Things change over the years and I have had to update this site concerning home laser hair removal to cover advances in technology in recent years. First, laser hair removal treatment could only be carried out by medical practitioners. Then it was allowed by trained technicians in beauty clinics and spas. And now a home laser hair removal machine or two such as the Silk’n have been approved by the FDA as safe for you and me to operate – and buyers are having good things to say at last!

This means that you no longer need to use an expensive clinic if you don’t have the budget or the time to attend. However you still need to use caution when considering purchasing laser equipment to remove hair.

These portable laser hair removal machines use more or less the same technology as those used in many clinics so you need to consider the same factors before embarking on treatment.

Most of all be aware of the type of skin you have – the more contrast between skin and hair the better you will get on with one of these systems and if you have dark skin then it is best to consult a professional rather than risk using home laser equipment. Some clinics have particular equipment which is better for use on dark skin – see previous post Laser Hair Removal Machines. If you have any doubt at all contact a medical practitioner before you treat yourself.

Read and follow the instructions carefully and start off with a small area to be treated on a non-sensitive area of the body such as your legs or arms. If you’re unsure book one professional laser treatment at a clinic so that you know what to expect before you start. Also see our articles on what to expect before, during and after laser treatment – you’ll find them in the Laser Hair Removal section.

For your safety always wear goggles when operating a laser and stop using the laser hair removal machine immediately if you notice adverse side effects on your skin.

Advantages of Using a Home Laser Hair Removal Machine

One advantage is that you can carry out treatment for a significantly lower cost than that involved in going to a specialist clinic. This is especially significant if you are going to treat large areas of your body considering that whether you use a home or professional treatment you will need a number of sessions and often top up treatments every few months (reducing over time). See Cost of Laser Hair Removal for typical costs.

A second advantage is the sheer flexibility of when you carry out your treatment. There is no need for an appointment – you can fit in your treatment at any time in the comfort and privacy of your own home.

Another advantage is that you will probably decide to treat areas of your body that are not so “hairy” that you would have considered paying large sums of money for professional treatment. You will end up with beautiful, smoother, more hair-free skin as a result of owning a home machine.

Finally in favor of these machine is that as you perform your treatment you can regulate the intensity yourself so that you get the right balance between your threshold for discomfort and the efficiency of the hair removing process. And you can increase the intensity of the treatment as you get used to it entirely at your own pace.

Disadvantages of Home Laser Hair Removal

The machines currently on the market for home use are not for everyone – if you don’t have a good contrast between your (dark) hair and (fair) skin you need a professional opinion on whether laser treatment is for you and potentially a more specialist laser hair removal machine only available in salons.

If you are not confident in your ability to withstand a little discomfort for the sake of beauty, visit a professional laser hair removal clinic where you will feel better in the hands of a technician trained to deal with pain reduction and nervous clients.

If you want to perform hair removal on your face you are advised to use a professional clinic. (Actually I would advise electrolysis anyway for permanent hair removal on a small area such as the face).

A laser hair removal machine may not be sold unless it has received the approval of the FDA so you know they are safe however you do need to follow the instructions – so if you are the type of person that doesn’t do that – use a clinic!

Once You Decide

If you do decide to go ahead then read what independent buyers thought (good and bad – though generally favorable) about the most popular home laser hair removal machine : Silkn Reviews

Permanent hair removal products – that’s the holy grail of hair removal – to have a product which removes hair permanently, particularly one which you can buy, use discretely at home and be assured that your hair removal problems are over for good.

But do such products exist?

Well, among the many scams and fake ads there are a few products on the market which really do work to get rid of your unwanted hair. They work, but they are not for everyone.

Why is that?

Each of the products requires careful operation and attention to detail so that you get the best possible results from the device. If you are slapdash with them, lose patience and don’t follow instructions you won’t get good results and you may damage your skin.

Here are a couple of the better examples of such products.

The Silk’n Laser Device

The Silk’n hair removal machine is a laser hair removal product for use in the home. You can treat your hairs quite quickly provided your hair and skin coloring are suitable for the machine and you are looking to treat body hair rather than hair on your face and neck. It isn’t cheap but it provides more affordable laser hair treatment than you will find at beauty clinics and medical spas. While the ideal is that you always go to professionals for laser hair removal, if you can’t afford that this machine provides you a cost effective alternative. See Silkn laser hair removal machine reviews for more details.

