These days, there are a variety of ways made available to us when it comes to removing unwanted body hairs. We’re not limited to razors anymore, we’re talking about shaving, waxing, tweezing, and zapping to name a few.

So what type of hair removal is best for you?

SHAVING: During World War II, shaving became quite popular due to the shortage of nylon stockings at the height of the “bare legs” trend. Shaving is considered to be the most convenient way of getting rid of unwanted body hair. It’s cheap and fast. Shaving is recommended on your legs and underarms. This method is usually pain- free when you use a sharp blade and a shaving cream, oil, or lotion. The effect usually lasts up to 3 days then stubble starts to appear on the shaved area.

WAXING: Waxing is another famous hair removal method. Waxing involves putting warm wax on a portion of the skin and letting it cool to make the hairs attach to the wax. The wax is then pulled off in the opposite direction that the hair is growing resulting to pulling out of hairs by their roots. This process can be done at home or in the salon depending on your preference.

The advantages of waxing are that it can be done quickly and it is affordable if you choose to do it at home. The effect can last up to two weeks or longer, making it one of the hair removal methods that have longer effects. The drawback is that for this method to be effective, your hair should be at least 1/4 inch long to ensure that they would have a firmer grip on the wax.

TWEEZING: Tweezing is the method that is highly recommended for the eyebrows. This method is usually done in- between waxing or threading to remove growing hairs. For this method to be effective, the hair should be long enough to be grasped by your tweezers so you better invest on reliable tweezers for best results.

THREADING: Threading is a famous method patronized by beauty experts and highly recommend for the brows. This method is usually done by an aesthetician who uses a double stranded thread made of cotton to twist and twirl around hairs then pull them out from the roots. This process usually takes 5 to 10 minutes to get done. The chin, eyebrows, and upper lip are considered to be the best sites for threading.

ELECTROLYSIS: Electrolysis focuses on zapping one hair at a time which guarantees that it is far more effective in removing unwanted body hair compared to lasers. Although it is more expensive, more painful, and takes longer to perform compared to laser treatments, most customers who undergo this procedure are quite satisfied with the results.

LASER: Laser treatment is not recommended for everyone. Lasers are only effective on people who have dark hair and light skin because lasers target the melanin on our skin which are mostly found on people with dark hair. Laser treatments aren’t as painful when compared to waxing but are more painful than tweezing and depilatory creams. After laser treatments, there is about 80% of reduction on hair growth. This treatment should be done under the supervision of an experienced technician to avoid any lasting side effects from occurring.

When it comes to hair removal there is not much you can do that is natural apart from having the genes that mean you don’t grow unwanted hair in the first place and we know that not many of us grew up with those!

Or you could leave the hair to grow and just be as natural as you were born but there is not much beauty in hairy legs and a mustache on a girl.

You can shave the hair off your legs, of course, which is a chore but does not involve too much in the way of unnatural sounding processes or harsh chemicals like depilatories but you will have to repeat the process over and over and you will be cursing nature that gave you the hair in the first place.

You can use wonderful smelling wax which has been enriched with natural fragrance and smells wonderful but you will not feel too natural while you are yelping in pain and you will have to repeat the painful procedure every few weeks.

My favorite hair removal method which is the one used by the celebrity “natural beauties” is IPL laser hair removal. There is not much natural in zapping your hair with laser focused waves of light to destroy the hair follicles but after you have had a few sessions you will be able to go about with much reduced hair growth (if not hair free) as if that is the way you had been born. And after that you can tell yourself that you are naturally smooth even if you had to pay dearly for the privilege.