Haircare seems to finally be making its rounds in the beauty trends this year. In Korea specifically, all the rage was for scalp care in particular. I will be the first to admit my lack of experience when it comes to my locks...let alone the roots and surface it sprouts from. The timing couldn't have been more perfect as I have finally come to the conclusion that my eternally oily head deserves some attention as well. innisfree's My Hair Refreshing Exfoliating Oil promises to tackle just that by clearing gunk which may lead to the overproduction of oils on the head.
innisfree's description:
Cleansing oil with a clean and refreshing scent helps remove excess oil from the scalp while it deeply conditions hair.
Cleanse your sebum-prone scalp with this unique oil complete with Salicylic Acid to help exfoliate the dead skin cells that trap excess oil.
A complex of Peppermint Leaves, Nutmeg and Caraway Oils help soothe the scalp so it feels refreshed and healthy.
Free of silicone. Formulated With Jeju Pine, Cedar and Cypress Tree Extracts, Peppermint Leaves, Nutmeg and Caraway Oils.
Directions
1. Shake well before use. Apply the oil over the entire scalp, using the hair parts as a guide.
2. Depending on the scalp, leave oil to absorb for 3-5 minutes, then gently massage with fingertips to fully absorb.
3. Rinse off with warm water, then use 1.5 times the usual amount of shampoo to thoroughly lather and rinse scalp and hair.
Ingredients
WATER, ALCOHOL, CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE, HYDROGENATED POLY(C6-14 OLEFIN), FRAGRANCE, ETHYLHEXYL METHOXYCINNAMATE, MENTHOL, SALICYLIC ACID, SODIUM CHLORIDE, POLYSORBATE 20, HELIANTHUS ANNUUS (SUNFLOWER) SEED OIL, MENTHOXYPROPANEDIOL, TOCOPHEROL, DIPOTASSIUM GLYCYRRHIZATE, SODIUM CITRATE, GLYCERIN, BUTYLENE GLYCOL, TOCOPHERYL ACETATE, CAMELLIA SINENSIS LEAF EXTRACT, THUJA ORIENTALIS SEED EXTRACT, PHENOXYETHANOL, ARTEMISIA VULGARIS EXTRACT, OLEIC ACID, ETHYLHEXYLGLYCERIN, CAMELLIA JAPONICA LEAF EXTRACT, CITRUS UNSHIU PEEL EXTRACT, OPUNTIA COCCINELLIFERA FRUIT EXTRACT, ORCHID EXTRACT, ACORUS CALAMUS ROOT EXTRACT, CHAMAECYPARIS OBTUSA WATER, CINNAMOMUM CAMPHORA (CAMPHOR) LEAF EXTRACT, CRYPTOMERIA JAPONICA LEAF EXTRACT, PINUS PINASTER BARK/BUD EXTRACT
innisfree (Korean retail): ₩12,000
innisfree (American retail): USD $15.00
Packaging
Squeezable plastic bottles with a screw-on cap and a pointed tip applicator. Each box comes with 3 tubes, each tube has enough product for 4 uses. The suggested usage amount is conveniently marked on all the bottles.
Color, Texture, & Scent
In it's resting state, the exfoliating oil consists of a clear watery layer and a greenish yellow oil layer. After it's been mixed and shaken up, the liquid is a cloudier emulsion of sorts. It is a very runny product. It is not overly oily or sticky. It has an herby, woodsy, and extremely strong mint scent that tends to linger until washed away with shampoo.
How I Apply
Shake the bottle well to incorporate the oil and water layer together. Part my hair, picking either the left or right side, and lightly shake the bottle so droplets of the concoction directly fall onto my scalp along the part whilst ruffling and massaging my roots to spread the liquid around. Continue sectioning my hairline and applying until I reach the opposite side of my head. If there is any remaining product left, I flip my hair over and apply it along the backside of my scalp. I wait the recommended 5 minutes and proceed to thoroughly wash my hair with, also as suggested, double amount of shampoo.
Use once a week, twice max.
Thoughts & Recommendations
I can't say that the innisfree My Hair Refreshing Exfoliating Oil did not work. It did what their description said, refresh and lift dead skin cells. The scalp treatment just didn't do what I imagined it would do, banish my oily roots for good. My fault really for wishing something that the brand doesn't promise to begin with. (This isn't to say it can't help people with their oily hair. If anything, the results would be consequential from regular exfoliation and not directly due to the product itself.)
There is a noticeable difference in how less gunky, heavy, and itchy my hair feels the immediate days following usage versus the days later into the week before my next exfoliation wash. My scalp and hair feel much lighter if that makes sense. I don't think it helps remove all dandruff and dead skin because I do see some flakes after use, there is just a lot less than if I had relied solely on non-dandruff targeting shampoo.
