Home Ipl

[Guest Daisyxx]

I'm looking to start the hair removal process at some point in the next few months but right now money is a bit of a problem so I'm exploring some of the lower cost alternatives to treatment in clinics.

One interesting solution seems to be to buy a hair removal device from this company: http://www.silkn.com/About-Silkn-SensEpil

But I'm a little sceptical about its effectiveness. Just wondering if anyone here has tried it and can vouch for or against it?

Thanks =]

- D

[Guest Shiratori]

I was wondering the same myself, especially as Boots have been advertising them.

In the instruction leaflet for Boots' Smooth Skin PLUS they even have the following warning:

Please note: Treatment with the Boots Smooth Skin PLUS system is usually permanent and complete removal of the male beard is not advisable and will produce changes in facial characteristics, which may lead to a more feminine appearance.

Oh no! That would be terrible!

[Guest Serene]

Does that really work? I'd certainly try it if it did! Electrolosis has gotten to be too expensive at the moment and I had to completelly stop my sessions so I could pay off my bills. ><

[Guest Robin Winter]

I dunno...It's certainly a tempting idea....but 550.00 is a lot to drop on something. It's a shame there isn't a way to test drive it on a small area before buying.

[kyennamo]

I had 900 saved up to have my face done at a place that does laser hair removal. I then learned ot the tria and the silk'n sensepil. the feviews for both were extremely positive but i was still a little skeptical. So, i figured maybe i will just buy both and try them. It was a risk but i took it. i figure if it did work i could do my whole body for the cost of just my face. The 2 devices were fda approved to substantiate their claims so i figured MAYBE this could work. If it didnt, well.....whatever. maybe i could sell them on ebay.

You are supposed to use them every 2 weeks. they say you don't even start to see results for 3 months or more. I am only on my 3rd treatment over 6 weeks. I use silk'n on my legs and the tria on my facial hair. I have light skin and everything from blonde to black hairs so i figure i will be a good test subject.

I will follow the regimin strictly and give them an honest chance and a realistic timeframe and see how things go. i will update everyone and let them know how they work.

[Guest Robin Winter]

I had 900 saved up to have my face done at a place that does laser hair removal. I then learned ot the tria and the silk'n sensepil. the feviews for both were extremely positive but i was still a little skeptical. So, i figured maybe i will just buy both and try them. It was a risk but i took it. i figure if it did work i could do my whole body for the cost of just my face. The 2 devices were fda approved to substantiate their claims so i figured MAYBE this could work. If it didnt, well.....whatever. maybe i could sell them on ebay.

You are supposed to use them every 2 weeks. they say you don't even start to see results for 3 months or more. I am only on my 3rd treatment over 6 weeks. I use silk'n on my legs and the tria on my facial hair. I have light skin and everything from blonde to black hairs so i figure i will be a good test subject.

I will follow the regimin strictly and give them an honest chance and a realistic timeframe and see how things go. i will update everyone and let them know how they work.

Please do, I'd be very interested to hear how it goes. I'd kill for the chance to do everything from my face to my toes.

[Guest Serene]

Thanks Kyennamo! I'm sure all of us are really really appreciative. I can tell you I am. Getting rid of this plague of hair is more troubling than it would seem.

*hugs* ^^

[Guest Elena]

I've been hoping someone could give some feedback on these. Nearly impossible for me to keep a treatment schedule for laser or electrolisis, being a truck driver and all.

I'm on the verge of buying one anyways. Face fur has always been one of the things I hate the most. Since my epilator died it's reeeeaaaaaly tempting to give one of these a try. I actually gotta decide in the next few days so I can pick it up at my mom's when I get home in two weeks.

It's gonna be that or a new epilator. If I get the IPL I will definately give updates!

Cheers,

Elena

[Guest Robin Winter]

I've been hoping someone could give some feedback on these. Nearly impossible for me to keep a treatment schedule for laser or electrolisis, being a truck driver and all.

I'm on the verge of buying one anyways. Face fur has always been one of the things I hate the most. Since my epilator died it's reeeeaaaaaly tempting to give one of these a try. I actually gotta decide in the next few days so I can pick it up at my mom's when I get home in two weeks.

It's gonna be that or a new epilator. If I get the IPL I will definately give updates!

Cheers,

Elena

Are you saying you've been using an epilator on your face??? How?!?!?! That must have been the most painful experience of your life the first time.

[Guest Elena]

Are you saying you've been using an epilator on your face??? How?!?!?! That must have been the most painful experience of your life the first time.

You have no idea how much I wish you were right! But yeah, it was still up there.

Kinda gives you an idea how much dragging a razor across my face bothers me dunnit it?

Elena

[Guest Robin Winter]

You have no idea how much I wish you were right! But yeah, it was still up there.

Kinda gives you an idea how much dragging a razor across my face bothers me dunnit it?

Elena

Yep, and I'm inclined to agree with you. The only thing that's stopped me from trying it is that I don't wanna go to work with a red blotchy face.

