It’s the time of year when a girl’s thoughts turn with dread to the unavoidable unveiling of legs that have been slenderized under a pair of Wolford 60 deniers for much of winter. And thus, as part of my study into the effortless elegance of our French counterparts, I have news on French women, their legs and more.
Come April, the pharmacies are wall-to-wall with contour gels, evil massage devices, herbal appetite suppressors and tanning pills. Supermarchés dedicate acres of floor space to foot spas, pedicure sets, and above all epilators, for an epilator, my friend, is the way of the French. Effortless? I think not.
But you need the courage of Joan of Arc to use an epilator, so if you’d rather put yourself in the hands of a French beauty salon I include this quick guide. I include it because it’s a delicate matter, and you wouldn’t want to go in asking for hair removal of your ‘jambons’ (hams) and ‘armoirs’ (cupboards) as a certain English lady once did…
A beauty salon is an institut de beauté and waxing is épilation
Epilation aisselles = underarm wax
Epilation maillot simple = basic bikini wax – you can mime any advance on that
Epilation jambes entières = full leg wax
Epilation demi-jambes = half leg wax
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