by Lynette MacDonald
January 2012
Maybe it’s because I come from a beachside town where being over the age of 15 and having the physical ability to plunge a paddle pop stick into a cauldron of wax seem to be the only prerequisites for becoming a beauty salon “waxer”, but it seems to me that getting some defoliation done her in Shanghai takes way too much planning.
With many expats off to sunnier climes for the CNY break, it’s not surprising that lots of us are lining up to have the winter coat removed. However, in a city with literally thousands of hairdressing salons, massage joints, and spas, waxing seems to be placed in a peculiar “specialist” category, that’s not just difficult to find, but expensive as well.
When I first arrived in Shanghai, I mistakenly thought that my local (and cheap) hairdressing salon, which also has manicures on offer, and even massage, would also offer waxing. The completely quizzical look on the face of the receptionist when I asked, in broken Mandarin, for the waxing menu, said it all. Where did I think I was?
Even in spas and salons where it is available, only one or two of the dozens of staff are deemed qualified to perform hair removal, and when they do, for some reason I find hard to fathom, they also require surgical masks. Why? Is a germ going to make its way into an open pore? Could their breath contaminate the heated wax?
Admittedly, I’ve not tried all the waxing options on offer in Shanghai, and I just feel I don’t have the spare time to have my hairs individually removed using cotton thread, although that is a very hip option these days. But, I have tried a couple of the big ones, Strip (you know, the one with the orang-utan jumping into the lake) and Dragonfly.
One of the first, and most startling, observations for me is the price. As I contemplate the menu of services to have pain inflicted for approximately 20 minutes, I realize that I could, for the same money, at the same place or the spa next door, enjoy a full hour massage or pedicure, or both. Yesterday, as I sat at Dragonfly waiting for the (only) waxer to finish with the client before me, I truly almost changed my mind and considered just having a massage and getting the razor out at home! I would have saved money in the process, but fortunately, sense prevailed, and the idea of having smooth legs for an entire fortnight of holidays won out.
The Strip menu doesn’t have any delights to entice you away from your waxing, but their menu (yes menu) of bikini waxing options takes the breath away. Without getting into the nitty-gritty of it all, their complicated pricing method can see you spending a couple of hundred RMB just for a basic tidy up, and if you choose the more exotic South American numbers, expect to pay much more. The recipe: more pain, more money!
And then, there’s the wax – chocolate, strawberry, you name it. The variety is just marvelous. Although I am vague about what benefit there is to chocolate wax, as opposed to the garden variety.
For the record, the wax “therapist” at Dragonfly did a marvelous job, fast and efficient, and no stray hairs to report.
As for Strip, I found the service, for the price, to be a bit rushed, and the result was less than perfect, perhaps exacerbated by the fact the treatment rooms are quite dimly lit.
Bon Voyage!