I like that my hair and roots don't feel stripped of oils and moisture as one would expect something targeted for oily hair to do. I love the fact that the exfoliation only has a short waiting time before I could wash it away. I appreciate that it washes out easily and there is no residue nor heaviness left behind.
The runny, watery texture has a learning curve. It cannot be applied in large amounts and not worked into the roots and scalp—gravity will bring it running down the face and neck, not allowing it to do its job on the scalp. While I found a workaround for the fluidity of the product, I disliked and continue to not prefer the overwhelming minty scent. I bear with it since I only have to keep the liquids on my head for 5 minutes at a time.
Something that is also concerning but not an issue I can really tackle is SPF protection for the scalp after using the exfoliating oil. Since there is salicylic acid (BHA) in its formulation, skin can theoretically become more sensitive to UV rays.
I would say this is not a bad beginning towards my first foray into scalp exfoliation. Not overly expensive and does what it claims moderately well. I would recommend it to those with itchy scalps and/or heavy hair from hair styling product or skin buildup. I think I may revisit these in the future. But in the meantime, I will keep an eye out for similar items with hopefully a less minty aroma.
When everyone says lasering is a "permanent" hair removal option, I was imagining the results to last a good year at least...even without having to continuously re-laser body parts I wished to be hairless in. I could accept the fact that it isn't a one-session-and-all-hair-begone method. I can accept that it takes multiple attempts to fully "kill"/pause the hair follicles. But I was not expecting the results to revert, nearly, 100% after going laser free for 3 months when I completed 13 sessions (6 months) of bi-weekly treatment using the at-home tria Hair Removal Laser 4X system.
Click to see the progression of hair loss: 1 month. 2 months. 3 months. 4 months. 5 months. 6 months.
Granted, tria doesn't say anything about how hair would grow back if the user stops lasering altogether. All they promise is that there should be a significant difference in the amount of hair after 3 months of bi-weekly usage. However, if we apply some logic here...the laser does what it is supposed to and deactivates the hair follicles from growing at the roots, it should theoretically not reactive once the laser isn't applied anymore—right?
Here are the possible reasons I can think of to explain what happened:
- hair follicles reactivated.
- tons of new follicles formed.
- the laser wasn't strong enough for the follicles to stay dormant long term.
- hormones are to blame. (I do have a history of PCOS, which tends to elevate male hormones. It's supposed to be under control but I guess it could still be affecting my hair growth.)
Upper lips.
Nothing to really update here. There hasn't been any loss or new growth of hair. What was there 6 months ago when I first started lasering and what was there 3 months ago right before I stopped lasering is what is there right now. When I shave it off, it grows back at about the same rate as well.
Knuckle hairs.
Just like with the 'stache hairs, the knuckle wispies situation is also the same.
Armpits.
The area that showed the most drastic results during the lasering also did the same after halting the treatment. I noticed the hairs growing again even during the first month after I called it quits back in June. Over the last 3 months, the regrowth after each shave regained the dreaded aftershave itchiness sensation. It seemed to get more intense with each corresponding shave as well. Hairs slowly grew in darker and coarser. The only thing that hasn't come back, yet...knock on wood, are the terrible in-grown hairs I was so prone to before.
3-Months Laser-Free Thoughts
I would be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed in the tria Hair Removal Laser 4X. At this point, I cannot say for sure if it is my human error's fault, my uncontrollable internal issues, or tria's issue.
Given my results while consistently lasering...I do stand by my conclusions from the last post: worth it when compared to the effort needed for manual plucking (my preferred method) and when compared to the cost of professional services.
Home lasering isn't worth it for the time required for self-treatment. Professional lasering costs a lot but the wait-time in between seems to be longer. No matter what the reason is for my regrowth if I see the best results only when I continually laser, I would have to do commit myself to 26 sessions/year plus or minus some with shaving in between. I cannot ever pluck, wax, or depilate any hairs since the roots will be then non-existent and the lasers would have nothing to zap. It is a big commitment to make to those two methods of hair removal, but one that I guess I have made already since didn't return the device.
The only options I have now are to lift my temporary lasering ban earlier than expected. I also have more freedom to leave the hairs be, especially in the armpit region, to grow out now that Fall is here and the weather should technically be cooling down. Until I decided to actually consult a dermatologist or other licensed professionals about the underlying issues, I guess this is the end of the written journey for the tria Hair Removal Laser 4X.
It is more than safe to say that I gave the tria Hair Removal Laser 4X a fair trial with 6 months of bi-weekly usage. Even tria claims there would be visible results after just 3 months of lasering. I gave my pits, stache, and knuckles double the attention and received varying degrees of results in return.
Click to see the progression of hair loss: 1 month. 2 months. 3 months. 4 months. 5 months.
