Miss Cherry Pie, Seattle/Polebridge, Montana
Age and Occupation: 25, Marketing Communications Specialist
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Nurse Practitioner
Engagement Date: August 26, 2006
Wedding Date: September 2008
Blogging Since: April 1, 2008
Venue: A tiny town just outside of Glacier National Park
About Me: I think of life as a journey and I love the places it's taking me! I went to school to study Magazine Journalism, ended up with a second major in Japanese language, and now work at a company that makes software for libraries. I love writing, computers, photography, and the great outdoors. I spend most of my time playing Guitar Hero and Rock Band or geeking out online with Mr. Cherry Pie. I'm happiest when I'm on the road, especially traveling abroad, or just nesting quietly at home with my sweetie, who is a fabulous cook and bakes a delicious rendition of a certain cherry-filled dessert!
The Sweeter Side of…Hair Removal
July 25th, 2008 @ 12:20 pm by Mrs. Cherry Pie
I like a relatively hair-free me. And honestly, so does Mr. Cherry Pie, if you know what I mean. But waxing? Ouch. Been there, done that. Lost a bit of skin in the process.
If you’re like me and you enjoy regular Brazilians, brow shaping, or any other kind of hair removal, or if you’re considering something special for your wedding night, you might want to try a sweet alternative to waxing…sugaring.
Sugaring is a method of hair removal that’s been used for thousand of years. It’s thought to have been created by the Ancient Egyptians to remove body hair, which they considered unclean. (Really, can you blame them?)
A sugar paste is prepared, using nothing more than heated sugar, water, and lemon juice. It’s cheap, easy, and Earth-friendly! You can even make it yourself, but I personally prefer the competent hands of a seasoned professional to rip the hair from my pores.
The sugar solution is heated to a thick, sticky consistency and spread onto conditioned skin. It’s then either flicked away with a flip of the wrist or removed with strips of cloth similar to those used when waxing.
The differences between sugaring and waxing are few but critical:
- Sugaring requires less hair—Only about 1/8 of an inch or 1 week of grow-back (from shaving, for example) is needed to remove hair with sugar
- Sugaring is natural and sanitary—It’s just sugar and water, you could eat it…and might want to!
- Sugaring is gentle—The sugar paste is warm, but not hot enough to burn. It will ONLY remove hair and dead skin, and won’t cause skin abrasions. It’s gentle enough to be used even on women’s tiny facial hairs.
So you don’t get the wrong idea, sugaring still hurts. After all, you are having hair ripped from your body by the roots. But it hurts less than waxing. And less is more.
After a few sessions, you kind of get used to it, and your hair isn’t growing back as thick any more either. One of the nice things about sugaring is that it leads to permanency, which means you won’t have to pluck those stray hairs forever.
I know, I know, I sound like a sugaring evangelist. There’s a sugaring place called the Sweet Spot in Seattle’s Fremont neighborhood and, let me tell you, I am hooked. But I promise they’re not offering me any sweet (har, har) kickbacks for this post.
They do, however, make the best body scrub out there. Hands down…and I have tried many. This lovely concoction is made with chunky sugar and fruit oils to exfoliate and soften skin like nothing else. It smells great, too! Check it out:
Yummmmmmm. The sugar scrub is $22 for a big ol’ tub, and usually lasts me a couple of months (I use it every few days). If you’d like to try it, give the Sweet Spot a call or visit them at their store or online.
I’m planning on keeping my monthly regimen of sweetly sugarrific Brazilians and brow-shaping long past the wedding…it’s a habit that’s hard to break!
As I’ve become somewhat of a seasoned pro at having hair torn from all sorts of bits, feel free to pepper me with questions.
And do tell, what are your hair removal secrets?
29 Responses to “The Sweeter Side of…Hair Removal”
Laser hair removel (if you are willing to spend the money). I am halfway through my sessions and am LOVING it! I am too much of a wuss to wax, and am fed up with shaving.
Bummer is, if you have blonde hair, it may not be as effective.
My stylist burned me last week while waxing my eyebrows, so I’m definitely looking into sugaring! Thanks, Miss CP!
