Hot Wax Archives - Fashion Voyeur

Categories: Beauty, North East, Uncategorized

The Wax Bar Newcastle

With only a few more days until Christmas, party season is well and truly upon us. If you’ve let your party prep fall by the wayside then fear not as I’m about to tip you off with a brand new beauty offering you’ll want to add to your little black book.

What we’ve lacked in Newcastle for some time now, and you’ll know this because of my endless rants about it, is a dedicated wax bar. Somewhere that specialises in the art of hot waxing, from eyebrows to intimate waxing and everything in between, it’s something we’ve been in need of for a long time.

Brand new salon The Wax Bar aims to address that. On upmarket St George’s Terrace in Jesmond and with free parking right outside the door, the salon is perfectly situated for fly-by appointments. With salons in Edinburgh, Fife and now Newcastle, The Wax Bar is an established brand that’s rapidly expanding largely because of their expertise and quick appointment turnover. Founder & Head Therapist Nicole Peterson is a graduate from the Mary Reid International School of Beauty; an institution with a reputation for being the best of the best in the beauty industry, and those high standards are reflected in The Wax Bar.

From its signature charcoal and white colour schemes complemented by fuschia pink branding, The Wax Bar prides itself on being sleek and minimalist, much like its signature Hollywood wax. ??

I arrived for my appointment and was greeted by two smiling faces and a salon that smelled like fresh grapefruit. The place is gorgeous, pretty damn near perfect in fact. Smart, slick and very clean, there’s a nail bar in the main reception area too. I was introduced to my Therapist Gemma and taken through what to expect from my Hollywood wax (£38) in a well equipped room in keeping with the theme of the salon.

The Wax Bar favours hot waxing and uses Lycon wax throughout, if you’re not already familiar, here comes the science: Lycon is the market leader in hot waxing. Used with an oil prep, Lycon wax shrink wraps around the hair to remove only the hair and not the skin, reducing the pain caused by waxing to almost nothing. Because of this, the area can be re-waxed to remove stubborn hairs, something you can’t achieve with strip wax.

Aside from the gorgeous, simplistic colours scheme and genius branding, one of the best things about The Wax Bar is the speed at which they can turnover an appointment. With over ten years experience in the beauty industry and a flair for waxing, these girls have got mad skills and it shows. With no rushing, but also no waiting around, it’s the perfect appointment – done and dusted in a cool 20 minutes including changing time – perfect for days when you need to be in and out with minimal fuss and with online booking the process is streamlined from start to finish.

Obviously you all know by now that I’m a bit of a waxing connoisseur and after living in London, I’ve come to know where to find the best Wax Therapists in the UK. The Wax Bar definitely makes the cut. With a mission statement similar to Strip in London, although the salon also offers additional sought after beauty treatments such as LVL Lashes, HD Brows and nail services, the focus is firmly on the waxing with a full, diverse treatment menu dedicated to the sticky stuff.

Uncomfortable about intimate waxing? Don’t be. There’s just no need, yes there are places out there that may make you feel uncomfortable, The Wax Bar isn’t one of them. These girls eat, sleep and breathe wax, it’s their lifeblood and their job is to make you feel at ease, which they excel at. It’s a virtually pain free process, (yes, you read that right) and there’s a wickedy loyalty scheme to boot.

If you’re an intimate waxing virgin and are mildly intrigued, then man up and book an appointment, it’ll change your life. If you’re not brave enough to opt for the Hollywood wax then The Wax Bar offers a full suite of waxing treatments including eyebrows (£10), underarms (£15) and legs (£30). If you’re quick you still have time to grab one of their Festive Offers including a Half Leg Wax & Hollywood Wax for £40 instead of £56 and I’d stake my kid on the fact that you’ll be back for more….

Pixie xo

Categories: Uncategorized

Waxology: The Science of Waxing

You know by now Voyeurs that I’m a bit of a connoisseur when it comes to intimate waxing, it’s probably top of my agenda when it comes to waxing treatments and good waxers are hard to come by.

you’ll know from previous posts that I’ve lived between Newcastle and London for a number of years and have found a select few very good, very reliable waxers who specialise in the “Hollywood” – that’s everything off down there for intimate wax virgins – and these expert waxers should be top of your emergency contact list, right above your partner and / or mother.

Waxologist Frances Nixon has practised out of a converted room in her home in County Durham for a few years before deciding that it was time to branch out and bring her services further North, enter Waxology. Frances has set up shop on Saville Street, Newcastle, The discreet entrance provides the perfect cover for “shy waxers” and the period art deco staircase is a pleasant surprise as you enter the building; the Waxology room is clean and bright and Frances takes all clients through a pre-treatment questionnaire to check for any contra-indications, to say she’s thorough is an understatement. She talks through the treatment and shows me to a room where Im asked to go through the standard procedure before a Hollywood Wax, yes Voyeurs, this procedure is done panties off and it’s a breeze, way more pleasant than a visit to the Gynaecologist and the room smells amazing so we’re already streets ahead in the points stakes.

Frances chats through what she’s doing as she works, she tells me that she prefers to use Waxperts Hot Wax than the more widely known and used, Lycon Wax. She tells me she’s involved her regular clients in testing and found that this product is less painful, faster to use and more economical as less is used, making it cheaper for you, the customer.

