What is Dermaplaning?

This was one of our newer services to the facial line up here at Pampered Aesthetics. While it’s been a popular service, it also has been the one with the most questions about it. The most common question asked is “Will I grow a freaken beard?” Heck yes you will! Just kidding! No, you will absolutely not grow a beard, this is the most common misconception with this service. Let’s talk about this further. It is biologically impossible for hair to become thicker due to the dermaplaning procedure. With dermaplaning we are removing very fine hair, vellus (pronounced VEL-ES). This hair is very thin and soft, that removing it with a dermaplaning tool (also known as a scalpel) it has little to no impact on the growing back appearance. Upon removal of the vellus hair your skin will instantly feel smoother and appear brighter. This makes for a much smoother makeup application, which gives the skin a much smoother more rejuvenated appearance. But dermaplaning is painful!! * Insert a buzzard sound here* Wrong, if Tanner can handle it, so can you. But seriously just visit our house when the man flu hits, and you will understand what I mean. Okay all teasing aside it is one of the least painful methods that remove facial hair. Paige describes the feeling similar to that of a tickle. She marks her calendar at the four-week mark to know when she’s due for another treatment. But it’s going to cause my skin to break out! Gosh there sure are a lot of myths out there, so it’s important to get your information from reliable sources. This means people educated in the topic you are researching. It’s important to note that dermaplaning can’t be performed when there’s active acne breakouts on the skin. Without having explained dermaplaning, it’s a bit tricky to argue all the misconceptions. In simplest terms dermaplaning is a form of exfoliation. You all remember how fond I am of emphasizing that? Repeat it with me EXFOLIATION (a step that is so often forgotten in a ritual) Similar to most exfoliation methods, the purpose is to prevent break outs rather than contribute to them. It helps to prevent pimples and clogged pores from happening. This is due to removing the top layer of dead skin cells also known as the stratum corneum (StrT-Uhm Korne-em) Dermaplaning prevents these cells from getting trapped in the pores. Fewer break outs are the result of the dead skin cells. Because dermaplaning is a gentle exfoliation of the skin, it makes it easier for acne treatments, as they are better able to penetrate the pores enabling the products to treat break outs. What are the other benefits? Other than the hair removal, and product absorption mentioned above? It reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, provides a smoother application of makeup, your skin appears to be brighter or have a glow, reduces the appearance of acne scars, lastly its surprisingly relaxing. I mean who wouldn’t love me holding a scalpel so close to their jugular? Perhaps I should clean up my humour just a bit for these blogs. Those of you who don’t know me, don’t know that my humour is a little bit dark and twisty. It is recommended there be 4-6 weeks in between dermaplaning appointments. Rehydrating your skin after appointments is a very important step and should not be disregarded or overlooked. You are essentially stripping your skin of its dead skin cells ( the entire purpose of dermaplaning the hair removal is just an added bonus), and stripping the skin of its protective outer barrier it’s in your best interest to use a gentle cleanser and a very thick moisturizer (I personally highly recommend Moor Spa Skin Balm available through our Apothecary Tab) After dermaplaning it’s also important to stay out of the sun, and to be wearing an SPF face cream, you will be a bit more sensitive to the sun for the next few days. This is due to having removed 21 days’ worth of dead skin cells. Consider Dermaplaning for your next facial treatment at Pampered Aesthetics. If you are still curious, we do have a video on our You Tube channel, it was one of the very first videos we made. If you still have any questions feel free to reach out, my inbox is always open. Jess XO https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSszOoBX7rBusbinOee_qow