Do take my observations with a grain of salt. Everyone's skin and hair are different. Heck, even on my own body the hairs on different areas are not one in the same. My knuckle and arm hairs are thin and wispy. My armpit hairs are thick and course. My mustache hairs are thin & short and thick & long depending on which section of my upper lip it grows out from.
With that being said, I have come to the definite conclusion that the tria Hair Removal Laser works best on thicker, darker, and coarser hair. I won't say that it is completely ineffective towards thinner and lighter hairs; I just didn't see as noticeable results in the same treatment period.
Upper lips.
Case in point 1. There are minimal differences between the photo taken 2 weeks after my first lasering and two weeks after my thirteenth lasering. Maybe there are some hairs that haven't regrown. But on the whole, most of the stache hairs are still very much present. My biggest hope was to at least not see the longer wisps at the corner of my mouth. But alas, those continue to grow back a little longer every week that I don't shave them.
Knuckle hairs.
Case in point 2. Like I've mentioned this before, these hairs aren't my top priority when it comes to hair removal. The strands don't bother me if it's there. If the lasering could rid them, cool. If not, cool too.
These hairs are much thinner and lighter when compared those on my upper lip. I had a difficult time trying to laser this area because the surface is small compared to the laser's nozzle and the hairs don't all grow on the flattest part of the knuckle. Both reasons gave the device a tough time trying to detect the hairs and to activate the lasering.
Armpits.
The success story of the journey. True to their words, I definitely saw the most drastic results within the first 3 months of using the device on the pits. I was floored by the number of armpit hairs that didn't sprout back after just 1 month of zapping. 2 months in and there was only about a quarter of the original amount of thick pit hairs left. 3 months in however was when things started to stagnate. 6 months later, a few stragglers are still left behind; those few strands of hair seem very persistent despite after half a year of trying to literally destroy them at their roots.
Few hairs remain but the time it takes for them to grow back after each shave is much longer than before. My pits also do not feel unbearably itchy when the regrowth occurs. I have also noticed fewer in-grown hairs over the half year that I have been lasering and shaving instead of plucking.
Half-Year Conclusion
The tria Hair Removal Laser is truly an investment device in terms of cost and time dedication needed. Using this device is considerably cheaper than having to pay professionals up to thousands of dollars per session. Both require the same commitment to multiple sessions while the tria has one flat cost and unlimited usage.
Worth it just for the time I save by not plucking each individual armpit hair with tweezers manually. I am aware that epilating, waxing, and shaving are much faster options. But the preparation & cleanup time and other frustrations (in-growns, stubbles, itchiness, etc.) with those methods aren't as ideal.
Worth it for the cost when compared to professional services. If comparing to prices of other at-home hair removal options mentioned earlier, it cannot even be placed in the same league.
I haven't had any professional treatment done so I don't know what the size of those laser's treatment window is, but the biggest gripe I have with the tria is its small laser window. Zapping larger areas like the pits is a pain since the device does start to feel heavy after using one-handed for a while. I can't even imagine trying to tackle larger spaces like the arms, legs, and chest. I guess the good thing with a smaller treatment window is that it allows for precision and targeting of smaller regions without needing to buy a separate smaller device.
The SmootStart Calming Gel doesn't do the best job as a consumer-friendly numbing cream of sorts, it did help psychologically to know there is a slight barrier between my skin and the laser. While I am always tempted to slather on a thick layer of it prior to the zapping session, I found that this action only hinders the devices from being able to sense the skin and hair properly.
Now that I have used the laser for half a year, I am declaring my mustache, knuckles, and armpits to be laser-free for at least 3 to 6 months to see whether or not any of the current results revert. I have read that while the laser does stop existing hair follicles from producing hairs, it doesn't mean new hair follicles won't develop. Here's to hoping the changes aren't too drastic!
5 months have gone by on this experiment with the tria Hair Removal Laser 4X and surprisingly some of the disappointment I felt in the previous 4 months have been reversed. I hope it isn't just my imagination. Instead, I want it to have been just my lack of closer observation.
Even though I tossed around the idea of treating other areas of my body, I haven't actually gotten around to it yet. It is on my list but I want to focus on this last month of lasering on the current areas.
Recharging of the device is also a big deterrent. It takes around 2 hours to fully charge the machine and it only lasts for about ~300 zaps at Level 5 (just barely enough for a generous session targeting the upper lip + chin + knuckle hairs + both underarms).
While the Laser 4X is plugged in, it gets very loud, as what I am assuming is the fan, whirls to cool the gadget down. For heavy sleepers, recharging the laser overnight shouldn't be a problem. For light sleepers like me, it does get a little annoying. I can't even imagine how many times I would need to recharge if I want to tackle other body parts. It will probably be a multi-day affair considering how small the laser window is compared how large an area leg hairs cover.
