At-Home IPL Must Knows
Like lasers, at-home IPL devices heat hair pigment (melanin) with intense pulsed light. But, if you’re looking for permanent hair removal, the one critical thing you need to understand is this: most of the stem cells that cause your hair to grow are at the very bottom of the hair follicle, which is often be deeper than laser and IPL devices can go! So, let’s get into the big things you should definitely know about IPL devices like the nood, Silk’n, ULike, and Iluminage, etc. so you can make a confident decision about whether something like this might be right for you!
5 Must-Knows About At-Home IPLs
IPLs emit a polychromatic light capable of targeting multiple hair colors, BUT…
Blond, gray, red, or white hair may not respond well due to insufficient pigment, mirroring laser limitations.
At-home IPLs often struggle with coarser, deeper hair like bikini, underarm, and bigger chin hair, because they don't penetrate as deeply as electrolysis or even laser.
Caution is needed for individuals with melanin-rich skin tones as IPL, like laser, is attracted to pigment and may burn you if you have tattoos or any kind of sun-kissed glow!
IPL is considered “semi-permanent” because it’s capable of slowing hair growth but mostly misses the stem cells that that are often deeper in the skin, so your problem hair is likely to return, even with regular use of a device like this!
Does all this mean you shouldn’t buy that IPL device you’ve been eyeing? Well, the short answer isn’t always “no” or even “yes.” If you have lighter colored skin and darker colored hair (e.g. brown or black), a device like the nood or ULike may work for you, but it will probably work best in places where the majority of your problem hair is darker and not super deep. If you read the reviews from people who have great things to say on Amazon about their Iluminage, they’ll usually reference that their device worked best on their arms and legs but it wasn’t as successful in other places — this is because arm/leg hair is shallow and easier for the IPL to cover!
So, now you know all the secret ins-and-outs of an at-home IPL device! And why there’s so many “mixed reviews” from “eureka, it worked” to “I didn’t see any result!”
If you’ve recently purchased an at-home IPL device, we recommend you concentrate your efforts on the legs or arms for a while (for the “deeper” reasons we mention above — pun intended). Most companies have a 90-day return window, which is definitely enough time to decide if things are working! If your IPL is effective, you will notice some of your hair falling away or “shedding” on it’s own within the first month of regular treatment. If you’re not noticing much of any difference with IPL within 3-4 weeks, it’s a safe bet that your hair is either too deep or your skin/hair color isn’t the right combo to be super successful with this type of technology, and you should not hesitate to initiate a return!
At Prickly Pear, we’re all about empowering you to make the best decision for yourself, so you don’t waste your money or your time. Which is the reason we love to do a no pressure, completely free consultation before beginning any hair removal journey with a new client. If we can help you better understand and demystify why and how your hair grows as well as your best options for taming what may be holding you back from being the best version of you, then that’s what we want to do!
By the way, just in case you’re wondering which hair removal method works for every hair/skin color and depth of hair and is the only 100% permanent method of hair removal recognized by the FDA, we’ll let you in on our not so big the secret! Yep, it’s electrolysis!
We’re looking forward to meeting you in our clinic very soon!