Dare to DIY? Laser Hair Removal

Welcome to a new section for The Window Shopper – Dare to DIY?

While opting to DIY is almost always a great idea, this section will help for you to decide whether or not sometimes it is best left to the pros in order to prevent a DIY disaster!

First up – laser hair removal

I am not particularly fond of the idea of lasers pulsating through my skin in order to kill-off my hair, hell, I am dubious of microwave ovens, but when the opportunity arose for me to try out DIY laser hair removal I couldn’t resist.

I was sent the Philips Lumea Precision Plus in the mail & got excited when I opened it. It came in a box with a few different attachments, charger & a very comprehensive guidebook. As I was a complete newbie to laser hair removal & already critical of lasers I read the guidebook cover to cover {which I recommend you do as well}. This part wasn’t fun, it felt like I was reading a text-book & had to take notes to make sure I didn’t miss anything!

Homework finished, I decided to trial the laser hair remover on my underarms. The guidebook lets you know you need to shave the area, make sure it’s completely dry, no deodorant, no moisturiser, no fake tan etc etc. Once I ticked off all of those boxes I could {finally} get started. The handset was really easy to use & I got the knack of it. It went a little something like this… position, zap, move, repeat.

While using the machine was pretty simple, I did feel a slight ‘zap’ every time I well..zapped myself. This was uncomfortable at first but I got used to it.

After the first use my underarms were sensitive & a bit itchy, but this wore off in a couple of minutes. My hair was noticeably thinner growing back, after a two uses I didn’t have to shave half as much as I was before using the Lumea! After using it for another three weeks my underarms were hair free. Satisfied- I decided to move on to my legs, which also came up hair-free after a couple of weeks.

So… do we dare to DIY or leave it to the pros?

I would say DIY laser hair removal is great for women who want to save on hefty salon bills & save time by doing it themselves. I trialled it during the warmer months, which was the perfect time to be hair-free.

The guide-book made me a little paranoid that I would screw up the whole process & permanently singe my skin. This didn’t happen, it was quite safe… but it is probably best suited people who have had it done before & are used to the process but want to save some time and money by doing it themselves.

The Lumea is available at Shaver Shops stores nationally.

DIY Home: Striped Walls Inspiration

We are in the midst of a home makeover here at TWS HQ & one of the biggest decisions we have to make is what colour to pain the walls.

While block colours are necessary for the most of the house, one look I hope to experiment with is the striped wall.

What do you think, modern & fresh or OTT?

DIY: Complete Blazer Refashion

Have you ever bought something that doesn’t fit quite right knowing that you will DIY it later? That’s what happened with this blazer. I have been searching for a leopard blazer for what feels like forever but all of the ones I found were too cheap-looking, too bulky, too orange or just plain wrong. I loved the fabric & loved the pattern on this one but the shape was all wrong. Sleeves so long you could trip on them, way to much fabric hanging around on the front & shoulder pads?? Why….just, why? But with a few quick tricks I turned this into my second favourite blazer {nothing beats the classic black.}

You’ll Need:

• An ill fitting blazer/cardigan
• quick unpick
• scissors
• pins
• measuring tape or ruler
• elastic
• needle & thread or sewing machine

Here’s how I did it…

Remove the Shoulder Pads

Use a quick unpick to remove the pads from the seams of the blazer.

Shorten the Sleeves

1. Try on your blazer. Mark where you want the sleeve to hit on your arm & put a pin in the fabric here so you don’t lose the spot.

2. Take your blazer off. Mark 3cms down the sleeve from where you put the pin & cut off the excess fabric. {if your fabric is likely to fray, sew a zig-zag stitch around the sleeve at this step}

3. Make an elastic bangle by measuring a length of elastic around the same spot you want your sleeve to sit on your arm. Make sure the elastic has to stretch a little to stay in place on your arm. Cut your length of elastic at the right spot & sew the two ends of your elastic together to make a bangle.

4. Turn your blazer inside out and place the bangle on the inside of your sleeve.

5. Fold up your sleeve so if covers your bangle and sew around the sleeve to make a cuff.

Change the Shape

1. Put your blazer on & hold out the front of your blazer. Fold in half. Sew to hold in place.{Take a look at the pic below, I folded the fabric inwards, along the dotted line, then sewed it in place.}

Recipe: Healthy Muffin Mix

Muffins that are no longer ‘cakes in disguise’

If January is the month to make resolutions then February must be the month to break them. But before you reach for that second glazed donut, stop, take 15 mins out of your day & bake these scrummy muffins, which will have less of the fat, sugar & guilt of that sloppy donut.

I love taking typically unhealthy recipes & making them as healthy as I can, but this can take a lot of time & a lot of experimentation. I have had this recipe for years now, tweaking it until it was perfect & ready to share with you.

The best part is this recipe is it’s easily customisable. I have added chopped nuts, coconut, apple, cherries, sultanas & even some dark chocolate chips in the past & they still come out amazeballs.