Quick! Answer this question: What comes to mind when you think of getting rid of unwanted body hair?

Probably waxing or shaving, right?

Well, if you know me at all, then you know I’ve been a long-term fangirl of threading, a hair removal method using thin thread rolled over areas of unwanted hair, plucking it at the follicle level. Sure, I could list a million reasons why I’m such an advocate, but I’ll save you the trouble—all you need to know is that it’s quick, easy and doesn’t irritate your skin (case in point: this). Basically, I can turn to threading even when I’m occasionally using stronger skincare products like retinol or glycolic acid. Oh, and my eyebrows have never looked better (need I say more?).

So, as you can imagine, I was a little skeptical when a friend introduced me to this thing called skin sugaring, a gel made from sugar, lemon and hot water used to pull hair out of the roots. But I decided to give it a try!

After doing some research, I began my skin sugaring quest at Skin & Sugar, a beauty salon located in Upper Arlington, Ohio. Founded by Sarah Jacobson, an advanced esthetician, Skin & Sugar was born from the belief that everyone deserves to feel confident in their own skin (psst...they also offer custom facials, dermaplaning, custom peels, light therapy and, yep, sugaring).

As soon as I walked in, my first impression was that it was a bright and clean environment, yet oh-so relaxing. It felt luxurious with pops of pink and a polite, friendly staff that was very kind and accommodating. The cherry on top? I loved their initial questionnaire for new clients! It was very thorough and helped to create a more personalized approach to my skin’s needs. Needless to say, I was impressed.

It wasn’t long before I was ushered back to a treatment room where my personal esthetician explained the sugaring process: an ancient middle eastern method of hair removal. As I mentioned early, it’s made from an all-natural mixture of sugar, water and lemon juice at room temperature. With consistent treatments, this method of hair removal is said to collapse the hair follicle over time, leading to permanent hair loss. Woah.

Here’s how it works: the sugar ball is applied to the eyebrow area and then pulled in the opposite direction of your hair growth. At its most basic level, it reminded me a lot of waxing, but was considerably less painful since the sugar is room temperature (not hot like wax!). The entire process didn’t take long, and I only had mild redness for about 20 minutes after it was complete.

One surprising bonus? I didn’t have any breakouts like I sometimes do with threading (cue the applause!) and my hair grew back in a similar timeframe as other popular methods, like waxing and threading. Not to mention, I was super impressed to hear that this method could lead to permanent hair loss over time!

While I’d highly recommend exploring this hair removal process, the only downside for me was that it took a little longer than a typical threading appointment. Needless to say, I’m super last minute when it comes to self-care (guilty!), so dropping in for an impromptu threading appointment works a little more conveniently with my lifestyle.

Overall, I loved Skin & Sugar, and will definitely be going back (especially to try one of their custom facials!). The staff was very kind and smart, and I was impressed by how personal they made my experience based on my skin’s needs. I would highly recommend looking into it!

Have you ever tried skin sugaring? If so, what was your experience like? Leave a comment below!