Laser hair removal. Is it worth it?

With winter now finally behind us (keeping everything crossed!) I’ve got summer on my mind. Recent nights have me dreaming of warm evenings, a calendar filled with BBQ and picnic invites, and the ability to dress in as few layers as humanly possible. Summer is by far my favourite season of the year and the time us Scots really come alive. Honestly, visit Glasgow during a heatwave (or any temperature above 20 degrees for that matter) and you’ll know what happiness looks like.

My only gripe with this scorcher of a season however is the excessive need to shave. I’ll admit it, I’m one of those gals who shamelessly neglects shaving her legs in the winter. If I don’t have to get my legs out for a party then the short fuzz of hair can stay put. Even in the summer, my shaving frequency does increase but I still find myself frantically trying to shave my legs five minutes before I dash out the door.

Despite my shaving grudges, getting laser to reduce/remove the hair on my body never crossed my mind until the team at Therapie Clinic offered me the chance to try it out. With absolutely no idea of what was involved, how long it took or how painful it was going to be I initially turned down the offer. Fast forward a few months to the day my friend Victoria told me about her “pain-free” experience and suddenly I was willing to give it a try. You’ll surely know by now that I’m an absolute wimp when it comes to pain so hearing that it “honestly didn’t hurt” was like music to my ears.  

I wanted to start off with a small area to see if it was for me so opted to target my underarms. The team recommend you get six sessions of laser to see the best result. I’m now three sessions in so thought now would be a good time to share my thoughts so far.

To keep things concise, I’ve answered a few of the most asked questions about laser below:

What is it like to get laser hair removal?

At Therapie Clinic, the team use some of the most advanced technology in the world, using what’s called “medical-grade laser”. After popping on to a treatment bed and given a pair of orange protective glasses (sexy), my therapist analysed the area and cleaned it with an alcoholic wipe before rubbing some gel over the target area. She then used the machine which has some form of laser light at the top of it (technical, I know) and then rubs this back and forth in a quick motion across the skin. This doesn’t hurt in any way but by the end of each timed session you can feel this heating up ever so slightly.

How long does it take?

This depends on the area but as I’m only getting my underarms done I’m honestly in and out of the clinic in 15 minutes.

What are the results like?

They say you’ll start to see results after two to three sessions so just about where I’m at now with my treatment. As someone who has ridiculously fast-growing hair – just look at the hair on my head and you’ll get the picture – I’ve always had to shave my underarms daily. Since my last treatment I’ve noticed the hair is growing at a much slower pace, isn’t as dark as before and has reduced significantly. Even when my hair has fully grown in I can notice the overall growth area has reduced. One thing to note, is that laser removes 75-80% of hair so won’t remove absolutely everything but you’re still guaranteed great results.

Anything else I’d need to know?

There are a few rules when getting laser, the biggest being that you can’t wear fake tan in the area you’re targeting during your treatment. Not a problem for me as fake tan is a rarity in my beauty routine but I know this can be off-putting for some people.

Pre-treatment you need to shave 24hrs in advance so the area is prepped and during treatments you can’t wax  at all. 

Post-treatment you’re not allowed to take any hot baths/showers or put on deodorant for around 24 hours I believe so definitely something to keep in mind when booking your appointments. You wouldn’t want to leave yourself unable to shower before a big night out….

What does it cost?

Despite being the No.1 provider of laser hair removal in Europe, Therapie Clinic are actually very affordable. They regularly have offers running on the treatment and prices start from just £19 for lip/chin area and £49 for leg & underarm area. Not bad at all.

I’m excited to see what further change I’ll see after my next three sessions and will absolutely keep you all up-to-date with the results! Feel free to drop me a DM on Instagram @thegirlwiththebighair if you have any questions.

