Permanent hair removal with the E-One

Now that it is officially summer in the City the layers are starting to be peeled off and more often than should probably be allowed the world has to be subjected to my pale legs. Now pale is in itself not a crime, but pale legs that have not been properly 'mowed' are an all together more hideous concern of mine.

Let's talk hair removal ladies. Not a very sexy topic, but one I feel needs to be addressed every now and then so that no woman feels that she is alone in the fight!

I have recently started a laser hair removal course at my local salon. I was so completely fed up with my sensitive skin constantly being red and irritated after shaving, or the painful ingrown hairs from waxing/ epilating that enough was enough! I have so far had two sessions on my underarms (one every 4 weeks) and the results are noticeable (ie. 10 days after laser you can literally pull the hairs out with no pain and fingers crossed they won't come back). The treatment itself was not painful, and since I am the biggest wimp I can wholeheartedly say that all I felt was a little heat, no rubber bands snapping. So far, so good! I shall update you all in a couple of months, but I think (and pray) it is working. However, the treatments in salon are expensive (some places charge £2000 just for lower legs!) and it is quite a hassle, especially if you want to do a larger part of your body as you will be stuck with your beautician for hours. I am not even to go into the other disadvantages.. all I'm saying is that some people get hair in strange, strange places :(.

So with hairy toes on my mind I was excited to be invited to a presentation by E-Swin, the makers of a new revolutionary at home IPL (intense pulsed light) hair removal system called the E-One.

The system itself is quite a beast, it is nothing like the versions available in Boots currently as it aims to be salon quality. If you think about it the heat produced is immense so it has to be large to be able to cool itself down (which makes me skeptical of the tiny Phillips version.. how could it possibly fire a laser powerful enough?).

The E-One promises to not only reduce, but permanently remove hair and after an average of 10 to 12 treatments (approx. 2 months apart), only 1 or 2 uses per year should be required to keep your skin clear and hair free.  It is also very versatile and can even be used on the face. The touch screen lets you select your skin and hair type so you can easily customise it to different parts of your body.

Now comes the big question.. does it hurt? I can honestly say after trying it on my arm a couple of times it didn't hurt at all! All you feel is a slight heating sensation which disappears in a flash (no pun intended). It didn't irritate or burn my skin and there wasn't even any visible redness afterwards. I have also been assured that this system has gone through vigorous tests, which have shown no skin irritations on 100% of users (even with 30% higher energy than required). The E-One was launched in France in 2007 and, even with a full money back guarantee not a single person returned it, which implies that it works and people are seeing results!

The only issues I have with it are that it is a little bit cumbersome as you have to hold the sides in and then push it into your skin for the flash to 'fire' and you have to wait a few seconds for it reset itself after every flash. This would not be a problem if you were doing a small area, but I can imagine the legs would take quite a long time, still I don't see this as a major concern. The real drawback for me is the price.

The smallest package is priced at £1,450 and includes

• E-One device and preinstalled Optic' cartridge
• 1 pair of glasses
• 2 year guarantee
• 1 working pen
• 1 gel bottle
• 1 optical spray
• 1 guide plate
• 1 Sticker patch (for covering moles etc.) 

Yes, it is much cheaper than a salon treatment (you could do your whole body, your friend's, your boyfriend's!), but it is a large commitment to make. I am therefore very much comforted by their 6 months money back guarantee, which lets you thoroughly test out the system for a long enough period of time to see whether it really works for you and if it doesn't you can send it back and get a refund, no questions asked. I can honestly tell you I am very tempted to start saving. Not only does it work out cheaper than waxing etc. but after the initial time and money invested you are left with real results! Just the thought of never having a rash after shaving, or never having to go through the eye watering pain of waxing makes it worth it for me.

If you are curious about the E-One you can their website here (it is full of information and testimonials and explains the technology, process of usage and expected results really well).

What do you think? Is it worth making such an investment or are you happy to pick up your weapon, (insert any torture devise applicable - razor, wax or epilator) and carry on the fight?