First Impressions

Earlier this week I finally got the Thanaka powder and Safflower oil in the mail. It took about two weeks, which wasn't really that long considering the many items that have taken almost a month to get here for one reason or another.

I bought both my thanaka powder and safflower oil off of Amazon. The thanaka powder cost me $9.99 and the safflower oil came to $16.88 for 16 oz bottle by Dr adorable. Now I'm not trying to advertise for anyone, but if you find better prices let me know. I don't know how many grams of thanaka powder I bought because the package was in a foreign language and I forgot to measure it. However I felt that it was really small and wouldn't last me the entire 100 days, so I ordered two more from a merchant on ebay, each 100 grams. Haven't received them yet but you will know when I get them.

These are just some pictures so you can get what the sizes look like. The powder was compact, and the package was very flat. After I opened the package, I placed the powder into a seasoning container. 

The powder is a bit yellow but when you mix it in with the safflower oil it becomes a brown color. 

First Impressions

Thanaka smells amazing! When I opened the package, this beautiful sweet, soft scent filled my nostrils. Better than any perfume I've ever used. I loved the scent, and when you mix it with the oil it becomes even better. Just the smell made me want to use this every day. 

The paste reminds me of honey and cinnamon mixture, especially when I put it on my skin, however it wasn't sticky, just oily. 

As I rubbed the oil in to my skin on the area where I had previously removed hair, I noticed how it was easy to rub into my skin, rather than sitting on top of my skin like Vaseline. 

I rubbed it in for 10 mins, which is about when all of the oil is rubbed into your skin and it has a nice smooth feel. 

I did this at night, so after I rubbed it in, I simply went to sleep. The instructions say to leave it in over night or for a while, which I would say is about 1-2 hours. When I woke up I didn't see any powder or residue on my skin. But that was most likely because it was all over my pants. LOL. If you are going to do this, make sure you don't wear clothes that you love. Especially if you decide to add turmeric like some people in order to give their skin a golden color. (I didn't do it because I don't need it).

My skin in the area that I applied the paste was extremely soft. It more than likely had to do with the oil that was massaged into my skin and the powder that could have become a buffing agent due to its gradient texture. Regardless, I felt as soft as a babies bottom and smelt like heaven. 

I love this stuff and I haven't even seen the results of the hair removal. I can't wait to see what happens in the upcoming weeks. 

My Hair Removal Journey

For years I've been bothered by unwanted hair growth on my body. It's unsightly and I wish it wasn't there. I started researching and found that there are a couple of ways to get rid of unwanted hair growth but most of them were not permanent. The ones that were, just weren't for me; like laser treatment.

I didn't want to do it. It seemed painful and dangerous. I couldn't imagine that people wouldn't have tumors developing later in their life because of the radiation exposure from the treatment. I knew I couldn't shave anymore because of the shave bumps that would develop on the areas no matter what shaving cream I used. I couldn't stand the smell of stuff like Nair hair removal creams. It smelt like a bunch of chemicals and I was worried about what it was doing to my skin. I then moved to waxing, but it was messy and painful. Finally I settled on using an epilator and I loved it.

It quickly plucked the hair from my skin; hair bumps were became minimal. It was less painful than waxing (Although it was still a pain in some areas) and no mess. However, it wasn't good enough. Even though the hair would be gone for longer than when I shaved and the dark spots in the areas I used to shave were diminished. My biggest problem, however, was that it was a temporary hair removal; and you have to wait for the hair to grow back in order to remove it.

When your single, you always have that time to groom yourself in the privacy of your own home. However, this year I was proposed to by the love of my life. Its the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. Then I realized, the privacy shrinks. In marriage, despite what people say, you have to be ready all of the time. My guy loves me the way I am, when I was bigger and thinner. I'm sure he wont take issue with any problems I may have. However, my love for him makes me want to look my best for him without spending all of my time to do it. So I needed a permanent hair removal.

I had no desire to use anything but natural products. There were two options that appealed to me; Ant Egg Oil and Thanaka and Safflower Oil Paste. The ant egg oil works, however its a slow process. With my wedding in less than a year, I needed something that will get the job done before the big day. Thus I chose Thanaka and Safflower paste.

The Thanaka and Safflower Permanent Hair Removal Treatment is an ayurveda treatment. Thanaka is a soft bark powder from the Burmese Thanaka tree (a.k.a. Limonia Acidissima). This powder is commonly used as a beauty mask made by mixing with water. The Safflower oil is also known as Kusuma oil. To make it, you just mix the two ingredients to make an oily paste.

What I've heard is that you remove the hair in the area that you want any way you please (so you can shave or pluck or wax!). Then you rub the paste into the area for 5-10 mins. Finally, you leave it on your skin for a while; 1-2 hours should be fine or overnight if you please. Do this 4-5 times a week for a total of 100 days.

Wow! 100 days is a lot. But I'm willing to take the challenge. This blog is going to go over my 100 day Permanent Hair Removal Journey with Thanaka. I'll be posting once a week with updates on my impressions and how it is working. Remember this is an all natural permanent hair removal. As long as you are not allergic to it (which is highly unlikely) it is always the better option. Join me, leave comments and let me know if you've ever tried it or used it. Also tell me about other options.

I'm looking forward to my findings and I have high hopes that this will work. Wish me luck. :)