The premise is simple, skin is prepped with oil and the hot wax only clings to the hair, shrink wrapping around it to remove hair, but not skin. The wax itself is painless, I’ve been having this treatment now for a million years and I’ve become acclimatised to it, although i’m advised that Wax Virgins could pop two paracetamol 20 minutes beforehand to help dull the pain, I’m super brave and just run with it…..

After 20 minutes I’m done. Frances is very thorough and gets to the parts that lesser Waxers can’t reach and there isn’t any of the stickiness often associated with intimate waxing afterwards – in a crude little nutshell, your underpants don’t stick to your bits.

I usually leave 6-7 weeks between waxing appointments and true to form this was the case with this wax, however I did notice a slightly more ingrown hairs than usual. This may be down to the fact that I usually have Lycon treatment and that’s what my body has become accustomed to, I’m not sure.

Frances currently practices out of the Newcastle studio Thursday and Friday and there’s a late night opening on the agenda too in the run up to Summer, for the rest of the week she’s in Spennymoor – literally covering all bases.

So, if you’re a regular waxer and can’t get booked up, have a waxing emergency or fancy trying an intimate wax for the first time, add Waxology to your list of Expert Waxers and check it out…

Pixie x

Waxology Newcastle: 17a Saville Row, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE1 8JE

Waxology Durham: 20 Abbey Green, Spennymoor, Durham, DL16 6PD

Categories: Uncategorized

The Best Bikini Wax in Newcastle

You know by now that I’m a bit of a connoisseur when it comes to waxing, particularly that of the intimate variety (Sorry if you’re reading this Dad but this is real important stuff), so when an opportunity crops up to try out a new place then provided it’s using hot wax rather than strip wax, I’m absolutely in.

I’ve favoured the “Hollywood” (that’s everything off folks) since the 90’s (talk about jumping on a beauty trend right?!) and living in London I shared my amazing Brazilian waxer with Victoria Beckham, Sienna Miller and countless other celebrities, indeed Otylia Roberts was, and still is known as one of the best hot waxers in the world. When I relocated back to the North East this left me with a bit of an issue, largely existing as a six weekly trip to London for my fix.

Fast forward to right now and the North East is all over the Brazilian / Hollywood waxing “trend” with dedicated waxing salons opening up and existing beauty salons adding the service to their treatment menu’s. When Newcastle Hair & Beauty Clinic invited me to road test their Lycon Hollywood wax, they didn’t have to ask twice……

I arrived at the clinic and was introduced to Alex, my therapist for the afternoon. After being shown to a super cute and kitsch floral treatment room, Alex gave me instructions usually reserved for the OBGYN clinic: Undress my lower half and cover up with the towel provided.

Now for anyone new to this type of procedure, this is totally standard; you have to understand that to get a perfectly clean finish, you have to be sans underwear, it’s just that simple. Alex is an absolute pro – she understands that clients often book this particular appointment with trepidation and she instantly makes you feel at ease. There’s no awkwardness, it’s not uncomfortable at all, she tells me that she’s done it for so long now it’s the same as doing an eyebrow shape or a leg wax, it’s all about precision and providing the best service possible. So far so good.

Lets pause for an interlude; the wax Alex is using today is Lycon wax. If it’s not on your radar or already part of your beauty regimen then familiarise yourself with it because you’re going to like this one – It’s very different to traditional strip wax, where the wax is applied to the skin and a cotton strip is used to remove it, removing the very top layer of skin cells with it. When it comes to intimate waxing, strip waxing can be tricky, the same area shouldn’t be covered twice meaning that if the hair isn’t removed in one go, you’ve got a problem….

Enter Lycon Precision Waxing. Using only the finest resins, natural ingredients and aromatherapy oils, Lycon delivers superior performance, removing stubborn hair as short as 1mm. The area being waxed is treated first and then the hot wax is applied directly to the hair, the wax then shrink wraps around the hair meaning that only the hair is removed and not the skin. Once set, the wax is pulled away from the skin without the need for fabric strips, it means that large areas can be done quickly and because Lycon Hot Waxes can be re-applied to the same area many times there’s no skin trauma or irritation and I can honestly say that it’s relatively pain free.

So, back to Newcastle Hair & Beauty Clinic, as Alex gets to work, she chats the whole time about anything and everything, from tattoos to dungarees from Topshop, we could be in the line for the checkout at Tesco it’s so relaxed and within a mere twenty minutes I’m done. On a whim I decide to have my legs and underarms waxed whilst I’m there and before long I’m smooth all over and feeling inspired to book a holiday. There’s no stickiness or residue that’s often associated with waxing treatments and no redness so I’m good to go.

If you’re a regular hot waxer, a current strip waxer or a wax virgin just looking to take the plunge then I’d highly recommend Newcastle Hair & Beauty Clinic for several reasons: 1. It’s an uber professional service, there’s no awkwardness, these girls have seen it all before and just want to make you comfortable and give you the treatment you booked in for. 2. Situated above Superdrug on Northumberland Street, it’s a central location in Newcastle city centre meaning that you can be in and out in between hitting the shops and sipping an Americano, no biggie. 3. This is the clincher: This is without doubt, the best hot wax in Newcastle, if not the North East – trust me, I’ve done the research and even had the bruises to prove it. :-/

So, if you want a piece of the action, get yourself booked in with Alex but don’t go telling everyone, it’ll be our little secret, right?

Pixie x

To book an appointment at Newcastle Hair & Beauty Clinic call 0191 2320411