What are Depilatory Creams and How do they Work?

It almost seems too good to be true: a cream that simply removes hair without the precision of shaving or having to clench your teeth through a wax. But these depilatory creams are very real, offering a quick, convenient and safe way to tackle hair removal at home.

So how do depilatory creams work? Scientifically speaking, they break down the keratin structure (AKA, the proteins) of your hair. This effectively thins and dissolves the base of the hairs to a point where they are weak enough to be broken off when the cream is wiped away. The creams typically contain a number of safe alkaline chemicals, formulated to break down these proteins without hurting your skin. Different skins have different levels of sensitivity so it’s important to get the right one for you and to test an amount of the cream on a small patch of skin 24 hours before you attempt to remove hair over a larger area.

Using depilatory creams may be your best option rather than shaving, and they provide a number of benefits to your skin:

Stubble-Free for Longer

Depilatory creams dissolve the hair just below the surface of the skin, unlike shaving, which slices through the hair just above the level of the skin. This means that you can avoid bumps, coarse hair and stay stubble-free for up to four days.

Softer, Finer Hairs

With shaving, the fact that the hairs are cut through means that the ends are left squared off. The process of the hairs being dissolved gives the hair that remains a tapered end, which feels softer to the touch. Over time, you may even notice that your hair is actually growing back finer than it was before – not quite as fine as you may achieve with waxing of course, but definitely a marked improvement!

Quick and Pain-Free

This is possibly the most obvious and attractive benefit of depilatory creams. It’s such an easy process, it can be done in the shower (or just before) and requires little to no effort. Because there are no blades involved, the risk of pain is completely minimized and razor bumps can become a thing of the past.

If no stubble, finer hairs, and less fuss and pain all seem like the benefits that you could be looking for, then put down the razor and try one of our depilatory creams to see the benefits for yourself!^*

^*Read label before use.