What can I do about my peach fuzz?
First, ask yourself if it’s truly an issue that needs to be solved, The Kit’s editor-at-large says
“I’m a brunette in my 60s plagued by facial hair. I get my brows, lip and chin waxed regularly and now I have fair downy hair all over my face, too. I’ve tried all the pharmacy products. Short of shaving, are there any other options?” — Laura, Toronto
The problem I have with the positivity movement we’re in the midst of is not technically with the “embrace yourself” attitude itself, but rather the incumbent risk that accompanies it: The advice to simply let go and love yourself is now so omnipresent — often a tinny and disingenuous voice-over during commercials for tampons or weight-loss apps — that the words have begun to feel cheap. So I hope the following doesn’t sound like just soulless advice: Though there are a few things you can do to temporarily remove the peach fuzz you are “plagued” by, first it’s vital to understand that we all have it, and that looking at perceived flaws super closely isn’t what’s best for you. We have become so hard on ourselves that even a little peach fuzz seems like a battle to be won.
We live in a simultaneously filtered and high-definition world: We expect perfection of ourselves in order to mimic the celebrities we see (who have a team of eight working full-time behind-thescenes to achieve a taut and radiant result, which is then Photoshopped beyond the boundaries of nature) or even to resemble the digitally smoothed version of our own image that resides online.
To make matters worse, we are so easily able to blow our bodies’ natural textures out of proportion using camera zooms, 4-D screens and illuminated magnifying mirrors. But the reality is that living, breathing human bodies have peach fuzz, and there is very little that can be done to remove it in a way that is lasting and non-irritating to your skin. And maybe that should be OK.
“It’s a very common concern,” says Jessica Berto, who is a medical esthetician and trainer at the impossibly chic Project Skin, one of Vancouver’s premiere medi-spas. “Some people are a little bit embarrassed about peach fuzz, but we all have it. That baby hair actually evolved for protection to keep us warm.”
Peach fuzz is confounding because it defies many hair-removal techniques. It’s often too fair and fine to be appropriate for laser removal, its all-over nature makes it time-consuming to treat with electrolysis, threading is an option but can irritate sensitive skin, waxing requires you to skip certain skin care ingredients — and the list of frustrations goes on and on.
So, since you don’t want to go down the road of traditional shaving or over-thecounter depilatory creams, I’d like to suggest something that is adjacent to hair removal and boosts some nice perks as an occasional treat: dermaplaning.
Relatively new to the Canadian medispa scene, the procedure involves essentially exfoliating the skin with a medical blade.
“Dermaplaning helps with cell turnover, creates a smoother brighter complexion and makes the penetration of your home skin care a lot more aggressive — that’s the number-one benefit,” says Berto. “And the side-effect is hair removal.”
Though you can only get dermaplaning done once a month at the most, the results last longer than shaving since it trims the hair further down the shaft. “A common myth is that hair comes back more aggressively, but it doesn’t affect the root, so that’s not possible,” reassures Berto. “I do tell my clients that, for one or two days it feels a little different and then it’s normal and you don’t even notice it anymore.”
Simply put, hair removal will not cause increased hair growth: The culprit there is likely heredity, sometimes lifestyle and possibly hormone shifts. (Talk to your doctor if you suspect anything might be out of balance.)
“Knowledge is power,” says Berto, “so I always encourage people to ask any questions: No question is too ridiculous or silly. A technician or doctor will want you to question everything.”
After all, while dermaplaning is a very appealing option for those looking for deep exfoliation and hair removal (“Your makeup goes on smoother and you get a very glowing look because normally your skin’s natural oils travel up the shaft of peach fuzz hairs, so when we remove that, oil sits on the surface of the skin and even those who lean toward dry skin get a glowing look”), it’s still a treatment that involves a very real blade, so caution is required. Talk to any prospective tech about their training, experience and sanitization procedures and get a full consultation beforehand to make sure your skin is in appropriate condition.
“Some people become really obsessed with the hair. They really want to push it to come more often than they should, but a good tech will say that isn’t right for you,” says Berto. “I would love my clients to realize that they are beautiful. You shouldn’t feel like you have to have a filter to step outside in the world because that’s not realistic. Besides, what you see on your skin, others likely don’t even notice.”