The One Touch Machine

The One Touch hair removal device is a product which works on the principle of electrolysis. It is much cheaper than the Silk’n and can be used on the face as well as the body (once you are experienced in using it).  You have to be more precise with this mahine and it is slower to treat your excess hair as you have to treat one hair at a time rather than “zapping” a few at once. See our review at One Touch permanent hair remover for more details about this.

You will only be pleased with your purchase of these products if you have the determination to deal for once and for all with your unwanted hair and you are prepared to put in the time to learn to operate the machines effectively and get the most out of them. Remember, even with professional treatment, you won’t get instant permanent removal of your hair. You have to go back for a number of sessions. Sometimes many. At least with these permanent hair removal products you can treat your unwanted hair as often as you like from the comfort of your own home without incurring   huge additional costs of repeat salon visits.

If you prefer to remove hair yourself you have probably longed for an effective home laser hair removal system to remove your unwanted hair permanently and without fuss. It’s very appealing to zap your hair at home and not to have to make tedious appointments at a hair removal clinic.

As there are several laser systems for home use on the market you may think it’s just a case of choosing one and you’re done. But unfortunately most of them are not great so it’s a case of buyer beware.

We have already talked about a few systems in our reviews such as the Silk’n, the Epila and the Rio hair removal system but you may come across others (and we will eventually get around to reviewing them too – let us know if you have a particular one you would like us to look at). The problem with this kind of product is that you may find reviews online but many of them are from companies selling the systems rather than from those who bought a particular system doing a genuine consumer review. So don’t believe everything you read.

If you want to see genuine reviews of buyers here’s a link that will take you to the range of laser hair removal products available at Amazon. There you can look at the individual systems and get a feel for which are the good ones.

Be aware however that results will vary and opinions differ with EVERY system and that it is often (although not always) as much to do with the person operating the equipment as the laser hair removal system itself.

Remember

1. Results won’t be instantaneous. Yes, the machine should remove hair with each laser pulse but it may come back if it was not at the right stage of growth to be destroyed. You can’t tell if that it the case by looking at your hair so you just have to keep carrying out the treatment so that you catch hair at the right time until it does not return.
2. You need to take care with your skin and start at low levels and less sensitive areas until you are used to the process on YOUR skin. You may see a few reviews from those who have hurt their skin a bit so you need to take care. These machines are not toys. It’s a case of getting the balance right between destroying as much hair as possible and leaving your skin as unaffected as possible so go easy with this until you get the right level for you (although I know how tempting it is to want to zap that hair RIGHT NOW!
3. You also need to have the right type of skin for these machines. Don’t buy a laser hair removal system unless you have the easiest type of hair and skin to treat – fair skin and dark hair. Anything else and you need to go for professional laser treatment instead.

Laser hair removal at home for the face sounds like a great idea. If you can zap away your unwanted facial hair in an instant, why not? However, there is a problem. Lately I have had a few people ask me for reviews or advice about different products they could use, but I have to say that there is not one home laser system I can recommend at the moment for face hair removal.

I don’t have a problem with home laser hair removal machines in principle. There are some which work well. It is using them as a facial hair remover I have a problem with. In fact, I don’t think that laser hair removal at home should be practiced anywhere near the face. It is too dangerous to use a laser or even IPL hair removal machine anywhere near your eyes unless you know what you are doing. Most of the systems which actually work, do not recommend it, in any case.

But I suppose my main objection is that I don’t think laser hair removal for the face is the best method so why try it at home? Why not try the method which works for everyone and which is permanent? Every hair gone for good has to be the aim, surely? Whereas a bit of regrowth does not matter too much on your legs, it certainly does on your face.

Surely it is better to use a machine for home electrolysis such as the One Touch, which is safe for the face and which will give one hundred percent permanent hair removal than laser hair removal machines which are not safe for the face and which can’t promise full destruction of the hair?

If you want to buy a laser machine such as the Silk’n for your legs, arms, chest or back then go ahead but don’t plan on using it anywhere on your face. If you want to try laser hair removal on your face, book some treatments at a clinic. Better yet, get professional electrolysis. Just don’t take the risk with home hair removal.