While there are many types of waxes out there… Here are the main 3 types that I want to touch on and get asked a lot about. Your basic soft wax, your basic hard wax, and sugaring. Now, I say basic because there are many different ingredients that can go into each of these waxes. There can be different bases of the wax, for example, resin, beeswax, and cream are just a few.
Soft wax is mainly cream/resin-based. It is applied in a thin layer over the skin and removed with a cloth strip.
Hard wax is applied warm and solidifies as it cools. It cools to a flexible medium which is then removed using a “lip” or “tab” created from the wax itself by the esthetician. These are mainly beeswax/resin-based formulas.
Sugaring is a sugar-based substance that is applied as a paste and removed in a quick motion with your hands. Similar to hard wax, the hair is removed with the substance itself by the trained esthetician.
These seem to be the main waxes that we hear of. In our studio, we use soft wax as well as hard wax.
Now, how do we determine which wax to use?
It depends on the hair type, the skin type, and the preference of the waxer. Some are trained solely on hard wax, some on soft, and some for sugaring. Most estheticians are able to utilize both hard and soft wax in their treatment rooms, but they will always have one that they are more comfortable with using. Usually, estheticians are adept at working well with both hard and soft types of wax on most body parts. Those estheticians that are trained in sugaring have taken a specific class to help them hone their skill. Not every esthetician or wax specialist you meet will be trained in sugaring.
At Elevate Esthetics we are trained on soft and hard waxes. So depending on the type of hair on the body and the skin type (sensitive/reactive or not), we will use a certain wax accordingly.
As always, if there are questions, we are available on social media, or phone to answer anything you have to ask. Also, check out our website for more answered questions!
The main question that we get a lot is “Does it hurt?”
Yes. We are traumatizing that hair follicle by removing the strand of hair from the root. This is going to hurt to some degree. Each person is different and each person’s pain tolerance is different. It’s a different experience for each different individual! We do our best to minimize the pain afterward, but we have some tips and tricks on our website for before and aftercare!