April 18, 2007
Toss your razors, girls
As we’re (ever so) slowly descending upon limb-baring season (we woke up to snow this morning, people. SNOW!) we’ve been testing various products to get our skin summer-ready.
In addition to self-tanners, body scrubs and pedicure essentials (reviews coming soon!) we happened upon Carefree Hair Remover TOTALLY SMOOTH Leg Creme, a new depilatory hair removal system by the brand known best for pantiliners.
The last time we tried to remove hair from our legs this way was back in high school with a bottle of Nair and not enough patience to read through the directions before slathering ourself in the foul-smelling, rash-inducing cream depilatory. I’m sure Nair has perfected its formula since then but we haven’t bothered to find out for fear of looking like we’ve been in the jungle with a swarm of killer mosquitoes for three days.
Or maybe we haven’t ventured into the depilatory aisle because, much like the reason we haven’t had Lasik surgery- wearing contacts doesn’t bother us, shaving is simple and easy. And it gets the job done.
However last week, in the spirit of testing new products, we gave Carefree TOTALLY SMOOTH Leg Creme a stab and amazed ourself with the effortless, pleasant-smelling process. It was as simple as smoothing the cream onto our legs with the sponge-tip applicator, waiting three minutes (we used this time to pluck our eyebrows), and then removing with a plastic padded tool that looks and feels like a razor, but has a squeegee-type end instead of a razor blade. Our hands never even touched the cream.
We typically shave our legs every other day and have been patiently waiting for hair stubble to appear FOR THE LAST FIVE DAYS. After careful inspection, we finally found a little regrowth on our knees this morning, but the rest of our legs seem smooth. This is probably because Carefree TOTALLY SMOOTH Leg Creme is able to remove even the shortest hairs from beneath the surface, allowing for smoother legs longer than shaving would.
The funny thing is, since we’ve been testing self-tanners all week, we didn’t even use the recommended Carefree TOTALLY SMOOTH Daily Moisturizer which is said to leave hair feeling finer and less noticeable when applied daily and used in conjunction with the hair remover cream. If we had, our results might have been better.
Both of these products can be found in most drug stores and grocery stores nationwide for less than $8 each. How’s that for Carefree?
hey, did this sting?? i have also tried Nair before and it left me burning and red all over! if this stuff doesnt itch or stong im runnning to go find it! target perhaps?
Comment by Cinthia — April 18, 2007 @ 2:45 pm
Cinthia, this did not sting me at all. It actually left my legs feeling moisturized and very smooth.
The package does encourage you to do a patch test first, as you might have an allergy to the ingredients. I think that’s smart to do with any new product.
Thanks for the comment!
Erika
Comment by Beauty Editor — April 18, 2007 @ 3:09 pm
hmm i might have to check this out. does it work for underarm or bikini hair or is it only recommended for legs?
Comment by kamo — April 18, 2007 @ 4:06 pm
Kamo, I think this product is just meant for legs. But Carefree also has a Bikini Wax kit that I’ll be talking about soon!
Comment by Beauty Editor — April 19, 2007 @ 10:33 am
That stuff sounds interesting – I may have to give it a try.
Comment by Toya — April 19, 2007 @ 11:44 am
I love this too. I got some a few weeks ago, and just started to use it. You are right – it is not “as stinky” and it lasts longer than shaving! YEAH!!!
Comment by Teri - Aging Fabulous — April 23, 2007 @ 6:44 am
Ohhhh, I’m always on the hunt for good products in the ongoing war against excess body hair. What’s the active ingredient in this stuff? Does it burn when you use it?
Comment by Karen — April 24, 2007 @ 7:43 pm
How does it do for dark, coarse hair? I have tried Nair, Veet, you name it for my legs and even at the maximum time it doesn’t take it off. I am interested, though because I have trouble shaving (it hurts my legs).
Comment by Renee — April 30, 2007 @ 6:37 pm
hmm, i bought this but i’m not sure how i feel about it. it left my legs much less irritated than after shaving, but i definitely felt a bit of stubble afterwards. does that mean i need to leave it on longer? i just used it 2 days ago so it’s hard to gauge the amount of regrowth. i’ll have to try it again.
