Shaving is a pain. Waxing is literally a pain. Epilating is more of a pain than waxing. HAIR REMOVAL SUCKS. I’ve been wanting to get laser hair removal for YEARS but never have because I’ve been quite terrified of the stories from people who described it as “pinching or elastic band snapping” ALL OVER. No no… I will not subject myself to painful pinching. It wasn’t until I saw THIS video from Mixed Makeup that I decided to look into getting it done. With the updates in technology – thank you Soprano – not only is laser faster but it also works on all skin types! The all skin types was a major concern for me because I tend to tan quite quickly throughout the summer months and didn’t want to have to put off treatment until I was pale in the winter or stay out of the sun entirely!
I went in for a consultation and to my plesant surprise my Asian heritage in combination with my fairer skin tone from my Dad’s side has left me a perfect candidate! Effectively dark hair + light skin = optimal results in optimal time, nevertheless you can get this done with any skintone and hair colour you might just have to be more patient.
The treatments:
Session 1: April 15
OMG. So whoever tells you this is painless must have the highest pain tolerance or much much lighter hair than I. The feeling is most certainly not comfortable, it’s not wholly unbearable but it’s a burning sensation. Don’t let this deter you as everyone has a different level of pain tolerance so you may experience something different. What is great about the Soprano laser is that every time it is lifted from your skin the tip cools which makes the experience much more manageable.
Results from Session 1:
Serious instant gratification. There was such a noticeable difference after about 2 weeks! I almost considered leaving it at that because it was such an improvement! I used to have to shave pretty much every day, all of a sudden it was once a week! MASSIVE DIFFERENCE. I’ve seriously saved so much time lol!
Session 2: May 15
After the boost from the results of session one I was SO ready for my next appointment… seriously I was like “I want one every week, this could be a part of my regular routine with results like these”. I was keen. Turns out my folicles had taken really well to session one and I’d likely only need 2-3 more treatments!! When I originally went for consultation I was told that I would need minimum 8 sessions… 4-5 total versus minimum 8! AMAZING!
The experience from the second treatment was much more comfortable than the first so I’m presumming that if you have lighter and finer hair than I do then your discomfort would be less than my first treatment. Because of the results of the first treatment I really enjoyed the second treatment, it was like I could separate from the discomfort and focus on the results the slight burning sensation meant.
Results Session 2:
Honestly there are patches of zero hair. ZERO HAIR. No matter if I wait a week to shave. Yes I’m super super pumped. However, there are definently not as drastic results after this session but I didn’t expect them to be.
The biggest “result” is that my sessions are now spaced 6 weeks apart! Meaning it’s taking really really well!
Session 3: July 3
The hair growth cycled… back to square one. So the annoying/frustrating thing about hair is that it grows in cycles. This means that you can kill the follicle during one cycle but then have a whole NEW cycle to kill. I was mentally prepared for the discomfort of that “new” hair, and the second time around it wasn’t so bad. Plus the girl who does the procedure and I gossip insanely, it makes the time FLY by.
This is what happened. I thought I would be almost done by now… turns out at least 2 more session minimum. Which isn’t bad in comparison to other skin/hair types where 10+ session would be needed.
Session 4: August 28
There was considerably less pain this time around! In between session 3 and 4, I noticed a considerable reduction in the amount of hair and the speed of the growth. Each session now it’s just getting easier and faster. It’s seriously worth the pain of the first session to get to this point and be able to go a week between shaving… probably longer in the winter months lol.
Session 5: November 7
This was my final session on the current package that I have purchased, honestly, there is still hair however it’s just so much more manageable. This round of treatment didn’t hurt at all, there are still some sections where it twinges (probably where the follicle isn’t totally scarred and there is still hair). Overall the actual heat of the device is the most uncomfortable.
Considering that it has DRAMATICALLY reduced the amount of hair, even if it isn’t gone 100% yet, it’s so worth it. I have such dark hair that I felt like I had to shave every day or else it was super noticeable.
All in all, this first round was a success and I will 100% keep going back and getting more treatments!
xoxo Steph
