I have a secret confession to make – I have been an epilator fan for years.

While my friends gripe about their waxing appointments and regrowth I simply don’t have any appointments to attend to keep my legs smooth. Regrowth can be taken care of in 5 minutes after my shower whenever I like.

Plus, an epilator must be the most economical way of keeping legs smooth. After the initial modest outlay for the machine you keep smooth and hair free without any additional cost (unless you count a little recharge from the electricity supply now and again). I probably save the price of a foreign vacation every year because of that little machine.

I started with the original Epilady which used rotating spirals to trap the hair and I can honestly say that after I got used to the sensation I had no problems with it at all. But after years and years of faithful service it finally gave up the ghost last year and I had to choose a new epilator.

I would have bought the same Epilady model if i could but it was no longer to be found. After reviewing all the available models, I chose the Philips Satinelle epilator with massaging device which is designed to reduce pain.

I didn’t really think that the massaging device would do very much but I was interested enough to try it out and I trusted the Philips brand enough to know I’d be buying a good product. But the massaging attachment had to be a gimmick to make more sales I thought and as I was used to the sensation of the Epilady (which didn’t have any pain reduction mechanism at all) I wasn’t really that worried.

But I was very pleasantly surprised – even amazed by – the difference it made. In fact the massaging device is easily removable so you can instantly see the difference – there is simply less of an “ouch!” factor with it than without it!

The Philips Satinelle model works with a kind of multiple tweezing motion which I was worried would be less effective than the rotating spirals of my trusted Epilady but I find it is every bit as effective (if not more so) at trapping even very short hairs. So with a quick 5 minutes once a week I am back to having completely smooth legs all year round.

If you are thinking of getting an epilator then give the Philips Satinelle epilator a try.

It is becoming more and more fashionable not just to remove hair from legs and underarms but to remove hair from all over your body and this applies as much (if not more) to men as women.

For men, this is due to the increased interest in grooming and image, the constant bombardment of advertising with attractive male models sporting completely hair-free bodies in skimpy clothes and to the continued interest in the sport of body-building where a hair-free body is required to properly show off muscle definition.

But a hair-free body, whether you're male or female,  is easy to wish for and not so easy to achieve.

Traditionally, competitive body-builders employed personal body-shavers who would prepare their body for competition just before the event – shaving the whole body and leaving them smooth and hair free ready to apply oil and show off their muscles.

But body-builders have also experimented with other hair removal methods.

As laser hair removal became more accessible in the 1990s some body builders thought it was the answer to their prayers but, as you may know, laser hair removal does not remove all the hair at once or it it does not achieve a permanent result. So it is not always easy to get a complete hair-free look just at the right time for competition. Plus the expense is enough to prevent is being an option for many.

And though waxing sounds like a good idea, as you can wax your whole body in one (painful!) session, you will know if you have ever tried it that it does not leave your skin in the best condition. Waxing tends to pull tender skin and leave it looking red and irritated. Not the best look for presenting your body before a panel of judges. By the time your skin has settled down you may be experiencing regrowth. Depilatory creams have the same problems with causing skin redness and irritation due to the harsh chemicals they contain.

Electrolysis, though it is a permanent solution, is not for everyone either. It's? painful and expensive and oh so time-consuming to treat your whole body single hair by single hair. And so most body-builders and many others are back to shaving.

Luckily the market is answering the demand for products to cater for the trend of all-over body grooming and you can buy specialist electric body-shavers these days rather than employing the services of a personal shaving assistant to do the job.

If you want a natural remedy for soothing your skin after shaving and helping to prevent razor bumps, this solution  might help courtesy of the Beauty and Personality Grooming blog.

It's a recipe for a 100% natural soothing lotion using Yogurt and Cucumber.

You just take a cup of yogurt and half a cucumber and combine the two in a blender to get a puree.Then you smooth the mixture onto the area that you have shaved and leave it for 15 minutes.

That's it!

It doesn't sound that complicated but I can imagine the mess involved on the carpet.

I must admit, I could not be bothered with all that when using something like Baxter of California Razor-Bump Relief would work just as well without the fuss and mess involved. Plus you don't have to sit there covered in cucumber puree for 15 minutes while it works its magic – that has to be an advantage