Blow Away Your Holiday Hair Blues

I don't usually take travel sized hair tools with me on holiday, I just put up with the crappy hair dryer in the hotel and take my normal sized straighteners. However, just before I went on holiday a few weeks ago, I saw this set on offer in Boots and thought it was about time I invested in some travel sized tools.

Ego Trip Special Edition Gold Travel Set

This is the box that the items come in, it's a really sturdy box so I've actually kept it and now store other things in it. I believe it's Special Edition because it's gold and also comes with a brush, the normal one is red and doesn't include a brush.

Everything is really neatly packaged inside the box. As you can see it comes with straighteners, a hairdryer with two different attachments, a diffuser and a regular nozzle, and also a 'medium contours hair brush'. Both of the electric hair tools come in Gold and Black with an ombre effect.

Ego Travel Hair Straightener

The straightener is super easy to use, there's just one heat setting so you just flick the on switch and wait for it to heat up. It literally takes about 15-20 seconds to heat up (I timed it on my phone!), although there is no indicator as to when it is completely heated up, there's just a little red light letting you know it's turned on. I just figured that when it's really hot, it's ready for you to use! 

It features a 2.5m swivel cord, this to me is a really good length, it isn't too short or too long. There's also a little velcro strap so it is easy to wrap up ready to put in your case.

Ego Travel Hair Dryer

The 1200W hair dryer has two heat settings and you can also change what voltage you want it to be, either 230V or 120V, it comes set to 230V so I've just left it at that. As previously stated, the hair dryer comes with two attachments, I've only ever used the diffuser once but it seems to do the job, and so does the regular nozzle which is the one I always use. 

I think one reason I've often been wary of buying a travel hair dryer is that I didn't think they'd be any better than the ones you'd get in a hotel but this one is actually really good. I'd even go as far as saying it drys my hair just as well and just as fast as my regular hair dryer I use at home. 

The cord on the hair dryer is the same length as the straightener (2.5m) and also features the velcro strap.

Ego Medium Contours Hair Brush

Finally, we come to the hair brush, I don't usually use a hair brush and dry my hair at the same time (if that even makes sense). I part dry my hair, turn the dryer off, brush, then dry again, brush...etc etc until it's dry. I know you're supposed to use a brush like this one whilst drying to create volume at the roots and to smoothen your hair but, to be honest, I can never get the technique right and just end up with the brush matted in my hair. So I haven't really used this brush, I think I used it once but just gave up in the end because, unfortunately, I obviously don't have the knack for drying and brushing at the same time!

I hope you enjoyed this review of these travel tools, if you want any further information on them please don't hesitate to leave a comment.

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Becky 

XO

Is Epilation For The Faint Hearted?

I think epilation is a form of hair removal that is often over looked. It seems that shaving and waxing are the methods that most people gravitate towards. When I tell people I epilate they instantly ask 'does it not hurt?!' but I don't really see how it could hurt any more than waxing does. I first started epliating around 4 years ago I think, I only epilate my lower legs and under arms as I find the hairs on the tops of my legs are too fine to be grabbed by the epilator and my bikini line too sensitive.

I decided to try epilation as I saw a video on YouTube about it and how it helps to get rid of hair for a longer period of time and also reduces the amount of hair that grows back. I'm not going to lie, when I first started it was quite uncomfortable and took a while to get used to, but believe me, it's worth it for the results you get.

Braun Silk Epil 7 Wet and Dry Epilator (similar here)

The epilator I use is the Braun Silk Epil 7 Wet and Dry, this epilator comes with 3 interchangeable heads, a brush to clear out the hairs, a bag to store it in and the charger. Mine also came with some 'Pre-Epilation Wipes' but I'm unsure as to whether these are included as standard or they were an added extra at the time, I've only used the wipes once and didn't notice a difference so haven't used them since. This epilator has a light which comes in very useful for spotting really small hairs. 

Before Epilation 

It is advisable to exfoliate the skin before starting to epilate as this gets rid of any dead skin cells and will ensure the skin is completely clean. Any exfoliator with large grains will work, I use Soap and Glory's Smoothie Star Breakfast Scrub, or some exfoliating gloves and just normal body wash. 

Soap & Glory Breakfast Smoothie Scrub / Exfoliating Gloves (The ones shown are 99p from B&M but you can find similar here)

Once you've scrubbed your skin you can select which head you would like to use and start the hair removal process. I tend to use the normal white head (shown on the epilator in the image above) as I feel it gets closest to the skin and, therefore, removes the most hairs. The black and white head has small 'massaging' nodules on it, but I feel this lifts the small tweezers on the epilator further from the skin so isn't as efficient. The smaller white head it used for the under arms and bikini area (if you're that brave!).

How to Epilate

Once you've selected your desired attachment it's pretty straight forward. All you have to do is turn the epilator on and use it as you would if you were shaving. My epilator is wet and dry so have the choice of using it in or out of the shower, but please check first to see if your epilator is water resistant. 

When you first start epilating it may feel a bit uncomfortable, that's totally normal and you'll soon get used to it.

After Epilation

Some people, me being one of them, experience ingrowing hairs after epilating. To prevent these you will need to keep exfoliating in the same way that was discussed in the 'Before Epilation' section and also make sure to moisturise. If you have dry skin, when the hairs grow back they will not be able to push through the top layer of skin so will become ingrown. Although these are not always difficult to remove, they can sometimes be painful so prevention is better than cure. 

Vaseline Spray & Go Moisturiser / Tend Skin / Soap & Glory The Righteous Butter

The image above shows two of my favourite moisturisers. Vaseline Spray & Go is perfect if you're in a hurry as you can quickly spray it on, rub it in and it will be dry in seconds. However, if you have more time, or feel like your skin is really dehydrated, you can opt for a body butter such as this Soap & Glory one, this will leave your skin feeling moisturised for days but doesn't dry as quickly as the other moisturiser.

A product I recently discovered for ingrowing hairs is 'Tend Skin', this can also be used for razor burn/bumps as well. I haven't been using it for long but so far it seems to be reducing any red bumps on my skin and also the amount of ingrowing hairs I get. It's for both men and women and can be used on the legs, face, neck, bikini line and under arms.

The more you epilate, the slower and sparser the hairs will grow back. If you decide to go back to shaving for a while, which I did for about a year, don't expect the hairs to stay like they were when you epilated. They will most likely go back to their normal state and start growing normally again, so when/if you decide to epilate again it will probably be like starting back at square one.

I hope you enjoyed this post about epilation, although I'm not an expert, if you have any questions feel free to ask :)

Now sit back and enjoy you're beautifully smooth and hair free skin!

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Becky
XO