Though younger people make up a substantial majority of waxing clientele, mastering waxing mature skin and marketing to an older set of clients can be a significant benefit to your business, and can make a huge difference in these clients’ everyday lives.
Many mature clients tend to be more loyal and have more disposable income for hair removal treatments and products. Though their skin may offer up more challenges, getting their waxing right helps you to expand your skill set and apply it to other skin types with similar needs, no matter the client’s age.
Table of Contents
This article discusses what constitutes this skin type, mature skin characteristics, and how to take care of mature skin, and will give you some top tips for safely getting smooth waxing results on this sometimes challenging but rewarding clientele.
READ: Working with Dry vs. Dehydrated Skin: A Guide for Professionals
What is Mature Skin?
Mature skinfine lines
Mature skin might lose flexibility or elasticity and can become finer or more fragile over time. Though you can’t prevent aging or skin from moving into a more mature state, there are various methods to take to reduce the signs of aging in the skin and slow premature aging that might be caused by the environment or lifestyle habits.
READ: Waxing and Dry Skin
Characteristics of Mature Skin
Mature skinmature skin
With the right products and techniques, giving your clients their best results and keeping them happy after every service can be achieved!
To give you the tools to properly approach a mature skin waxing service, we’ve detailed some of the most important characteristics of mature skin so that you can approach your waxes with care and confidence.
Dryness
Mature skin can be characterized as dry or even dehydrated. Mature skin can lack the ability to retain water moisture or produce sebum, making it fragile for waxing. Hair can become dry and brittle, making it more prone to breakage and, consequently, ingrown hairs and bumps.
Sensitive
Because mature skin is dry and lacking support, it can also be more prone to skin sensitivities. As mature skin is depleted, its defenses weaken, making it at risk for irritation and damage like skin lifting.
Less Elasticity
As maturing skin loses its elasticity, it has less bounce-back and density. Firm, healthy skin provides more of an anchor for removing wax; the skin stays put, for the most part, allowing the wax to remove the hair.
When skin is “loose” and thin, it goes with the wax being removed, making the lifting of hair extremely difficult. This can result in needing to wax an area more than once, bruising, or inconsistent results.
READ: Painless Hair Removal with Waxing: The Complete Guide
Can You Wax Mature Skin?
Just like any client, you need to have a strong awareness of mature skin’s needs when waxing, but mature skin can still easily be waxed with the right approach and technique.
Most of what garners great waxing results for this skin type requires a client to perform a proper skincare routine, as well as care for their skin before and after their waxing service (as well as in between appointments).
When clients take the time to prepare and care for their skin, it leaves it up to you to use the right methods to keep them safe and give them their best smooth skin.
READ: Why Using Pre & Post-Wax Products is a MUST!
How to Wax Mature Skin
Educating your clients on the proper care regimens they need to follow leading up to their appointment and using the right waxing formulas and techniques to wax mature skin will give clients the results they want while keeping their skin in the best condition.
How to Prepare Mature Skin for Waxing
The first step in the waxing process happens both at home and in the salon. Mature clients dedicated to their at-home care are not only keeping their skin wax-ready but supporting it, in general, to keep it looking and feeling healthier at any age.
When recommending routines and pre-wax care to mature clients, you can provide them with the following knowledge and recommendations to keep their skin in its best condition before their service.
- Increasing blood flow is critical for those who wax with mature skin. This can be met with gentle daily exfoliation and massage practices. Using a dry brush, loofah, or gentle resurfacing products on the skin is a must.
- Quick morning or evening oil massages before showering to flush your lymphatic system and increase blood flow while moisturizing and providing nourishment for the skin.
- Using cream or oil cleansers instead of foaming washes for cleansing can help support the acid mantle of mature skin.
- Layering hydrosols such as natural rose water or cooled tea like chamomile all over the body under moisturizer or lotion locks in moisture and anti-inflammatories.
- Mature skin benefits more from thick lotions or body butters than thinner lotions.
After making sure that your client’s skin is in the right condition for waxing, you can commence with your service. To wax mature skin, you’ll want to take some extra care to assess your client’s skin type and level of elasticity.
When your client arrives for their appointment, it’s your job to make sure that their skin is robust enough for waxing. This means applying the proper pre and post-wax care.
