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I shaved my face: Dermaplaning for radiant skin | Rachael Divers
I remember scrolling through my YouTube subscriptions months and months ago and came across a video about face shaving for women. First of all I was horrified. Second of all, I was intrigued. I’ll be honest. I didn’t actually shave my face with a Mach 3, but I did, essentially, shave my face.
It’s a beauty ritual that many do, but not that many actually talk about. To give it its proper name, Dermaplaning is essentially a method of exfoliation. Not only does it gently scrape away the top layer of dulling, dead skin cells, but it also removes pesky superficial vellus hair (most commonly referred to as ‘peach fuzz’) that all too many women know can play havoc with their makeup or cause self-consciousness in harsh lighting. It’s also said to allow greater penetration of skincare products and creates a flawless canvas for makeup to apply onto – great for anybody who is regularly on TV, being photographed or even appearing on YouTube and filming with a HD camera.
It’s not a new practice by any means – it’s been around for absolute years, but thanks to YouTube stars like Huda Kattan and Tati Westbrook, it’s become a little more mainstream as more people are becoming aware of the treatment.
Cue my DIY experiment. After watching many videos, I ordered a pack of Tinkle Pro Eyebrow Razors that were highly recommended from the women who have been practising this for a while. The razors are simply a small blade with a safety cap attached to a long handle which make them extremely easy to use and pretty foolproof too. I cleansed my face and made sure it was completely dry before holding my breath, taking the plunge and running the blade up the side of my face just below my cheekbones in short, swift movements. Now, I’m not someone who has dark or thick hair on their face, but the razor removed the finest amount of vellus hair that made the biggest difference to how my skin felt and looked. It was impressively smooth. I continued along the length of my jawline and my upper lip on both sides of my face.
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I shaved my face: Dermaplaning for radiant skin | Rachael Divers
Now, I won’t lie – I was terrified that I might wake up the next day with stubble or god forbid, grow a ginger beard over the next week, but guess what? Nothing of the sort happened. Obviously…
Over the course of the next week, the hairs of course, did start to grow back and I could almost feel them on my face. Almost. But in no way would I say that they felt ‘stubbly’, thicker or darker. Let me put it this way, if anybody brushed their cheek on your face during a hug, they’d never be able to feel a thing. On top of my skin feeling baby smooth, I was really happy with how my makeup applied too, my skin looked fresher and brighter and I honestly just generally felt better about my face.
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I shaved my face: Dermaplaning for radiant skin | Rachael Divers
I know that the main worry that people have about shaving their face is whether or not the hair will grow back thicker or darker, but here’s the thing – the hair follicle itself cannot be changed, so any superficial vellus hair won’t suddenly turn into coarse, unruly hair. It will always grow back as the same texture and at the same rate as it was before the treatment.
Top 10 things to know for Dermaplaning:
- Use a sharp, single razor at a 45 degree angle to the skin and use short, swift movements upwards.
- Buy a proper razor intended for facial hair removal – they’re usually sold as ‘eyebrow shapers’. Don’t go pinching your dads Gillette Mach 3 Turbo and shaving cream, it’s not that kind of a shave!
- It’s best used on light peach fuzz rather than more coarse or dark facial hair.
- Keeping up a gentle exfoliating routine afterwards will help to prevent ingrown hairs and bumps.
- Don’t dermaplane daily – this should be something that you do around once every 21 days as typically, the amount of dead skin cells removed amount to around 21 days worth.
- It’s great for most skin types, but if you have cystic acne, you should avoid it so as not to irritate the skin or cause infections.
- Rinse your skin afterwards and follow with your usual skincare routine.
- Make sure to keep your blade sterile to avoid bacteria and infections.
- Replace the blade frequently – a blunt blade will cause irritation and may cut the skin too.
- Your skin will be highly sensitive to sun exposure so you must remember to wear a high SPF to prevent sun damage. This should be something that you do daily regardless, but take extra precaution after Dermaplaning.
It goes without saying, but please do take care if you decide to try this treatment at home! Overall, I think it’s a great way to even out the skin and feel more confident in general. It certainly puts my mind at ease when filming for my YouTube channel!
© This post is copyright of Rachael Divers 2017.