Clients usually book "waxing" and then get handed a menu with four types and a price difference, and decide based on the cheapest. Sometimes that is the right call. If your skin goes red and bumpy every time, it definitely is not.
The types, plainly
| Type | What it is | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Rica (liposoluble) | Vegetable oil and beeswax base, applied warm, removed with strips. Grips hair more than skin. | Sensitive skin, face, bikini, anyone who goes red |
| Chocolate wax | Contains cocoa and glycerine, soothing and moisturising, low temperature | Dry skin, sensitive skin, tan-prone areas |
| Roll-on wax | Warm wax applied with a roller cartridge — hygienic, fast, thin even layer | Large areas like arms and legs, quick appointments |
| Traditional / sugar wax | Classic warm sugar-based wax, applied thicker and hotter | Normal, non-reactive skin, budget option |
| Hard wax (no strips) | Sets and is peeled off without strips | Coarse hair, underarms, bikini line |
Why Rica hurts less
This is the actual mechanism, and it is worth understanding. Traditional wax adheres to both the hair and the top layer of your skin. When it is pulled off, it takes some surface skin with it. That is what causes the sting, the redness, and sometimes the little lifted patches.
Rica is liposoluble — oil-based — so it binds to the hair much more than to the skin. Less skin gets pulled, so there is less pain and far less redness. It also works at a lower temperature, which matters a lot on the face and bikini area.
It costs more because the product costs more. That is the whole reason.
Which one should you actually pick?
- Sensitive or reactive skin → Rica or chocolate wax. Do not let anyone talk you into traditional wax to save a few hundred rupees.
- Face (upper lip, chin, sides) → Rica, always. Facial skin is thin and the redness shows.
- Bikini line → Rica or hard wax. Lower temperature and a gentler pull matter here.
- Arms and legs, normal skin → roll-on is fast, even and hygienic; traditional wax is fine too.
- Very dry skin → chocolate wax, because it conditions as it works.
- Coarse, strong hair → hard wax grips better.
- On a budget, normal skin, no history of reacting → traditional wax is genuinely fine. I am not going to pretend otherwise.
| Full body waxing | From ₨2,500 |
| Eyebrow threading | From ₨100 |
How long hair needs to be
About a quarter of an inch, roughly two to three weeks of growth. This is the thing clients get wrong most often. Too short and the wax cannot grip, so you get a patchy result and your therapist has to go over the same area twice, which is what actually irritates the skin. Too long and it hurts more, though we can trim it down.
Please do not shave two days before a wax appointment. I know it is tempting. It guarantees a poor result.
Avoiding bumps and ingrown hair
- 1 Exfoliate gently two days before — not the same day.
- 2 Come clean and product-free. No oil, lotion or deodorant on the area.
- 3 Skip the gym, sauna and swimming for 24 hours. Sweat in freshly opened follicles is the main cause of those little post-wax spots.
- 4 Loose clothing that day. Tight jeans right after a leg wax causes friction bumps.
- 5 No hot showers for 24 hours. Lukewarm only.
- 6 No sun or tanning for 24 hours.
- 7 Start exfoliating again after three days, two or three times a week. This is what actually prevents ingrown hair long-term.
- 8 Moisturise daily. Dry skin traps regrowth under the surface.
If you get bumps every single time
Tell your therapist before she starts, not after. We can switch you to Rica, work in smaller sections, use a soothing post-wax oil and avoid going over the same patch twice. Most "I always react to waxing" clients actually react to the wrong wax and rushed technique.
When not to wax
- On sunburned, broken, irritated or freshly exfoliated skin.
- Within two to three days of a facial or chemical peel.
- If you are using retinol, tretinoin or strong acids on that area — the skin lifts. Stop five to seven days before and tell your therapist.
- If you are on isotretinoin (Roaccutane) or have been in the last six months — waxing can tear the skin. This is important.
- Over moles, warts, cuts or active eczema patches.
- The same day as an event. Two to three days before, always.
We use Rica, chocolate, roll-on and hard wax at the salon, and we will tell you which one suits you rather than defaulting to the most expensive. We are in Green Cap Housing Scheme near Metro Gajumatta Station, Ferozepur Road. WhatsApp 0328-0088408.