Comment by kamo — May 3, 2007 @ 7:16 pm
Just wanted to let you know that I have used Nair and other products in the past. I have never had a skin irritation like I did when I used Carefree. I am still burning! My legs are red and blotchy. I didn’t even leave it on that long. Also, even after using soap my skin still felt wierd, like it wasn’t washed off. I will totally NEVER use it again or recommend it.
Comment by Christina Dugan — May 6, 2007 @ 4:04 pm
That sucks, Christina! The same thing happened to my daughter Bree when she tried this a few days ago. I thought she had left the product on too long, but her skin probably, like yours, can’t tolerate the ingredients.
Thanks for leaving a comment
Comment by Beauty Editor — May 6, 2007 @ 4:47 pm
I did the test spot that is recommended first, with no reaction. I then did both my legs. I have been a red, itchy, hivey, weeping mess since. And I am also bruising underneath it. If you have sensitive skin, I highly reccomend NOT using this product. I know I will stick to a razor from now on.
Comment by Tab — May 7, 2007 @ 11:58 am
i’ve used this a couple more times so i thought i’d follow up.
i didn’t have any itchiness or redness, but i usually don’t have that problem on my legs. putting it on was a bit difficult, and my main complaint is that i’ve used it just a few times, but i’m already almost out. in order to get an even layer you have to use quite a lot. and it’s not like shaving cream where it expands. it is what it is.
the first time i used it, i left it on for the recommended 3 minutes, and afterwards i still had a bit of stubble. then i tried about 8 minutes (the max is 10) and it worked much better.
i’ve been using it along with the hair minimizing lotion. it certainly has not slowed any growth. i did not get the 5-7 days of smooth legs as advertised. i had my usually amount of hair after about 2 days, but it did feel thinner. it was the same length, but it did feel a bit more sparse and without the scratchy blunt ends you get from shaving.
the best thing about it for me is that it makes shaving ridiculously easy afterwards. usually my 3 day stubble is very uncomfortable to shave, and i end up with irritation. but i shaved this morning because i didn’t want to deal with the cream, and it was much easier.
i’m slightly disappointed with this after the first rave review. i’ll probably keep using it (at least the hair minimizing lotion) because i like the finer hair i have as a result.
Comment by kamo — May 8, 2007 @ 8:13 pm
Oh my god, Tab! That is horrible- Thank you so much for letting us know. I hope your legs feel better soon. And girls- PLEASE heed her words. Do not use this if you have sensitive skin!
Kamo, thanks for coming back to let us know how it all worked out. I should have mentioned in my review that the hair on my legs is not thick and coarse, which is probably why this product works so well for me. I do agree with you about the container being too small- there is clearly not enough of this for even a few applications. Thanks again for taking the time to leave your review here! Take care
Comment by Beauty Editor — May 8, 2007 @ 8:47 pm
I found this article because I was trying to find the website for this product so I could write to them. I tried it last night, and I do have fine hair so it worked very well, but the problem I had is that I have very long legs so to get the “thick, even layer” that they suggest on the bottle I only had enough for one leg!! I mean, there is a chance that I put it on thicker than they meant, but I don’t think I went THAT overboard that I would only have enough for one leg when others are saying they only had enough for “a few” applications. Anyone know how I can e-mail them? I don’t have time during the day to call the number on the bottle. Thanks!
Comment by Amanda — May 18, 2007 @ 8:32 am
I just got this product last week I have used it twice I have used other hair removal products the cream didn’t burn or sting or anything then I use this one I don’t have senstive skin and WOW did this stuff burn when using it, after washing it off, and then also after the so-called smooth moisterizor cream it felt as if it burned worse. I had stubble the same day as using it my legs appeared to have razor burn I URGE people not to but this product and to ask for a full refund if you have purchased it b/c it sucks!!
Comment by Mandy — May 25, 2007 @ 6:20 am