Anyone use an epilator?

It is getting closer to warmer weather and I am lazy and looking to try an epilator on my legs instead of shaving everyday. I have an IPL machine but my legs are tattooed so can't use it unfortunately. Does anyone use an epilator? What is the regrowth like? Best brand to buy? I tried one a long time ago and I remember it being like a torture device lol.

I used one for years and years and tbh I think you'll be best with shaving if you can handle it.  

Eplilating gave me horrible ingrown hairs that I struggled with so much.

If you do go epilating, get a silky mit (which is really just fine sand paper) to help smooth out the skin after you've epilated.

For my experience I was epilating every week because my hair is very fine and thin so a lot of it tended to break easily.  The first time will hurt but after that you barely feel it.

I think my purchase before I started IPL was the Braun 8.  It came with a couple of brushes for exfoliation but I don't see it on the Farmers website.  I choose this one because of the head and noise levels it created.  I enjoyed using it before I started IPL.

Wait till they come on special because you can pick them up for half the price when they are.

Thanks Imoshen that was helpful :-) Will check out farmers.

I use an epilator.  I have the Braun Silk Epil 7 that I bought from Farmers about 4 years ago. I am lazy in winter and switch to shaving then, as I find it too cold to sit and epilate my legs, but as soon as the weather gets warmer, the epilator comes back out. 

A few tips tips that I find helps me ... Have your legs waxed twice before starting to use the epilator. So have your legs waxed, wait 4 weeks, have another leg wax, and then start epilating when necessary.  This seems to help weaken the hair follicles, making epilating much less painful, ingrown hairs are reduced, and regrowth isn’t as crazy as it would be without the initial waxing. I find I only need to epilate once a week, or every second week, depending on how smooth I want my legs to be.  If you epilate too often, and the hairs aren’t long enough, you’ll find that they just break off instead of being plucked out. This also happens if you move the elipator too fast over your skin ... you have to go slowly to allow the tweezers to grab the hairs and pull them out, instead of grabbing and snapping them off. 

Exfoliating two two to three times per week is a must when epilating, otherwise you will get ingrown hairs, and the Bump eRaiser spray (concentrated serum, not the paste) definitely helps to prevent ingrown hairs. Moisturising frequently also helps. 

If if you have any other questions, feel free to ask. I’ll answer them if I can. 

    I have a cheap epilator I bought from overseas over a decade ago. Still works. My sister bought a cheap one and it lasted a few years and then she spent 30 bucks and bought another cheapy. 

     That being said the girls in my family are genetically lucky when it comes to leg hair in that we don't have a lot. 

Thanks Silvene they are some great tips! I will look into getting a wax first. @Tanny I had a cheap one years ago, I was thinking maybe technology has changed and a more expensive one may not hurt as much lol probably wishful thinking.

     I would recommend avoiding one with a coil like this one. It hurt way more than using one with the basic rolling tweezers like this one. I tried the first one. I even used it on my bf's hairy back and he said the coil one hurt waaaay more than the second one. He let me epilate his back in the name of research. 

@Silvene - great tips!  I've been epilating for years (well, in summer.  In winter I am just furry!) and I didn't know any of those tips!

@Tannygirl - hahaha!  Good on him! 

Regarding the pain, it's sensitive the first time, but if you do it regularly it's barely noticeable.  I'm super lazy about sitting down and doing my legs, so I tend to wait until I'm quite hairy, then sit down in front of an episode of something on the laptop to take my mind off the discomfort (and 'discomfort isn't a euphimism, after the first time it really is more like itchy prickles instead of pain).  

I am using the Lumi from Philips. [color=#333333]This is usually more cost effective in large part due to the fact that the machines themselves are less expensive to buy and operate. Even so, the results for many have been very good. Another reason IPL treatments are so inexpensive compared to other options is that you don’t have to go to a dermatologist to get the treatments done, you can have a estheticians perform the treatments right in their office. I also noticed that[/color][color=#333333] the machine also does [/color][color=#333333]improvement of acne scars. I think it helps to encourage collagen growth which is necessary for smoothing out the damaged skin and filling in the indents of scarring. A nice second plus for me.[/color]

I did hear you need dark hair for an epilator to work well and be effective.