Home Laser Hair Removal Kit

It's almost the Fourth of July, and if you haven't yet already, chances are you're going to be exposing a lot more skin in the next few weeks. And no matter what your feeling is about bikini line landscaping-whether it be a light trim now and then vs. the full-on topiary treatment-I'm pretty sure no one wants any stray "leaves" hanging out of their swimsuits. (I'll stop with the gardening metaphors now. But it's better than saying "pubes"...)

While it's nice to be able to get a professional wax, that's not always feasible. Luckily there are tons of at-home options out there. From wax strips to an actual hand-held laser, I tried five different hair removal products. Click through for my experiences with each one, including-this is important-a pain scale. (No before and after pictures, though. No one needs to see that.)

I was really skeptical about these, mostly because I don't like the name of this brand (heh heh) and also because the strips seemed really flimsy. Let me tell you-never judge a wax by its name. This product was kind of amazing.

Ease of Use: You can cut the strips to whatever size you need. Basically you just rub the strip between your hands to warm it up, peel off the protective paper, and apply to the area you're waxing. Rub the wax strip on, then (gulp) yank it off, holding skin taut.

Mess: Minimal. It didn't leave much wax residue behind, but Nads provides some "Post Wax Calming Oil Wipes" that cleaned up the area well. They could provide more though-the box only came with two.

Efficacy: Surprisingly effective. I used two strips and there was not a single hair left in the area I waxed. Disclaimer: Like any wax, you need to have about 2mm of growth, or it won't work. There needs to be some length for the wax to "grab" onto.