While 2023 has just begun, it seems like everywhere you look there are a million ins and outs lists, resolutions being made, and the pressure to be a new you with the new year. Instead of throwing out everything from last year and starting from scratch, we’re approaching the new year with a focus on recalibration. What works well that we can continue to fine tune, and what might actually be better off being left behind?
To answer that question, we’re passing the mic to a body hair expert. In this special New Year’s edition of Estie Spotlight, we talked to Dani Diaz, esthetician and owner of Sugared and Brows in the Bronx, about her career, her favorite vajacial technique, and all her body hair do’s and don’ts to help you reset your routine and start the new year off right.
Career
So I'm from New York, I was born in the Bronx, raised in Harlem. I come from a family that's really into beauty and aesthetics—so getting into sugaring kind of just fell into my lap. Then I decided to take it a little bit more seriously: I went to school, then I landed a job at a sugaring salon, and then became a manager there after a while, and then I was ready to just go on my own. I was like, I'm gonna take the leap of faith and just do it. I’ve been sugaring for almost eight, nine years.
My salon is based in the Bronx, and I offer full body sugaring, brows, and vajacials. The service I would most recommend is a toss up between a Brazilian and a vajacial—but I would say vajacial because I feel like we neglect ourselves down there a lot. Like, we take care of up here a lot [gestures to face], but not down there enough. So I feel like just one of those [vajacials] at least every two months or three months, just to just keep it looking nice.
Vajacials
I know some people use a steam and a cleanser, but I'm not a fan of using that because not everybody's skin is built for that right after a wax. So I customize the vajacial: you could do it immediately after [your treatment], but it's not too intense for your skin down there. So I'll do extractions, high frequency—I use a lot of serums, just because I am going to do LED therapy, and I want to make sure that those serums penetrate in your skin—then a hydrojelly mask, LED therapy, and then just a bunch of Fur products! [laughs]
I enjoy giving vajacials to myself—I like giving myself the same experience that I give my clients. I'll be laying on the bed and I'm like, Wow, this is what it feels like for you guys. Wow. No wonder you guys love it. [laughs]
Body Hair Grooming
I sugar myself every five weeks, just because I've been sugaring myself for so long now that I don't need to do it too often. So five weeks, and I do it myself. I follow up with Ingrown Concentrate and Stubble Cream immediately after for maintenance at least throughout the first week. I exfoliate at least three times a week with Silk Scrub. Sometimes I use it as a mask [on facial skin] depending—like for me personally, I break out when I'm going to get my period, so that time I use the Silk Scrub as a mask. I use Fur Oil twice a day daily. I run through it like nothing! [laughs] I'm a huge fan of the the Ingrown Eliminator spray; I use that at least two times a week. And the Finger Mitt maybe once a week.
Dani’s Do’s and Don’ts
Don’t…
Do too much.
Do not overdo it. Sometimes less is more. It's just so sensitive down there. I've had clients that tell me, Yeah, I use [Silk Scrub] every day, I exfoliate every day! And I'll have to tell them to just try to use it at least two to three times a week!
Pick at your ingrowns.
Oh my god. Like, I don't even have to think about that one because it just makes it worse, and it just makes it harder for us as estheticians to treat it, because you scar yourself and that takes a lot to fix.
Use AHAs or BHAs immediately after a wax.
Avoid strong acids after a wax—you want to give your skin at least 24 to 48 hours to let your skin breathe.
Do…
Use Ingrown Concentrate before and after a wax.
I incorporate it into my skincare routine at least every day—and I get a lot of scars; I suffer from cystic ingrowns. That product is probably my favorite [for waxers], because I’ll even tell my clients to put a warm compress on, and apply the Ingrown Concentrate, and makes it easy for me to just slide [ingrowns] right out.
Use Ingrown Eliminator after shaving.
I believe Ingrown Eliminator is stronger than almost every other product—it’s the one that I use when I know I have a client that has something cystic. It’s the fastest healing product, and I see huge results with it really fast.
Use Fur Oil or Stubble Cream if you’re growing or trimming your hair.
You want to just make sure that you are treating your hair and your skin, and just giving it that moisture that it needs. Both Fur Oil and Stubble Cream do exactly that.
Keep at least one product on hand that helps with ingrowns, no matter your routine.
I don’t think there's any person that doesn't get ingrowns ever. I feel like everybody just gets at least one once in awhile! I think you should always have a backup product just for those moments when things like that come up. Even if you don't use it all the time, you always just want to have a backup to be safe!
Try something new, and invest in your skin.
It is a huge deal; like, this is the biggest organ in our body! We have to take care of it. So I think the biggest thing is to invest in your skin.
