How to: Pretty Up Your Armpits

Fri, 13 July 2012 4:16PM

Okay, we know what some of you are thinking: “Whaaaat?? Are you guys insane? I already tweeze my brows, wax my bikini line, fade my spots, colour my hair, purge my pores, and all the rest… and now you’re telling me I also have to have immaculate armpits?? Is a girl ever meant to sleep?”

Look, we’re more than happy for you to let it all hang out in that particular department (or any, for that matter because, yes, finding time to sleep is a must). And, hey, we’re hardly pit purists ourselves (especially as we’re hiding under layers of winter clothes right now). But, in the spirit of freedom of information, we thought we’d share with you some of the underarm tips we’ve amassed of late.

Hands up who’s in? Let’s go …

Super-Sweaty? Consider Botox. Yes, it’s most commonly injected to freeze facial lines, but it’s also increasingly being administered to treat excess sweatiness. Basically, Botox paralyses the sweat glands. Effects are said to last for up to nine months.

Needle-phobe? Fair enough. A more pain-free way to try to curb excess sweat is to apply your anti-perspirant at night, as well as in the morning. This gives the actives in it even more time to get into the pores and do their sweat-blocking work.

Shave Every Which Way. Underarm hairs grow in all directions, so to get to them all, shave in all directions, too. Consider also using a shaving oil (or even a body or cleansing oil, doubled up) to give you the best slip and smoothest finish.

Other De-Fuzzing Options … include laser or IPL hair removal. This is particularly effective if your hairs are so dark that they’re visible even after a close shave. Laser or IPL will zap out the whole hair, meaning all you’ll see is your skin, and nothing lurking below the surface. Of course, waxing has a similar effect. Just make sure your therapist uses a hard wax, not a strip one, which is hotter and harsher on the skin.

Speaking of Skin Darkness … Irritation and friction (from sweat, shaving, clothes) can lead to inflammation and from here to pigmented patches. Shaving with a cream or oil, and always making sure to never use a blunt rasor, will help avoid this. In severe cases, see a derm or skin therapist to discuss the option of a brightening cream or laser treatment.

Exfoliate. Seriously. If there’s such a thing as an underarm model, she’d probably have regular peel or microdermabrasion sessions. Truly. And such armpit treatment is on the menu at some top salons and skin clinics overseas. A DIY version? Simply exfoliate with a gentle body scrub (emphasis on ‘gentle’ – the skin here is super-sensitive), or a cleanser featuring salicylic or lactic acid.

Ingrowns Happen. And when they do, dab them with a salicylic acid-infused  pimple treatment, such as Neutrogena Rapid Clear Fight & Fade Spot Gel, $16.99, from pharmacies. Depending on the season and outfit (and your attention-to-detail scale), you could also try some nifty camouflage work: use a concealer brush (Bobbi Brown has a great one) to pat a pigment-rich, oil-free concealer (such as Benefit Boi-Ing, $37, from Myer) directly onto the discoloured area.

Moisturise, Too. Shaving can dry out the skin. So too can many anti-perspirants. So it makes sense to extend your body cream to under your arms. PS: if you’ve had Botox, you’ll no longer need to use an anti-perspirant – only something that deals with body odour. This means you’re free to indulge in all those lovely designer deodorants, which tend to be much kinder on skin.

 

So Primpettes, anyone out there got any other top pit tips?

Has anyone had underarm Botox? We’d love to hear how you went …

Or, do you prefer to direct all your beauty efforts anywhere but your armpits?

Posted by: Katrina Lawrence

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Tags: anti-perspirant, benefit, bobbi brown, botox, deodorant, exfoliation, featured how to, hair removal, ingrown hairs, neutrogena, shaving, shaving cream, sweat, sweating, underarms, waxing