If You Decide to Shave
- Make sure your blade is sharp and clean. We like the new crop of high-performance tools: Gillette Venus Vibrance razor, $10, stimulates your hair to stand up (like goose bumps) so the blade slices the hair extra close to your skin. Also, Noxzema 4-Blade System Razor, $6, and Schick Quattro, $9, have four blades that leave not a single hair behind.
- Try a transparent shaving gel. They allow you to see clearly where you're going. Some options: King of Shaves AlphaGel, $6, and Tend Skin Air Shave Gel, $16.
- To reduce irritation, shave in the direction of hair growth. It's also wise to defuzz at the end of your shower so that the steam has softened your hair and skin, says Will King, founder of King of Shaves.
- Prevent razor rash by applying a toner with witch hazel or rosemary. Try C.O. Bigelow Dr. Galen Herbal Skin Tonic, $5. If you still get bumps, try the antibiotic ointment Neosporin; your follicles could be infected.
If You Decide to Wax
- Doing an at-home bikini wax? Make sure your hair is at least one-quarter-inch long before you start.
- Mist on an OTC number or pop an ibuprofen 20 minutes before you start, to minimize the pain. Veet Comfort Waxing Kit, $9, comes with a spray.
- Sprinkle on baby powder to remove moisture so the wax adheres to the hair, not your skin, says Iwona Kwansiak, head aesthetician at the Repêchage Spa de Beauté NYC.
- Want to go for a Brazilian-style look? Choose a hard wax formula. (It'll say so on the box.) It grabs coarse hair best. Try Sally Hansen All-Over Wax Kit, $10.
- After the deed is done, disinfect the area with hydrogen peroxide or an alcohol-free astringent, then ease irritation with an aloe-rich lotion like Clinique Aloe Body Balm, $16.50.
- If you're going to a salon or spa, find one that incorporates an anesthetic. Completely Bare in NYC offers a service called Relax Wax in which they numb your skin with LMX 4%.
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