"Wax on, wax off."
As temperatures soar, the need for clothing dwindles. As clothing dwindles, unsightly body hair becomes an issue. Unsightly hair is gross and grosses people out. Cause and effect. Let's be frank—please take care of all that nasty errant hair before you expose your naked self to the world. No one wants to stare at your hairy back or your escaping pubes at an otherwise perfectly good pool party, period. Thanks!
You've got several viable options. You can shave it, pluck it, wax it or kill it with laser beams.
Of course, certain removal methods work better than others. And there are also budgetary issues to consider. Shaving is best for women's legs and underarms and men's faces. Shaving is the most cost-effective method of hair removal, but it can lead to skin irritation and ingrown hairs, even if you do spring for a good razor and top quality skin-preparation products. Chests, asses, backs, bikini lines and eyebrows are better suited for waxing. Have a professional perform waxing duties. The process is generally pretty swift and the pain is brief with the right aesthetician. And if money is no object? Take that shit off permanently with laser beams and be done with it for the rest of your natural life.
The Art of Shaving
Nothing in Las Vegas smells better than The Art of Shaving store, unless, of course, it's a man who has recently used shaving products from The Art of Shaving. The earthy, sweet, sandalwood-scented shaving-product line is The Consumer's personal favorite for the boys, but lavender and lemon smell almost as fantastic. As expected, the store carries a complete line of men's grooming accessories, such as badger brushes, straight razors, and razors (handcrafted by The Art of Shaving but designed to fit the Mach3 by Gillette) to go along with its own shaving prep line and toiletries. A starter skin prep kit with The Art of Shaving book runs about $100. Shaving sets (razor, stand and badger brush) can run anywhere from $470 to $2,300. The Art of Shaving also features an in-store Barber Spa with experts, so we asked about popular facial hair configurations. They said it's a tie between an all-over clean shave with just a triangle of hair left at the center of the lower lip above the chin (some call this little tuft of whiskers a "flavor saver") and a new yet-to-be-officially-named configuration in which thin sideburns come down all the way around the jaw line to form an outline of the face that meets up with the flavor saver. For lack of a better or more official name, we call it "The Sinister Shave." (Other name suggestions will be graded.)
The Art of Shaving, 3930 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 632-9356.
Splurge
If shaving, waxing or plucking seems like a lifetime sentence, try laser hair removal, in which a trained technician uses a high-powered laser beam to kill the hair follicle altogether. However, the process can be spendy ($475 buys four bikini-line treatments, four backs run $1,134) and a little on the painful side, according to Deeanna Wright, a technician at Dermatrend. "It feels a lot like a rubber band snapping against the skin," she says. "It's kind of an odd sensation." That's a lot of rubber- band snaps. Of course, numbing gel is available. But it can take up to eight treatments. Decisions, decisions. Remember, the benefits of killing hair follicles with laser beams is not limited to bikinis and backs. If hair grows there, yes, even there, it can be zapped.
Dermatrend, 1680 E. Flamingo Road, 736-6300.
Anne Kellogg is a local writer and native Las Vegan who has a thing for purchasing stuff.