I was burnt having my eyebrows done once too! I’ve never heard of sugaring but I’m going to look into it now! Thanks for the info 
@rebecca & @Miss Pinot Noir: Ouch and double ouch! I’ve had my eyebrows done with sugar for the last several months. I had never had them waxed before (only plucked) and I can honestly say that sugaring is really pretty pain-free on the eyebrows. It’s almost pleasant. The only stingy part is the touch-ups with tweezers at the end. 
Ok, I followed the link about making your own, and read all of the comments, but I still don’t understand how to use it without the cloth. Help, anyone?
@December: It’s kind of like when you mix corn starch and water. The paste is viscous and will dribble if you let it flow, but if you pull it in a quick motion it is like a solid state– it all comes away together, and the hair with it. So you make a ball of it, layer some on the skin against the hair grain (still holding onto the end of the ball) and flick your wrist, pulling the same direction as the hair (not against), and the whole thing should peel off in one piece. You then reform the ball and can use the same ball to sugar an entire area.
I’ve been waxing at Wax On in Capitol Hill. Any place where you can take a tequila shot before getting your wax on is good in my book. Hadn’t tried sugaring yet, but it would be interesting to compare.
@doctorgirl: I have to say that Wax On honestly is great. That’s where I went before the Sweet Spot. They really know their stuff there, too. I can’t say anything bad about them. And they also do men’s Brazilian’s (so does Sweet Spot), which is a rarity!
I had my first brazilian wax last Saturday. It hurt. I even had a little bruise and now my skin is peeling like I ahd a sunburn. After reading this post, I looked around and found a “green” salon not too far from here that does sugaring. Only drawback is they don’t do brazilians. Oh, well, I’ll try it anyway.
My fiancee is Indian, and I learned about sugaring from some of his female friends. Women don’t shave at all over there, it’s either wax, sugar, threading, or chemical hair removal. I have uber sensitive skin, so all the options I’ve tried (shaving, waxing AND especially chemicals) seriously irritate my skin. Unfortunatley, I despise all body hair that isn’t sprouting from the three acceptable regions: head, eyebrows and lashes, so I continue to shave (this causes the least problems). Sadly, this makes my skin really uncomfortalb and not exactly as soft and supple as I’d prefer.
Cleaning up with a razor “down there” is the worst! I am totally nervous about what to do for our wedding night because I want to be Ancient Egyptian smooth! Might sugaring be a good option?
It’s not really in the budget to be hitting up the spa, so I’m wondering if anyone’s sugared their own privates? (OMG HAHAHAH, I can’t think of a better way to put it, which means I’m chuckling profusely right now.) Do you have any tips or tricks?
Help! Please!
@Carolyn: Ugh. Yeah, they hurt. But bruising and peeling are things I’ve only ever seen from waxing, and never sugaring. Do give it a try. It may hurt less (still isn’t pleasant)… but you won’t bruise or peel from it, and you won’t get burned.
@ustwiggie: Yes, sugaring might work for you… I still get ingrown hair sometimes, but no redness and irritation like with shaving. You CAN do it yourself (I never have), but I imagine it takes practice, and it’s not something you want to screw up, if you know what I mean…
I also think that for “down there” it’s hard to do it yourself– you need enough leverage to tug the sugar off your skin and it might be too difficult with the angles you have to reach!
Anybody remember Nad’s? I used to love that stuff in college. http://www.nads.com/
Hey Miss CP!
No questions really, as I used to go to The Waxing Diva at Salon Dewi, but the cost was putting a crimp in my wallet.
I discovered the Sweet Spot a few weeks ago, and am going to make an appointment for my wedding to get back to waxing!
Yay for the Sweet Spot and the fact that it’s less expensive than Salon Dewi! No more razor burn!
Okay, I guess I do have a question - I’m leaving for the wedding on August 22nd - how soon do you think I should book an appointment. I guess I should call this weekend to eb on the safe side, right? Are they generally booked well in advance?
Thanks!
@Jenny Louwheeze: I remember watching their infomercial and laughing at the name. You can still get it at the drugstore.
@Miss Jenny: Yes, they book well in advance. I’d call now!
@Miss Jenny: I’d get your wedding wax a week before, that way any skin irritation has time to clear up.
