Blog In Brief: You Must Trust Your Waxologist!

Photo by Cea (creative commons).

I am having trouble seeing the computer screen.  My eyelids, puffy and scabbed, are collapsing over my eyes.  Yesterday, I had my eyebrows waxed by a new lady, and I think she screwed it up.  I look as though I have been in (and lost) a pathetically mismatched fight.  I am forced to exercise my forehead muscles and keep a perpetually surprised look upon my face lest I be blinded by my bulbous, swollen brows.  I am not sure what happened...I have had my eyebrows waxed before.  But this time.  This time was different.  

This is only the second time I have been waxed by this lady, a convenient up-selling of my already scheduled hair appointment.  Finding it difficult to schedule all of my regular feminine maintenance appointments, I was thrilled at the possibility of killing two birds with one stone, and having my hair and eyebrows done at the same time.  I have learned, the hard way, that not all waxy ladies are created equal.

The first time she waxed me, it seemed pretty simple, much simpler than my more regular waxing salon.  She didn't mess around with trimming or shaping, she just got right to waxing and pulling.  In all, the first session took about 8 minutes, whereas my regular lady takes about 30 minutes for both brows.  The results were okay, and I didn't think much more of it.

This last time, wasn't much different, other than after she pulled off all of her wax strips, she immediately began applying cooling agents to my skin.  I suspect now, she recognized what had happened and was doing her best to cover it up.  "Is this burning?" she asked.  A little, I replied. 

"Wow, you do get red!"  she exclaimed, dabbing my eyes with toner.   I am certain, were I a waxing specialist who had just ripped off my clients brow skin, I would know it, and would say something to the client.  She however did not, leaving me to discover hours later, that something was amiss.

 It is customary for my brow area to remain hot pink for about 24 hours after a waxing, so I honestly didn't think anything about it at the time.  Later however, I started to realize that my skin was blistering and beginning to redden and several small areas were scabbing over.  Lest I were to scare away small children and rodents, I had to slather cover-up upon my brows to conceal my assault for three days following.  In all, it would take just over a week for my eyebrows to recover.  Fortunately, there was no scarring or infection.

What went wrong?  A little research revealed that there were a couple of possibilities.  One, the wax she used was too hot, skin from the eyebrow area could be torn off with the waxing strip.  Ugh!  It definitely looked as if a thin layer of skin was missing.  Also, certain types of wax are harsher and hard wax is often recommended as an alternative (it is peeled off without using muslin strips).  Another option, is a technique called "Threading".  This technique, perfected in India, involves using a double strand of thread to pull the eyebrow hair out in crisp lines, creating a very sculpted, tidy look.  I am not sure how available the latter technique is, and I would imagine it takes a significant level of skill.

It is also important not to wax the same area more than once and to hold the skin around the wax strip taught as the strip is torn free.  I also suspect she may not have done this adequately.

I now doubt her waxing skill and will not have her wax me again.  My regular waxer, whom I am more familiar, definitely seems more skilled and focused on what she is doing, and as I said, takes a lot of time getting it right.  She is very professional and a stickler for technique.  She is very conscious of skin condition and health, and knows how to minimize redness and irritation from her waxings.  

Moral of the story: not all estheticians are created equal.  I would recommend that prior to entrusting your flesh to anyone bearing hot wax, you seek out reviews of your local salons and their staff.  Lady friends are a great place to start because as we know, if you BURN a woman, she will happily tell everyone willing to listen!