[Guest Elena]

Red blotchy only lasts about a day, then it's super smooth and soft for about 4 days, for me at least. After that, maintenance every 2-3 days. And maintenance is waaaay easier, doesn't usually make my face red at all.

Ohh, I ordered the Home IPL today! Yay, I'll keep you all posted. First time in my life I've been glad my beard is darker than my hair. Means there should be a good chance for excellent results. :fingers crossed:

Cheers,

Elena

[Guest Robin Winter]

Red blotchy only lasts about a day, then it's super smooth and soft for about 4 days, for me at least. After that, maintenance every 2-3 days. And maintenance is waaaay easier, doesn't usually make my face red at all.

Ohh, I ordered the Home IPL today! Yay, I'll keep you all posted. First time in my life I've been glad my beard is darker than my hair. Means there should be a good chance for excellent results. :fingers crossed:

Cheers,

Elena

Good luck and pleeeease let me know!

[Guest Isabella_Anne]

I had 900 saved up to have my face done at a place that does laser hair removal. I then learned ot the tria and the silk'n sensepil. the feviews for both were extremely positive but i was still a little skeptical. So, i figured maybe i will just buy both and try them. It was a risk but i took it. i figure if it did work i could do my whole body for the cost of just my face. The 2 devices were fda approved to substantiate their claims so i figured MAYBE this could work. If it didnt, well.....whatever. maybe i could sell them on ebay.

You are supposed to use them every 2 weeks. they say you don't even start to see results for 3 months or more. I am only on my 3rd treatment over 6 weeks. I use silk'n on my legs and the tria on my facial hair. I have light skin and everything from blonde to black hairs so i figure i will be a good test subject.

I will follow the regimin strictly and give them an honest chance and a realistic timeframe and see how things go. i will update everyone and let them know how they work.

WOW that's really great of you to try them both!! What a trooper kyennamo. I'm just starting my journey so some good feedback on those system would be a great help I know I will need electrolysis for my face, but if I could use one of those other systems for the rest? We all will be waiting.

Isabella

[Guest Elena]

Quick update from me. I got my Silk'n yesterday and did first treatment!

Yay, no idea how well it actually worked yet, just letting y'all know I am underway.

<3

Elena

[Guest Robin Winter]

Quick update from me. I got my Silk'n yesterday and did first treatment!

Yay, no idea how well it actually worked yet, just letting y'all know I am underway.

<3

Elena

Well, keep up the updates, I'm still watching this thread

[Guest Shiratori]

Looking forward to hearing how well this works.

[Guest horse stamina]

I have a chinese IPL its very good. my underarms wents away in just 4 sessions

[Guest Ceren]

Hi Everybody,

I thought that I have to write to this post my own experiences as being a laser and IPL hair removal operator too.

First of all we must distinguish between laser and IPL treatments. You may think of the laser as the marching soldiers in accordance and of IPL as the freely moving amateur marathon runners. Which one can cause to demolish the bridge while running on through it?

Secondly all the laser equipments are classified (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laser_safety). All the professional equipments like hair removal lasers are in Class IV category. The home equipments belong almost to Class IIIB. Same applies to IPL devices too.

Laser equipments must be bulky in order to be able to achieve the required energy levels. They have to have their own water cooling systems etc. Same applies to the IPL systems; in order to be able to drive the flashlamps they need a considerable space although they may be smaller than laser machines.

One of the reason of the home based devices of not being a Class IV device is that it must be bulky, would be too expensive, and the most important think is that the user of the home devices are not familiar with such a technique and can cause complications.

FDA clearance for any medical device doesn't mean that this device is mostly effective. It means only that this device won't do any harm to the patient when applied properly.

It is very understandable that you get more results with more energy delivered. At the same time more energy means more pain too.

IPL devices are cheaper than laser equipments and also their maintenances cost less.

We are using on our centers Cynosure Alexandrite lasers. In order to be able to have an effective treatment on a fair complexion with an Alexandrite laser, the delivered fluence or let say energy should be at least 18J/cm2 in 5-10msec. It should be at least 35J/cm2 with diode lasers etc. The only reason that there are three different kind of laser hair removal systems on the market, namely Alexandrite, Diode and Nd:YAG, is the color or better said darkness of the complexion.

The devices that you may have as home treatment equipments can never achieve such energy levels. I tried to figure out the energy parameters of some home based devices. Unfortunately it is not stated on their websites. May be I have to ask them personally. Please visit the websites of professional machines like Cynosure or Candela. There you will find the energy levels of these machines, but this is not the case at least with most of the home based machines.

More energy=better results

Good news is that none of the professional and home machines are capable of inducing any kind of skin cancer etc. The worst complication can be a skin burn of a first or second degree superficial. The mostly encountered consequence of a skin burn is the patchy discolorations (hypopigmentations) of the healed skin. Fortunately this discolorations are temporary and fading away at 12 months mostly.

