothness with zero irritation.
- Use short, light strokes: because when we use long strokes, we apply unnecessary pressure.
- Dry the area gently, patting with towel.
- It's a good idea not to wear your panties immediately, you can go around in a dressing gown for a bit or simply wear a skirt and go commando around the house. Later on you won't need to do this.
- Wash your razor well.
Any questiony, any doubts ? Feel free to ask and comment !
Comments (4)
What do you think of shaving with baby oil? Could it cause infection? I haven't shaved down there is a long time because it scares me! ( Although I used to do it (a long time ago) regularly with no problems whatsoever. :S)
That depends what the baby oil contains. Those from natural companies will be fine, but typical baby oils are simply mineral oils, which seems to sound all good and natural, but are actually derivatives of petroleum. So, if the baby oil says "mineral oil", better avoid it. You can go for almond, yoyoba, wheatgerm oil, or other plant-derived oils instead. Just make sure they are pure, ie no perfumes added ! You're better off buying food-grade stuff if you are not sure, because that won't contain perfumes.
Hope that helped !
hiya! it all sounds like sooooooo much effort, eek! why not just wax? I don't find it that painful or embarassing to pop into a therapist and it's over and done with in half an hour :) I usually take a pain killer before hand and that helps. Half an hour and you are a free woman for a month! xx
Kitten, I agree that waxing can be great (I use a depilator on my legs for similar reasons like those you described), but trust me, not all women are that bold ! And I've heard of stories where the beautician was not very inexperienced and the girl ended up with a painful rash. Others may have issues with letting the hair grow out a bit before they can get a wax again.
For those who have found a great place to wax and are not scared, I think it's great ! And this little tutorial is for the rest. Besides, after the initial "training period" is over, it take me less than 2 minutes every other day to do my bikini area !