Banish the Tash: Leave Movember to the Men

The hairiest month of the year is now upon us. Movember is back, targeting hair growth, specifically tash-growth, to raise money for men’s health. If you like your men hairy, then this is soon gonna become your favourite time of year.

However, it is rare that we women want to join in with the new ‘grow your tash’ phenomena. We are more inclined to cover up or disguise our terrible tashes, rather than let them grow freely. Movember is all about ‘Mo Bros’ (for obvious reasons), and the charity encourage women, or ‘Mo Sistas’, to support the cause in a different, hair-free way. We decided it was time we actually did something about our prickly under-nose caterpillars. So this Movember, support men’s health, but if you want to donate your pennies with a smooth upper-lip, then read on to discover our simple three stage plan for total tash-removal.

Caution: May contain an emotional farewell.

Stage One: Research

There is a whole host of tash-removal solutions available. If you’re not sure what kind of hair removal will work best for you, read on to learn more about each treatment and its benefits.

Waxing: If you do it yourself, this is for the brave girls. Hot or cool waxing is a quick and effective treatment for pulling out persistent hairs that are causing you grief. Sometimes it takes a few attempts to remove all the hairs, but you can always pluck away any strays. Why not try Veet’s Warm Wax Jar with Essential Oils for a long-lasting and soothing wax.

Threading: Done by a professional, this will most probably give you watery eyes, but is a very effective and long-lasting approach for tash-removal. It removes hairs right from the root and as a result, allows all your hairs to grow back at the same time so you can avoid the awkward patchy stage.

Epilating: So you should probably know now, this one will hurt. A lot. Hair removal is one of those grueling procedures that gets better the more you do it, but epilating in my experience, is the most eye-watering. However, the pain is caused because each hair is being removed one by one, which may be unpleasant, but means they will take longer to grow back. Why not try the Braun Silk-epil 5 which promises extra-gentle hair removal.

Plucking: Plucking is the queen of stinging, but when done right, also ensures good results. It is the most time-consuming method if you do it alone, but when paired with waxing or threading, it can be very effective and quick. Tweezerman provide a range of beautifully-designed tweezers, like their Classic Stainless Slant Tweezer, created to remove hairs from any angle.

Shaving: This is probably the quickest method of hair removal, but also, the worst for grow-back time. As the hairs are cut off at the surface, and not removed from the root, shaving can leave you looking a bit stubbly, and can often leave you with a bit of a shadow. But still, if you’re prepared to do it often, it is a quick-fix before a full day at work.

Hair Removal Cream: This often smells a bit unusual, but works closely with removing the roots of your hair. For sensitive skin, why not try Veet’s Aloe Vera Vitamin Hair-Removal Cream, enriched with Hydro’ Restore to nourish your skin whilst it battles away at your stubborn strands, or Nair’s Facial Brush-on, enriched with Camellia Oil and Ylang Ylang.

Laser: If you are tired of under-going painful hair removal, and have some spare cash, laser treatment might be for you. Described as feeling like the ‘flick of an elastic band’, laser treatment uses light energy to destroy hair follicles without damaging the surrounding cells. To undergo this treatment for the first time, it is advised to go and talk to a professional and to try a patch test service. ProSkinClinics have a lot of advice online and a great reputation.

Stage Two: Let it Go

As Idina Menzel sings in the popular animated movie Frozen, sometimes you just need to ‘let it go’. You have probably established a love-hate relationship with your tash, hating its presence, but becoming attached to it at the same time. After all, you share the same face. Say your farewells, perhaps take a selfie together, and then brace yourself for stage three.

Stage Three: Removal

If you choose a do-it-at-home product, make sure you read all the instructions carefully, and give yourself enough time to follow them. If you prefer to get waxed or threaded by a beauty professional, ask them for their advice on how to prepare for the appointment and what you should expect, (which may be some pain…) It is often advisable to have some aloe vera gel to hand after waxing or threading, as the cooling nature of the product lets your skin heal and recover more quickly.

Finally, some advice on Tash up-keep. Sadly, that eye-watering experience was not a long-lasting fix for removing unwanted hair. Waxing, threading and epilating generally last for 2-4 weeks before your hairs start to re-emerge, with plucking lasting about 2 weeks, (but longer if you’re a pro). Laser treatment can permanently remove your tash, hooray, but you would need between 4 and 7 appointments for a completely smooth upper-lip.

So there you have it. Pick a method and wave goodbye to your hairy friend. However, if you are keen to support your manly hairy friends, head over to the Movember website to leave a donation and find out other ways you can get involved. You don’t need a tash to make a difference.