Calf waxing for ingrown hairs at a Gangnam waxing salon: Super Waxing

Lately I've been getting ingrown hairs on my calves and it's been bugging me. I usually get waxed anyway, but oddly enough, after waxing my hair seemed to grow back looking even darker, which was quietly stressing me out too.

So this time I decided to get a proper calf wax and ask about care tips while I was at it, so I headed to Super Waxing Gangnam, a waxing salon in Gangnam.

I'd originally planned to go after the Chuseok holiday, but today my calf hair was bothering me so much that I called after dinner just in case there was an open slot. Luckily they had an opening three hours later, so I booked it right away and went in.

Where Super Waxing Gangnam is and how booking works

Super Waxing Gangnam is on the main street near Gangnam Station Exit 11. Transit access is great and the area is always crowded with people, so it was easy to get to even late at night.

Since it's reservation-only, the salon was nice and quiet, which made for a comfortable atmosphere. Luckily there was a waxer available when I arrived, so I got started right away.

They don't do assigned-waxer bookings here, so it seems like you get whoever's available at your booked time. But this waxer was so good that I asked if I could request her again next time, and apparently that's possible. Since treatment history is recorded, if you say you'd like to see the same person as before, they'll let you know which dates that waxer is available.

Calf soft waxing that flew by in conversation

The person who handled my calf waxing this time used to be a head nurse in a neurosurgery department, apparently. We were around the same age, and she'd already accomplished so much and seemed to genuinely love and take good care of herself while living happily. There was a lot about her I personally wanted to learn from.

We ended up chatting about all kinds of things and the time flew by faster than I expected. Waxing does involve pulling out body hair, so there's inevitably some stimulation or pain, but with all the conversation going on I barely had time to focus on the discomfort, and it hurt way less than I thought it would.

She cleaned up my calves overall with soft waxing, and also carefully took care of the ingrown hairs that had been bothering me.

Struggling with ingrown hairs on your calves?

I tend to get ingrown hairs especially badly on my calves, so I've been careful about scrubbing and moisturizing after waxing. But it wasn't doing much, so I asked her about it.

Shockingly, she told me not to just rub the scrub in and rinse it off right away, but to let it sit on the skin for a bit first, then scrub fairly firmly. She said she puts scrub on her skin while showering, then cleans the bathroom while it sits.

I'd just been cycling through different scrub products this whole time, so it was the first I'd heard that there's a whole different way to use them. How hard you should rub varies by body part, but for calves specifically, she said it's fine to go firm. Getting personalized advice like this on the spot while talking through my concerns during the waxing session was really helpful.

Does hair really get darker the more you wax?

Why calf hair can look thicker after waxing

Another thing that's bugged me is the feeling that the more I wax, the darker and thicker my hair seems to get! I've brought this up at other salons multiple times, and I always got the same answer: no, actually the hair gets thinner and sparser. That was it, end of explanation.

But hearing this waxer's explanation, she said it's less that the hair actually gets darker, and more that as waxing also clears away the dead skin layer on the surface, the skin brightens up, which can make the hair look relatively darker and more noticeable by comparison. She also explained that it's better to keep waxing on a regular cycle rather than just doing it once and stopping.

For calves specifically, she said about every 3 weeks is ideal. Apparently there's a pretty big difference between people who keep to a regular cycle and those who go long stretches between sessions. If you take a long break and then wax again, it's basically like starting from your very first wax all over again. On the other hand, sticking to a regular cycle can actually make a real difference in how the hair grows back, both in pattern and speed.

The truth about sweet-smelling body wash

We didn't just talk about waxing — body wash came up too. She said she uses four different body washes. One is scented, and the rest are all functional ones. As for the scented body wash, she shared something she'd heard from a dermatologist at a skin clinic she'd visited.

Apparently the body tends to treat fragrance as something to attack, so using a nice-smelling body wash every single day can actually activate something that ends up making your body smell worse. That was genuinely shocking to hear. That doesn't mean you can never use scented body wash — just save it for occasions like before a date, rather than using it daily, since daily use isn't great.

With so much useful information and fun conversation, the whole waxing session turned out to be really enjoyable.

How my calves looked after the waxing

She was so skilled that my calves came out completely clean and really smooth. They even took a same-day booking, and I left really happy with a satisfying wax. Taking her advice, I want to get my calves waxed every 3 weeks and finally be free of the hair for good.