Finally Decided to Be Done with RAZOR BURN! Mississauga, ON, Canada

I am a female in my 40's from southern European background with brown hair and medium skin tone. After years of shaving and the occasional painful wax before vacation, I decided to treat myself to laser hair removal. After literally years of research on the different lasers and going to a few clinics for consultations and patch tests, it ultimately came down to price verses results. Laser hair removal was very expensive and after hearing and reading about all the horror stories of people getting burned and having poor results, I decided against it for years. Last year, a close family member decided to go to a clinic that used the Soprano laser for hair removal. Her friend went to this clinic a year prior and was raving about the results. After about 12 sessions of painless laser hair removal with the Soprano Laser, they were both virtually hair free! As no laser can claim to offer permanent hair removal, they do have the occasional hair pop up, but there is an approximate 90% reduction of hair on their bodies, amazing!

Well, in December, after doing some more research on the Soprano laser and prices at local clinics, I found a clinic in south Mississauga called Beauty and the Spa, owned and operated by a certified laser technician named Almas. She uses the updated Soprano XLi which is more powerful than the original Soprano so the results are even faster, requiring less sessions and even better, you save money!!! Her prices were amazing too, and she even treats tiny areas with stubborn hairs (like the 2 hairs on my chin) for little to no extra cost when you purchase one body part or more. She also has package deals with lower prices if you do more than one body part.

I called and got an appointment the next day, as I had a day off at work. I was asked to shave all areas that I wanted to treat prior my appointment. Almas is an absolute sweetheart and her clinic is super clean! She explained the procedure and the settings she would use for the best possible result. As the Soprano is well known as the gold standard in the industry and is perfect for all skin types, I was confident I had made the best choice in laser and clinic.

I was very excited to get started and I can't stress enough how comfortable I was in my "birthday suit" with Almas. It was like going to the doctor for a physical but better!!! Her kind personality and knowledge/experience with the procedure took away any anxiety I had about getting this done. Almas took her time explaining what she was doing and what results I could expect. I had her do my full legs, Brazilian, under arms and upper lip and I barely felt a pinch, it was PAINLESS!!!! Almas is thorough, no rushing and takes her time going over the areas she is treating.

The entire procedure took about an hour and a half as she covered a large area of my body but the time flew by as we chatted. She is just wonderful and I am still in disbelief about how painless the procedure was and how comfortable she made me feel! I had a bit of redness in the treated areas which is normal and faded away completely by the time I got home. There was no pain or sensitivity after the treatment and Almas advised me not to go swimming or work up a sweat for 24 hours, just because the laser can make your skin more sensitive to chlorine and sweating. I made my next appointment for my upper lip in 2 weeks, as it is the protocol for facial hair, and I made my appointment for the rest of my body in 4 weeks.

January 14 2015:

Today I went for my second body procedure, 4 weeks after my first body treatment and I must say, the results after the first session are amazing!!! The first 2 weeks I honestly thought the procedure didn't do anything but by the third week, after the hair follicles pushed out the treated hairs, I had barely any regrowth, UNBELIEVABLE!!! I shaved once in the 3rd week, only because I was going swimming with friends but the growth of the hairs I did have was slowed down tremendously! My second treatment today was great as well and Almas turned up the setting a bit which she does at every session, as your skin gets used to the laser. She is very diligent in following up with her clients to make sure they are doing well after every session and keeps a file to record every patients settings etc.

I'm going on vacation in February and I couldn't be happier about not having to shave every day while I'm there! I highly recommend Beauty and the Spa for laser hair removal and I will keep updating my results as my treatments progress. I didn't think I would be posting a review so I didn't take any photos but I definitely will add some soon.

January 19 2015:

It has been 6 days (Jan 13th) since my last shave and 5 days since my second laser treatment! As you can see by my photos, the hair growth has slowed down a lot and I haven't had the need to shave at all, GREAT!!!! After 6 days of not shaving, I'd be a furry beast by now so these results are unreal! :) I was advised by Almas to shave once a week whether I need to or not, just for the exfoliation benefit so I will probably shave tonight. The hair that is visible is probably in the falling out stage and will take a week or two to fall out completely as the follicle pushes the hair out. My skin looks great, no irritation or redness, this laser is amazing along with the technician and I'm thrilled so far!!!! :)))))

I am back from my Dominican vacation and wow, was it ever great to only have to shave once in 10 days! I can't stress enough how great the Soprano laser XLi is! I had my 3rd body treatment mid February so it has been 2 weeks and I am seeing less and less hair growing back. The hair that does grow back is sooooo soft and not prickly at all, especially the dreaded bikini area. The hair on my lower legs, under arms and upper lip has responded the fastest so far with barely any regrowth. The Brazilian and Inner Thigh area have little patches that grow, as you can see in the photos, but after only 3 treatments, I'm super happy with the results as the hair is much finer. Unfortunately I have a few white hairs in the Brazilian area which won't respond to the laser but that's my fault for waiting past my 30's to get this done! lol It's fine though, I can live with a few hairs that I can wax or shave occasionally. :)