Review: Andrea Bikini Wax, Hair Remover Cream And Face And Body Bleach *

I have something to confess - waxing is frightening. And this particular review has been a couple months coming, largely because of my waxing fear, and also because body hair does take a while to grow, particularly when you're testing out a few hair removal product. Oh sure, I've had some waxing posts in the past here and there, but none involving the kind of wax that I would have had to put in the microwave to heat up, then slather on myself. Big mental block - tiny mouse sized courage!

However, for all of you readers, and in the name of beauty, I bit the bullet, and can I just say - wow, I was being such a baby! Let's start with the hard stuff - the hard wax stuff, that is!
So, here's my white whale:

Doesn't look so scary, does it? I had visions of burning myself by pouring wax on my skin, then ripping off the half burnt skin with the wax. Paranoid much? In actuality, it was a whole lot less scary than I thought it'd be.

I began by heating the wax in the microwave, following the instructions regarding the amount of time, checking and stirring, then heating it again when it was obvious it wasn't warm enough. Once ready, I spread it on my legs with the wooden stick provided, waited for it to cool down, then whipped it off. So easy and no playing with cloth strips, it's not at all apparent why I was even afraid to wax in the first place! And, dare I say, it didn't feel very painful at all!

For beginners, this is actually an excellent product to try. Sure, the wax may get a little messy, but you just have to twirl it like honey before applying it to the skin. This got off quite a bit of hair, and there's a little bottle of oil, which is meant to be applied prior to waxing to help. My only complaint? There were only two wooden sticks in the box! No matter - a quick pop to the craft store will fix that! This retails for $14.95.

I also got to try two bleaches - one for the face and one for the body. They come with a spatula for mixing and application, as well as a small plastic tray. With these, you have to mix the tubes (activator and bleach) that come in the box with each other at a 2:1 ratio, then apply it to the hair. 10 minutes were all I needed, and presto! Black Asian hair turned practically invisible! I found the face bleach to tingle a little less.

This is suitable for people looking to bleach small unsightly stray hairs, without having to deal with the regrowth that can be bristly. I would consider using this for the days when it's still too short to wax or shave, but the hairs are starting to look obvious. They both retail for $19.95 each.

Last, but not least, I tried out the extra strength hair remover for the body. Like any other hair removal cream, I found this to have fairly strong scent, and the cat very smartly steered clear of me while this was setting in. After 15 minutes, I took it off, and had some very smooth legs, with the exception of a couple of small and barely noticeable hairs on my knees. For those, perhaps I'd have to leave the cream on a little longer! This retails for $18.95.

After my mental to and fro-ing, would you believe that the wax was actually my favourite product out of this lot? It was actually effective while low on pain! This just shows that you need to be pushed out of your beauty comfort zone more often, otherwise you wouldn't find new products you might actually like!

Have you ever been pleasantly surprised like this? Which of these products would you like to try?

* These products were provided for my consideration, but my opinions are my own