Makeup Guru

DIY beauty: More people are putting themselves at risk by doing treatments at home

Yes, our finances may be stretched right now, but hands up all those who are happy to throw their hair removal or anti-ageing routine by the wayside? Yup, thought not.

Which goes some way to explaining the new research from Mintel which reveals that 10 per cent of women are now choosing at-home alternatives over beauty salon visits.

Of course, it's a fantastic immediate money saving hit. But unless you're careful, doing complex treatments at home could prove a dangerous false economy.

Many beauty professionals are reporting a new trend - correcting mistakes made by women who wrongly imagine they can effectively de-wrinkle their face or laser-remove hair in their own bathrooms.

In the past, we've all dyed our hair, removed leg hair and tinted our eyelashes at home using a variety of different techniques, but the new era of at-home technology includes ultrasound for smoothing your own cellulite, hair removal gadgets based around IPL (Intense Pulsed Light), laser treatments and countless chemical peels that are available online.

Cosmetic dermatologist Dr Mervyn Patterson, MD of cosmetic clinic Woodford Medical Aesthetics, first became aware of the at-home backlash in January this year.

'Two Asian girls came in with burns on their legs,' he says. 'They had bought an IPL machine which can be used to remove body hair. But these girls used it without realising it was inappropriate for their skin.'

Dr Patterson was able to treat the pair with soothing creams, but the correction and subsequent treatment at his clinic cost a few hundred pounds.

Since then, he has seen three further patients suffering the effects of IPL misuse.

'People assume that if products are deemed by the manufacturer to be safe to use at home, they will be very straightforward. But that's not always the case,' he warns.

'Most people are safe with home IPL devices, but some clients, especially those with tanned or dark skin, may find that problems develop between 12 and 24 hours after a treatment - when the top layer of skin can become scorched and blistered.'

He suspects many women may have injured themselves and not sought help.

Dr Sean Lanigan, group medical director of sk:n clinics - which has 31 practices nationwide - is not surprised.

'There is a real risk of people coming to harm from these devices. Because they are low powered compared to the lasers we use in our clinics, this may give poor results and tempt people to use them outside their correct settings.'

Firms at the top end of the at home market obviously feel maligned by any disasters. Kevin Applebaum, chief executive of TRIA Beauty, the £665 laser hair removal device which has sold more than 50,000 products worldwide and has U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval, says that they get frustrated by such reports.

'At best, cheap gadgets don't work; at worst, they could cause damage to skin,' he says.

'Many companies are making grandiose claims for items which are just wasting your money.'

So what do you do if you're intent on saving money and beautifying yourself at home?

In short, always do a patch test and always, always do your research first.