Learn Male Waxing

Use protection... wax style We should ALL be wearing sun protection, all year round, come rain or shine. You know it makes sense. But as the days get longer and the weather warms up, the need for a good SPF is more important than ever. Fact: just-waxed skin is more sun sensitive. Waxing removes some of the body’s natural protection, namely hair and dead skin cells. If that beautifully smooth, freshly waxed skin gets exposed to the sun, (a) it’s much more likely to burn, and (b) darker patches may develop where the skin becomes over-irritated (fancy technical term: post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation). This is especially true if the client has experienced any lifting/grazing. With this in mind, it’s really important that we are advising customers to use sunblock on their exposed bits after waxing. Remember Australia’s iconic slip-slop-slap sun protection campaign? Well, behold the Wax Daddy remix: RIP! SLIP! SLOP! It goes a little something like this.....

New pre & post-wax skincare from Ashmira Botanica Congratulations, it’s quintuplets... 👶👶👶👶👶 I’m a proud Wax Daddy today. My babies are finally here!! I’m pleased as punch to unveil the new waxing skincare line from Ashmira Botanica, which I’ve been working on for the past year. It’s an absolutely beautiful range, even if I do say so myself, incorporating both in-salon and retail items to support your waxing services. Every product is enriched with wonderful botanical extracts, natural butters and plant oils to protect and nurture the skin throughout every stage of hair removal. They all feel amazing, smell gorgeous and (of course) do a blinding job in the treatment room. I’m going to attempt a ‘Facebook Live’ video over the next few days to show off the little ’uns, but in the meantime here is a family portrait and a quick introduction to the new brood: Refreshing Skin Cleanser A gentle cleansing milk with apple amino acids, for use both before and...

Getting hot and bothered at the gym too soon after waxing is a recipe for disaster. Plucked pores and sweaty kit don't play nicely together, so it's the perfect excuse to take a night off and flop in front of the telly instead. Not that I need an excuse, but your customers' skin will thank you for it! © Andy Rouillard 2017

In the battle against ingrown hairs, rarely can it be said that a product is actually enjoyable to use. Functional: yes. Effective: I should hope so. But enjoyable: not so often. Then along came  Ruff Stuff Body Scrub  to brighten up my shower routine. I’ve been fortunate to witness the birth and growth of this lovely little product over the last couple of years, and am now proud to stock the finished scrub in my own salon. Designed and handmade by fellow waxer and educator, Toni Keable, Ruff Stuff is a 100% natural way for waxing clients to keep their skin in tip-top condition between appointments. This fabulously fragrant sugar scrub is chock-full of coconut oil to leave skin feeling soft and moisturised after use. The sugar granules themselves do a great job in the exfoliation department and gradually dissolve on contact with water, so you never feel like you are over-scrubbing or irritating delicate skin. On top of that, the wh...

Following my recent post about skin lifting , I had several lovely emails, Facebook messages, tweets and texts from fellow therapists relieved to know they weren't alone! If something does go wrong, a common concern therapists have is how on earth to inform a waxing client about an injury. This is something we cover on all of our classes at Axiom Wax Academy , but I figured I'd take the opportunity to share a few ideas here, too. It’s enough to make any therapist’s heart sink: you pull a strip of wax off and realise with horror that it’s left behind a nice, shiny graze or a big ol’ bruise. Welcome to the club Take comfort in the knowledge that you’re not the first person this has happened to and you certainly won’t be the last. First things first: have a little internal sweary moment, then take a deep breath and point it out to your client. This is important. If you don’t mention it, you can bet your bottom dollar that he’ll g...

Tight clothing is the enemy of freshly waxed skin. Encourage customers to skip the skinny jeans and posh pants for any below-the-belt appointments: that skin-hugging fabric is only going to rub in all the wrong places. And for back and chest waxing, ask your male clients to bring a clean cotton t-shirt with them to change into after their treatment. This can go a long way towards reducing any post-pluck irritation, especially in hot sticky weather or if he is coming to you straight from work in a collar and tie. © Andy Rouillard 2017

As with all skincare services, using the correct homecare products will help waxing clients get the best long term results from their treatment. But it seems that so many salons don't know how, or tend to neglect, the retail side of hair removal. Here's a little piece with a few thoughts to get you started, from the April 2017 issue of Professional Beauty magazine. Waxing is actually one of the easiest beauty treatments to support with retail - it’s all about achieving beautiful, smooth skin after all. Whether it’s in preparation for a holiday, special occasion, sporting performance or just part of regular grooming, nobody wants sore bits, pimples or ingrown hairs blighting their freshly waxed skin. Be proactive Don’t wait for customers to phone or come in for their next treatment complaining they got spots or ingrowns: sell them something at their first appointment to help prevent and tackle the problem before it even arises. Mention specific products during the c...

In the battle against ingrown hairs, this rather marvellous little roll-on has become a firm favourite with my salon customers. Available in 3 retail sizes plus a mahoosive salon version, each bottle contains a colourless gel that you simply roll onto the affected area 2-3 times a day. There’s no sting, just a pleasant cooling sensation from the peppermint oil, and it dries really quickly without any visible residue. Here comes the science bit... 😜 A triple-whammy of glycolic, salicylic and fruit acids provides effective exfoliation to help free stubborn trapped hairs, while also reducing painful inflammation and zapping any associated infection along the way. Lovely j ubbly . For stubborn ingrowns, expect to see results within a week. As an added bonus, it’s also a blooming marvel at dealing with occasional spots on the face and any pimples that pop up on the back or chest after waxing. Result! Produced here in the UK, Aloe Clear is the original formulation and Shave S...

Ingrown hairs... the bane of waxers worldwide. Prevention is certainly better than cure here, but surprisingly few clients realise that it’s a 2-step process: SCRUB and SLICK. Scrub the skin Regular, gentle exfoliation is essential to shift any build-up of dead skin cells that can otherwise trap the hair, plu s it also lifts new growth to the surface. First up, the key word with any form of exfoliation is 'gentle'. I've found a lot of customers will over-do it and go at things like they're sanding down a work surface: scrubbing themselves red raw on a daily basis or using harsh, scratchy products in the mistaken belief that "if it's hurting, it's working"... when in actual fact the skin just winds up irritated and this only serves to make things worse. So, gently does it: 3-4 times a week tops, and get him to use either a cosmetic scrub with spherical beads that won't scratch the skin, or a nylon/polyester mitt or cloth (I persona...