@ustwiggie: I’ve tried waxing myself “down there” twice, and both times were horrendously painful and traumatizing. I would stick with the professionals.
thanks for the tip Miss CP. I’ve never heard of this before but I’ll defiitely look into it. I’m addicted to Brazilians and luckily I have an AMAZING waxing woman who is done in 7 minutes flat with as minimal pain as possible and has never burned me or taken off any skin. She’s truly a gift to hair removal. But I’m always open to something new so I’ll definitely look into it.
BTW, if anyone lives in or near La Crescenta, CA and wants her info, let me know. I don’t even live near there, (I live in Hollywood), but the drive is so worth it.
Hmmm…so I guess I’ll scrap together some money and try to find a good spa…uggh, the thought of some poor woman having to tidy up my hair down there is not too pleasant. How do you guys get over your pride and spread ‘em for the for a total stranger? I’m nervous I’ll feel judged about my “parts”!
Also, how often will I need to go back to maintain “the look”?
ustwiggie: don’t worry for a second about “some poor woman having to tidy up”. This is what they do ALL DAY LONG. They’ve seen it all. Nothing you could possibly “present” them with will shock or appal them. I always say there are three people you should feel completely comfotable and open with; your hairstylist, your gyno and your waxer. haha there people have truly seen it all. Just remind yourself that no matter what you have going on down there, they’ve seen much worse.
as for the pride thing; i’m not a shy person so I personally have no problem getting naked with a professional. However, it does help if you feel comfortable with a person. Maybe before you go for a brazilian with someone, make an appointment to get your eyebrows done with her to test out your comfort level and her vibe.
The frequency of your visit will depend on a few things; how thick your hair is and how fast it grows. As you go more and more your hair will get sparser and will grow slower so you’ll be going less to maintain things.
i tried sugaring once…it was a disaster. the paste became really goopy and sticky. i had a little better luck with waxing. i hate shaving, so i use an epilator. not messy, relatively pain-free once you get used to it, and it’s totally worth the initial investment.
I always feel a little silly but I think of them as professionals. I just saw a lady who was really fun to talk to and we chatted the whole time- that seemed to take my mind off it.
You probably need to go once a month- maybe less after you’ve been doing it a while- to maintain “the look.”
@ustwiggie: Eh, I just never minded. They see a lot of hoo-ha’s, and I assume mine isn’t anything different. It’s their job to deal with all sorts of hair removal. You’ll start growing hair back slowly at bout 3 weeks, and you get re-sugared (or waxed) every 4-6 weeks.
Yay for bees with Seattle ties! That little piece of information will come in way handy for my pre-nuptial preparedness =)
Miss CP! You use “hoo-ha” too? Tee Hee. Everytime I call it that my FI laughs a little.
Anyone know of a website where you can find salons that do sugaring in your area? I’m in DC so I know there has to be one somewhere..
@Crystal: Try Google Maps… putting “Sugaring” and “Washington, D.C.” yields some promising (and some random) results: http://tinyurl.com/6fq9hy
This is an awesome post with great comments. I love how humorous and honest everyone is, it makes me smile - I think that’s why I like WeddingBee so much. Gotta look into sugaring up for the big day.
thanks for the great post!! For those of you who do not live in Seattle and are curious about Sugaring you can check out Alexandria’s website http://www.alexandriapro.com. They are the manufacturer of our sugar and keep a database of certified practitioners. You can contact them to see if there is a practitioner in your area.
If anyone is in the Chicago area, there is an Indian beauty place called Beauty Concepts that does threading and waxing. Although I live in Philly, if it is at all possible, I wait until I visit my parents (who live outside Chicago, where I grew up) to do any sort of hair removal. The thing I like the most about it (besides the fact you can walk in without an appointment), is the matter-of-fact way they handle everything. For a bikini wax, there is no mood music, no small talk - it’s basically “take your pants off” and five minutes later, you’re done. They do a great job, and after having a thirty minute bikini wax at a tony salon in Philly, I have to say that faster is better. It’s going to hurt - they are ripping hair out - but the anticipation time is cut down and the price ($38 for bikini, underarm, and upper lip wax and eyebrow threading) is almost worth the plane ticket….