Until next time.

xoxo

A very special Monday

Okay, let me start off by apologising for my lack of presence here on my blog. I don't want to hit you with excuses but there just happens to be a few small things that have got in the way of me blogging over the last month. 1. it's Summa time and well, I've pretty much turned into a social butterfly. Every week is jam packed with plans - not like I'm complaining but it certainly leaves less time for blogging. 2. It was my birthday a couple of weeks ago and well, extra work is a no no throughout birthday week. I absolutely love blogging but it definitely feels like a part time job and something I don't like to rush. 3. I've been suffering from a burst of writers block. I honestly have whipped the laptop out on a few occasions but when it came to putting thoughts to keyboard nothing was flowing. So there you have it - three very acceptable excuses for my temporary departure.

Now onto the post. You may be wondering what this 'very special Monday' is all about so lets get started. A few Monday's ago I had a half day from work to see Rihanna at Hampden later that evening. While at home getting ready for the concert I received a phone call from one of my colleagues. Thinking it was a work-related question I un-enthusiastically answered the phone to a conversation I really did not expect. It went something like:

Me: "Hi, is everything okay?"
Colleague: "Have you checked your emails recently?"
Me: "No, what's happened?"
Colleague: "Well, basically, you've won a competition with Sheerluxe..."
Me: "WHAT?!?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!"
Colleague: "Yes - you've won an Hermes bracelet and £500 to spend on a website."
Me: *screams with excitement* "Aghhhhhhhh. OMG ARE YOU  KIDDING ME ON. XPOE&$BDKF*T£$NF%NFWF*@DQY"$"FBSOSCS"
Colleague: *Laughing* "The girl has emailed you. Check your emails."

And off I go with the biggest grin on my face. I couldn't even really remember what the competition was or what the bracelet looked like but I was excited to say the least. After going back and forth with the lovely team at Sheerluxe it was confirmed that I had won one hell of a package! Not only did I win this lovely leather and rose gold bracelet but I also won a years supply of Biscuiteers boxes. These biscuits are to die for and are going to help me out massively with present gifting over the year. See pictures below (sorry they're just iPhone snaps!). I also won £500 worth of GHD products. So for the first time in my life I'm the proud owner of a very lovely white straightening iron. As well as a hair dryer, curling wand and an abundance of hair products to ensure I never have a bad hair day again. I also won a £500 voucher to spend on SpaBreaks.com - so if you have any spa recommendations I'd love to hear them! And finally, £500 to spend on the pre-owned designer website, Vestiaire Collective. I've already spent my voucher on a very exciting purchase that I'll share on the blog shortly. I think it's actually due for delivery tomorrow. EEEK.

I'm honestly still in shock that I won such an amazing prize. I feel like a very lucky girl indeed. Since winning my prize I think every single one of my friends has signed up to Sheerluxe and entered every one of its competitions. LOL. But honestly, if you've haven't signed up to the websites daily newsletter, do it! I've spoken about it here on the blog before because it honestly is my favourite website. If you want inspiration for fashion, beauty, food, and lifestyle then Sheerluxe will provide this daily to your inbox at around 11am everyday. I swear I've not been paid to promote this, I genuinely just LOVE it.

 One Biscuiteers box for myself - and of course I chose the 'Fashion Box'.

One for my little cousin and her future husband. AKA 'The Future Mr & Mrs O'Brien', just in case you can't read that icing. This is the wedding bells box. 

The 'Anniversary box' for my sister and her husband to celebrate two beautiful years of marriage together! 

It feels good to be back and I promise I won't be gone for as long next time.

I hope you all have a lovely Sunday, whatever you're doing. I'm having a relaxing morning before I need to pick up The Boy from a drop off point following an alcohol infused stag weekend in Dublin. I'm guessing it will be a movie and munchies evening for us. No complaints here!

Happy Sunday lovelies.

XoXo

Travel diary | Thailand part 1

Welcome back to part 2/3 of my holiday photo diary. To avoid me rambling on about what we did every moment of every day (a very, very bad habit of mine) I thought I would break the next two posts up into mini travel guides, based on what we got up to. The do's and the don'ts, perhaps. We'll let's give it a try.

