Culturebox: My Year in Waxing School

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doublex My Year in Waxing School Naked people don't tip well, and more tricks of the trade. By Virginia Sole-Smith Posted Friday, Nov. 19, 2010, at 12:08 PM ET The 38th client I worked on at Beauty U. was my first full Brazilian wax--the kind where you remove all (or almost all) of your hair below the belt. I'd waxed many bikini lines and other body parts. I'd also assisted on Brazilians, handing my teachers wax-dipped Popsicle sticks the way nurses hand over scalpels. But now, it was my turn to wield the wax, solo. "I know--I'm a hairy beast!" Client 38 apologized, hopping onto the waxing table, clad in disposable thong. "You have to fix me. I'm going on vacation with my boyfriend." She spread her legs. I put on some vinyl gloves and worked down and across her pelvis, twirling clumps of hair and trimming them free. You have to trim any hair longer than eyebrow-length to prevent "locking" with the wax. You also have to act like this is normal, even though a part of your brain is thinking, "Pubic hair, pubic hair, oh my God, pubic hair." But I was getting better at trimming, and also at acting. And so clouds of hair piled up on the paper-covered table while 38 chatted about her vacation plans (the Poconos; if she was lucky, a proposal), her C-section scar, and how she liked my red glasses. To continue reading, click here. Virginia Sole-Smith is a freelance writer and author of the blog Beauty Schooled. Her work has appeared in more than 45 national publications, including Parents, The Progressive, and the New York Times. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate It Took Five Years To Convict the 1998 Embassy Bomber. That's a "Speedy Trial"? Noah: We Need More Tax Brackets, Not Fewer Americans Don't Really Want To Cut the Deficit. Why Are Republicans So Excited To Do It, Then?	Advertisement
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