DIY Sugar Wax Hair Remover

"Finally a Working Homemade Hair Removal Solution!" 

This is one of those ideas I debated on blogging about, but after asking fans over on our facebook page if they wanted more "it works but it's...ehhhh" posts, I decided to go ahead and share.

Sugar Wax. A long-time touted hair remover, and something you can easily make in your own kitchen. With a few simple ingredients you can be on your way to being hairless for a fraction of the cost of waxing kits you buy in the store. Right?

It's not that simple. I decided to test this out myself after reading a lot of mixed reviews on it. I found this YouTube video and decided to spend an evening testing it out.

The first batch didn't turn out. Neither did the second. Or the third. I told myself one more try, and then I was going to give up. Well wouldn't you know it, fourth time's a charm I guess, because this time to turned out like the video suggested it would.

So how well does it wax? Not as harshly as the store bought wax I normally use. Which was nice. I tested it out on my eyebrows, upper lip, and arm. It wasn't as easy to control, so my brows didn't turn out as cleanly as I like them, but the upper lip was nice (and it didn't make me break out, which most waxing does when I do my upper lip) I did have to apply and remove it many, many times to get most of the hair, unlike the one time application I do with other waxes. I have dark thick body hair though, so my fair haired followers might not have to apply it as much as I did.

I wrapped the leftovers in plastic wrap, and then went back a bit later to try it again. Unfortunately, it stuck something awful to the bag, and despite briefly microwaving it and trying to warm it with hot water, I could not get it off the plastic wrap. What I did manage to pull had changed in texture and consistency and was pretty much useless.

Personally, I'm sticking to commercial waxes (this is the one I normally use). At the end of the day, this was such a hassle, a mess, and countless hours in frustration that I just can't get into it. Does it work? If you can manage to get it the right consistency, yeah. But is it worth all the hassle? For me, the answer is no.

So has any of our fans tried this before? What were your results like?

Crayons As Makeshift Candles

"In an emergency, a crayon will burn for 30 minutes." 

Ok. I'm trying to get through this post without laughing. For some reason this image alone makes me laugh every single time I look at it. I also thought I would try something different and do a video post for this bad idea. Because honestly, this is a REALLY bad idea. 

UPDATE 1.24.15

We're working on a new format for the blog and are currently having problems getting the video to play properly on mobile devices.

Here is a direct link.

So lets get down to why you shouldn't do this. On youtube I found just a few videos of people attempting this. As I showed in the video, I did one crayon with your basic lighter, and another with my work torch. I actually seemed to have had better luck with my lighter than I had previously seen on other youtube videos, but the torch, due to its higher temperature and more focused flame, got the job done quicker. My theory on why this works is that it's like a reversed candle - the paper on the outside of the crayon acts as a wick, and the melting wax inside the crayon helps coat and protect the paper from just going straight up into flames. 

But they don't burn for 30 minutes. Maybe 10-15 if you're lucky. In my video I show how at the 5 minute mark it's already halfway burned though. Also, the image above has it sitting on someone's carpet. Which is just remarkable as far as "really bad ideas" go -- not only are you faced with dripping wax on your carpet, most carpets are made with synthetic fibers and when they catch fire, it's not good. The wax itself is just a simple paraffin wax, which is commonly used in candles and even foods, but this experiment caused a lot of smoke to form, leaving my studio smelling my melted crayons for quite some time. 

All in all, this is just not a good idea. The crayon itself isn't stable, making it very prone to tipping or falling over, it doesn't last long, and it puts off a lot of smoke. I can't think how this would ever be a good idea. In a pinch you're better off even making a homemade oil burning lamp with olive oil than you would this. But the majority of people generally keep candles, lanterns, and flashlights on hand in case of power outage. 

Using a Banana To fix a broken CD

"Use a banana to fix a CD/DVD!"

A fan on our facebook page requested we look into ways to fix CDs. She had seen there was a pin out there for toothpaste, and I had one already saved that said banana, so I figured I'd tackle both of them in one post. So, can common household items fix your CDs? Yes, but.. some are better than others. 

Sketch of a disc : Make Use Of

It comes down to how CDs are made. You can see a lovely sketch made there to the right. They are all just plastic discs with aluminium backings, which allows the laser of the reader to bounce back and read the pits and notches engraved on the CD, very similar to how old records work. When a disc gets scratched, it's the protective plastic coating that was scratched. Rubbing a banana on it (some have also suggested car wax, peanut butter, banana peels, etc.) fills those scratches in temporally, allowing the disc to hopefully play right. But it's not a permanent fix, and really the idea of keeping a disc around that has banana goo stuck in the scratches is kind of weird. 

But what about toothpaste and the like? That is a definite YES actually. Because toothpaste is abrasive, it acts as a buffing compound that helps smooth out the top layer of plastic on the disc. This makes the scratches less noticeable by the laser, ensuring the disc can be read better. It has to be our tried-and-trusted old fashion high grit toothpaste, not the modern gel styles, but it does appear to work. So I'd keep the bananas in the kitchen and just grab your toothpaste instead. 

Before grabbing every ruined disc in your house though, I'd highly suggest reading this great write up over at "Make Use Of", where he goes more in depth about how this works and why (and also gives some great pointers if you're wanting to try it yourself).

Not post-related but I wanted to take the time to let you guys know I'm now on twitter too, so make sure to follow us at @dontpinthat