Upper lips.
I am tempted to say that I am finally noticing some progress here. In previous updates, I based my comments on the regrowth at the corner of my lips alone since the wisps there are longer and most noticeable. This month I noticed how much less fuzz my eyebrow razor collected after I grazed over my uppers lips. It is a nice motivation to get through another month of laser treatment.
Armpits.
Stubborn patches of hairs, be gone! Since the armpits have shown the best results over this 5 months period, I am getting a little impatient to see the last bits of hair still stick around. I wonder if one more month of lasering will do much difference at this point. If not then how many more months would it take? Or should I just leave it be and just shave off the rest for a while and see if it will eventually fall off by itself?
Knuckle hairs.
I wish it was easier to see in the photos. In reality, it seems as if all my knuckles hairs have regrown. I can confidently say at this point this area has proved to be the least responsive to the lasering. It could be that the hairs were too thin or that the laser had a difficult time reaching the follicles since the area is so small and not flat. It always took a few attempts to get the right placement for the laser to zap.
Because tria Beauty guarantees 90-day results on their website, or they will offer your money back, this 3-month update should be very telling as to whether or not I am in love with, apprehensive of, or disappointed at the tria Hair Removal Laser 4X.
My wishful hopes, at this stage, were to see mindblowing results wherever I lasered with the tria system. More realistically, though, I would have just been happy to see any kind of difference. This is an at home, self-administered treatment and not a professional service.
There could be many reasons why my results aren't as drastic as others. For one, the laser beam in the 4X isn't supposed to be as strong the ones at the spas/salons. The laser's treatment window also isn't as wide (I preassume) as those owned by the pros. Since I am handling the zaps myself, it is highly possible that I made some human errors and missed spots here and there. It is really really difficult to keep track of the exact spot where I lasered and to remember to overlap it by half the circle the next zapping. The hairs on the various parts of my body could even just be the really persistent type.
So far I have personally done 7 treatments in the past 3 months. 1 treatment was done at energy level 3, another 1 at level 4, and 5 were conducted at the maximum level of 5. About half of the 7 sessions were done in conjunction with the SmoothStart Calming Gel and the rest without.
tria's website says many customers see results after 8 treatments, which equates to about 16 weeks of bi-weekly at-home laser sessions. The company mentions that "skin tone, hair color, body part, treatment level, and other factors" could affect the outcomes of hair regrowth. There could be a substantial reduction of hair to a little to even no reaction at all. Keeping all this in mind, perhaps this serves as a reminder as to why I am seeing such varying results in the different body parts I have been treating for the past few months.
I have included the BEFORE photos I first shared in this post as well to serve as an easier comparison since the company states there should be results at this point in the process.
Upper lips.
Another month of treatment has gone by and I cannot say I am excited at the results in the upper lip area. There seems to be no change in the amount or length of hairs that are growing back. If not for the new and fading acne, it would have been difficult to tell that those photos were taken weeks apart. Since I have come this far, I am willing to continue zapping the area for a couple more months. However, I am considering the possibility that the tria laser just might not work as well on finer hairs.
Armpits.
Although my pits are not 100% hair-free after 3 months of lasering, I am almost confident in saying the at home laser was worth it, to me, just by looking at the current results here. The underarms are the most promising thus far.
I am going to sound like a broken record by saying the hairs are growing finer and slower, but it really is! In-grown hairs also aren't as problematic on either armpit now. The inflammation on the crevices of my underarms in the BEFORE shot are all places where in-grown hairs were very prone to recur 14 weeks prior. Now the redness and puffiness are almost all gone. There were a few occasions where I have even seen random armpit hairs lying around my pits after a scrub down in the shower. Maybe those were the dead hair follicles tria mentions? Overall, it seems this is a success.
Knuckle hairs.
My knuckle hairs do not seem to be reacting to the laser treatments. The little strands of hair I shaved off with an eyebrow razor every two weeks seem to creep back out regularly despite the zaps. Since this area was not the main highlight of my hair removal journey, I can't say I am overly disappointed. It would have been great if there were results, but not devasting. Like with the upper lip area, I will continue to laser this part of my body for another couple months just to give the tria system a more thorough chance.
I can't say that I am completely and utterly in love with the tria Hair Removal Laser 4X, not just yet anyway. It did show some good results. But because I know that as with skincare and makeup, the device can work differently for everyone, I am not entirely apprehensive of the handheld machine either. The most I can do is give it longer chance and commit myself to doing some more treatments. Afterward, I may stop the treatment and hair shaving for some time to observe the resulting hair regrowth. This may be the best way to test how well the hair removal system worked. I have not decided how many more months I will continue to treat the hairs, but I will definitely keep record and update until then, as always.