After a long seven hours flight to Thailand followed by an exhausting five hour wait at Phuket airport we were finally on our way to Koh Samui. Getting ready to land on the island we were greeted by mesmerizing views of turquoise coloured seas and white sandy beaches. Unfortunately I was too delirious by that point to whip out my camera but I'm hoping you can visualise this with me as I never want to forget that view!

KOH SAMUI

Accomodation

We spent our three nights on Koh Samui staying at Ark Bar Beach Resort. This is perfect accommodation to ease you into Thai living with it's party atmosphere, stunning beach views and DJ playing from morning to night. In a way it almost felt like we were holidaying it up in Ibiza but with a serious scenery upgrade! The room itself was basic and clean and just what we needed. The hotel is the perfect location and in walking distance to plenty of shops, bars, restaurants and massage parlours. Plenty of massage parlours.

What to do

Massage - talking about massage parlours this is definitely a must-do while in Koh Samui. The prices are some of the cheapest we seen and the choice is endless. There is literally a massage parlour on every corner. Think Gap in NYC (thanks Joey). After enduring a full day of walking along the beach we opted for a foot, leg and neck massage. It was the best £3 I think I've ever spent. The best part is you can sit next your bestie and well pretty much laugh your way through all the weird and wonderful techniques they use - or at least that's what we did...

Lady Boy Cabaret Show - if you're looking for a night of cheesy music, a little theatre performance and an hour of dis-belief that these girls are actually men, this is for you. I'm not sure if it's the same everywhere but we didn't pay to get in. We did however have to buy a drink though which cost us about £5 each.

Mr Ung's Jungle Safari - this was a great day out and allowed us to experience corners of the island that we probably wouldn't have on our own. The day starts with a visit to a temple with a mumified monk (slightly scary but so fascinating to see!), a visit to a zoo, swimming in a waterfall, lunch in the mountaintops and entry into magic garden. You're picked up in one of those open air trucks which has two seats on the roof - so much fun!

Shopping - unfortunately this isn't something I did much of in Koh Samui (the usual 'I'll wait to see what else there is' error ) but I think Koh Samui has some of the best shopping. Especially if you're after some fakes! I'm still regretting walking by those Dior So Real dupes!

KOH PHANGAN

After three days in Koh Samui heaven we packed our bags and headed for our next stop: Koh Phangan. For anyone planning this island hop on an upcoming trip you'll be happy to know it's only an hour boat trip between the both.

Accomodation
After a short taxi drive to our hotel we made our way down a small driveway and checked into the Phatcharee Resort. Firstly, the accommodation itself is gorgeous. With our own little lodge and a pretty pool we were set. Well, we would have been set if a few pesky cockroaches visiting our room didn't leave us terrified for our three nights there. I know this really can't be helped when you're in a tropical island but unfortunately for us it dampened our experience a little. My only other issue with this hotel was its location. As the sun disappeared we were required to make our way down a street that had absolutely no street lights. Definitely not something two girls want to face before reaching their hotel. I don't want to give a completely bad review of this place as it was still lovely and clean and the staff were really friendly.

What to do

Mopeds - Koh Phangan is very different to Koh Samui. Everything is spread out and for that reason a moped is almost essential. I'm not sure what we would have done without ours. Thankfully the roads are pretty quiet so once you get the hang of driving it's a lot of fun! Taking long drives to stop off at random beaches is what our days consisted of. The bikes only cost around £4 to rent for the day and petrol is cheap as chips!

Half Moon Party - our main reason for heading to Phangan, and most travellers for that matter, was to attend the Half Moon Party. Everyone has heard of the infamous Full Moon party and this is basically a slightly smaller version of this. The one difference is this party is held inland as opposed to on the beach. It was a fantastic night filled with drinking, dancing, people watching and neon body paint, of course...

Bubba's coffee shop - we stumbled across this place on our first day and visited again the following day. The staff are incredibly friendly and they serve a mean breakfast with some delicious smoothies. Definitely a must-visit if you're ever in Phangan and in need of a good hangover curer!

I hope you enjoyed the first of my Thailand posts - more in the next one. If you've ever been to Thailand I would love to hear your recommendations!

XoXo