Please take also in consideration that the IPL devices are using flashlamps for the treatments. Flashlamps have a limited life which is measured as shots. I am not familiar how many shots a flashlamp of any manufacturer lasts. You need to take into account that after some thousand shots you have to change the flashlamp. You may ask for the price of spare flashlamps and calculate the price of a single shot.

Every machine has a different treatment area coverage. One single shot of different brands treats different area sizes.

In order to be able to estimate the cost of a treatment, one must take into account

1. the size of treatment area for this particular machine,

2. how many shots does the flashlamp lasts,

3. what is the price of spare lamps

4. the size of the area to be treated and may be

5. how long does it take to have successive shots

Cheers

Ceren

[Guest Elena]

Ceren, Thank you for the detailed explanation! I read through all of the literature that came with my IPL machine and found that it cites the energy levels @ 5-7J/cm2 for your reference. The literature also states that significant results typically will require 3-5 more treatments to achieve results equivalent to professional IPL treatments.

Well, I guess it is time for an update as I have now done my second treatment. I have to say I am happy so far. At about a week after the first treatment there is definately some fur not growing back on my face. It isn't especially obvious from any distance, but most definately noticeable up close most notably on my upper lip. Got a nice patchy effect with the darker hairs there. Unfortunately for me my upper lip has a lot more blond hairs mixed in than the rest of my face, so it can only go so far. There are also quite a few small patches gone under my chin, but less noticeable due to the location. Cheeks and neck otherwise appear to have had the least noticeable affect, but it is still there, more of a slight thinning than a patchy effect though.

I will post another update in a week or so when the effects of the new treatment make themselves known. My guess right now is that It should take 8-10 treatments based on the literature, and results so far appear consistant with that so I really can't complain. The real test will be how permanent the results are, which I couldn't guess at yet.

Also, it is taking me 65 shots to cover my beard area plus 30 on my chest. Each lens/bulb is good for around 1000 @ $45 per cartridge, so there is a fair chance I will be able to get most of those two area with one cartridge. I am only doing my chest because it is exceptionally prone to ingrown hairs, well and it will allow me to wear lower cut tops without worrying about showing chest hair since I haven't started hrt yet.

More to come as things progress. Cheers.

<3

Elena

[Guest Serene]

Wow, lots to learn. The thing I'm worried about is whether or not such treatments are permanent. Certainly higher energy yields better results, but my concern is whether or not it permanently kills the root matricies(think I spelled that wrong... again lol).

Thank you for all the detailed knowlege, Ceren. It helps greatly to know exactly whet we're dealing with.

And thank you Elena for the update. I'm glad it's working so well for you and I hope it proves to be continuously satisfying.

*hugs*

Serene

[Guest Elena]

Not as much as I do!

The whole furry thing has always been what bugs me the most. Even when I have been in my utter denial stages like right after a girl stuff purge.

<3

Elena

[Guest Ceren]

Dear Serene,

FDA cleared laser hair removal devices for "long term hair reduction" not for permanent hair reduction.

Theoretically if you can manage to create such a big heath right in the hair follicles and bulbs then hair must be destroyed which means that it won't be able to grow hair anymore.

Adolescents have a permanent hair cell count. This means you may lessen them but you cannot propagate.

Second issue is that the human body is covered with hairs but mostly with vellus namely thin, tiny hairs except lips, eyelids, glans penis, palms of hands and plantar surface of feet all over. There is always the possibility of these vellus hairs to turn to terminal namely to the hairs that we want to get rid of.

My experience, I have seen people who had laser hair removal 13 years ago and still not growing hair. Please take into consideration that individual response to treatment can be very different.

Generally speaking it can be said that after 5 or 6 treatment with appropriate power adjustments you will reach the end result.

The interval between every session should be at least 2 months for the body and one month for the face or better said the next session should not be earlier than seeing the hair growth again.

Cheers

Ceren

[Guest Serene]

Thanks very much!

I realize that each individual is different. I myself could never have grown a full beard even if I wanted, and I surely do not. I did a bit of research into the cycle of hair growth and how it may be removed before I began my electrolosis. As I understand it the hairs must be treated while in an early growth stage to reach the root matrix in the folicle. I know that each person's hair grows at different rates as well. I myself have a rather slow growth cycle, which means there's a larger window of oppertunity to catch the hairs at the right moment, but also that I must wait longer if it is not caught to reach the right stage. I've been to quite a few appointments though and my cheeks have been cleared up significantly, however there is still much to cover and I can no longer afford the appointments, so I've been forced to stop going altogether for now.

The use of a device as mentioned in this thread would be a tremendous help in the conquests of ridding hair. And while I have some knowlege, information and personal feedback is very much appreciated and I thank everyone for it ^^

Simply knowing how awful such hair can be a wish for everyone to achieve their goals in being free of it!

<3

Serene

[Guest Daisyxx]

Only just checked back into this topic, forgot that I made it!

Thanks for the progress reports everyone, wondering if anyone has any new updates for us on how effective they are?