If you’ve been following our blog, you have probably been wondering when we would get around to this blog post. Well, here it is! The question we get most often when we explain sugaring is ‘how is sugaring better than wax? Or is it?’ We’ve created this post to answer just that! Read on and we will give you the facts on sugar and wax so you can decide for yourself!
What is Waxing?
Waxing is a form of semi-permanent hair-removal that removes hair from the root. Hot wax is applied in the direction of hair growth. A cloth strip is then applied to the area and used to remove the wax against the direction of hair growth.
What is Sugaring?
Sugaring is also a form of semi-permanent hair removal that removes hair from the root. A ball of sugar is molded onto the skin against the direction of hair growth and then removed in the direction of growth. This technique leads to less breakage and a cleaner final result.
Differences Between Waxing and Sugaring
Waxing and sugaring are similar forms of hair removal. However, there are a few key differences between the two that have a huge effect on your final results.
The Direction of Removal:
One of the biggest differences between waxing and sugaring is the direction of removal.
Wax is removed against the hair growth, whereas sugar is removed in the direction of hair growth.
When waxing, removing against the direction of hair growth leads to more breakage and more ingrown hairs.
Sugaring, on the other hand, is removed in the direction of growth. This leads to less pressure on the hair shaft, less breakage, and smoother results. This variation in technique leads to smoother skin, less ingrown hairs, and longer lasting results!
The Temperature of the Wax/Paste:
Wax needs to be hot in order to be used. Unfortunately, it is tough to keep the wax temperature consistent throughout. This can lead to being burned by the hot wax, especially in sensitive areas like the brazilian area and upper lip.
On the other hand, sugar is applied at or slightly above room temperature. You cannot be burned by sugar, as if the sugar was hot enough to burn you, it would be an unusable liquid!
Ingredients:
Sugar has an incredibly simple list of ingredients. It is all-natural and 100% edible, consisting of just lemon, sugar, and water. That is all there is to it!
Wax, on the other hand, can contain a plethora of different ingredients. This can range from a simple sugar wax to waxes with long lists of ingredients. You never really know what is in the wax your esthetician is using unless you take the time to ask and research it.
Personally, I like to know what is being used on my skin, it’s one of the reasons I switched to sugaring in the first place.
Cleanliness/Hygiene:
Sugaring is the most hygienic way to do hair removal in a salon. Everything that touches the skin with sugar is used once and then discarded. This means there is no double dipping of any sort and absolutely no way to cross contaminate the paste.
With waxing, this is usually the case as well. However, in less reputable waxing salons cases of cross-contamination have occurred, leading to infections. Though unlikely, we would rather not take our chances!
Ease of Training:
Waxing is fairly easy to learn. The process is mostly straight-forward. Apply the wax, apply the strip, hold the skin taut, and remove the strip against the direction of growth. Of course, there is a bit of a learning curve and different issues you will run into and need to troubleshoot over time.
Sugaring, on the other hand, is difficult to learn. It takes a lot of practice to learn how to properly control the sugar ball, the amount of pressure to put into the removal, and a lot of troubleshooting when you first learn. Once you get the hang of it however, we believe it is worth it to put in the extra effort!
It may seem like we are being biased, however, we aren’t! We all started off waxing and throughout our esthetics career were introduced to sugaring. Once we learned the difference between the two, we became hooked on sugaring. We couldn’t believe this option was out there and we hadn’t heard of it yet! Since then, we have dedicated our lives to sharing this amazing form of hair removal with as many women as we can. Book your appointment today and discover the benefits of sugar for yourself!