If they’re conscious about caring for their skin in-between waxing, and their skin feels nourished, you don’t have to apply an oil before cleansing. However, if the skin is feeling dry and paper thin, moisturize before cleansing for added support and to soften hair.
One of the most important things to pay attention to when waxing mature skin is using the right formula that will be gentle on your clients, and removing wax with care. As we mentioned before, mature skin loses flexibility and elasticity, which can make the wax more difficult to remove safely.
How to Remove Wax from Mature Skin
Mature skinbones
- It should go without saying that keeping your wax at its optimal temperature is crucial to avoiding injury on mature skin, but it doesn’t hurt to mention it.
- Wax in smaller sections gives you more control over skin that seems to be all over the place. You need to securely anchor it down with your hand with more attention than plumper skin types.
- Waxing larger areas, even on a Brazilian wax, can add to pain and patchy hair removal. So, take your time, because with body waxing and even facial waxing on mature skin, slow and steady wins the race.
- Don’t be too shy to ask them for help keeping their skin taught. This is one of the most important factors in getting every hair safely removed from mature skin types.
READ: Introducing Maystar Essentials Skincare
Best Skin Care for Mature Skin
Following your clients’ service, ensure that they have the right knowledge regarding post-wax care, and their regular skincare routine in between waxes.
Using the right post-wax care helps to keep the skin supported while recovering from hair removal. The best products are high in antioxidants, anti-inflammatories, and those with hydration capabilities. These factors will help mature skin bounce back quicker while defending against histamine reactions.
Recommend the use of the following pre and post-wax care products to leave skin nourished and glowing after and in between every service:
- Starpil Calendula Pre-Wax Care Gel is terrific for cleansing mature skin because it contains calendula to limit bacteria, and calms and moisturizes skin while cleansing.
- Massage skin with Starpil Post Wax Care Oil after waxing to flush it out and speed healing in the skin, as well as remove any wax residue. This is just what mature skin needs to avoid injury (blood clotting or allergic reactions, for example).
- The best after-wax care for mature skin is Starpil Post-Wax Intensive Care Lotion. It's formulated with oat extract, which speeds skin’s pH level recovery, instantly restores moisture levels, and helps relieve irritation.
- For top-tier mature skincare, use any of the products from a Starsoft Pre and Post Wax Care Bundle. Each formula is hypoallergenic and gentle. Its neurosensory actives calm skin after waxing. Tamanu oil and barley extracts protect, cleanse, and deeply hydrate the skin.
For clients looking for additional recommendations regarding their daily skincare routine for mature skin, you can also recommend the following daily skincare products that are perfect for aged skin types.
- For those looking to give their mature skin an extra pick me up and to reduce the signs of aging, the Maystar Essentials Age Management Kit comes complete with an array of daily skincare products designed to firm, nourish, and smooth mature skin.
- The Maystar Professional Facial Treatment allows at-home users to bring the esthetician’s office to them and provide mature skin with intensive moisture, hydration, and evenness thanks to its Facial Massage Cream and professional booster serums.
- If clients are looking to minimize the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles while also firming and brightening the face, the Maystar Essentials Anti-Aging Facial Serum is exactly what you need to enhance aged skin when used daily.
- When it comes to reducing the appearance of cellulite and giving bodily skin deep moisture, Maystar Essentials Cellulite Reducing Cream and Moisturizing Body Lotion will leave aged skin feeling and looking its best both daily and in between waxing appointments.
READ: Dermatologist vs. Esthetician: Who’s Better for My Skin Care?
Best Wax for Mature Skin
As an esthetician, one of the most important aspects of waxing mature clients comes in the form of using the right formulas and wax types for their services, in addition to the essential skincare clients should perform daily.
In choosing wax for your mature clients, you should always know which wax type will best suit their skin. The difference between hard wax and soft wax for waxing mature skin is that hard wax has higher plasticity levels and doesn't grab the skin as much as soft wax might.
Since mature skin is malleable, it’s best to use formulas that won’t tug at the skin as much to avoid pain and injury. We recommend the following formulas for their gentle nature, nourishing protection, and smooth results.
Starsoft Hard Wax
Starsoft Hard Waxpine rosin
It contains neurosensory properties like Tamanu oil to reduce discomfort while nurturing the skin back to balance.
Pink Film Hard Wax
Using a creamy wax formula offers a gentle touch that hugs even the tiniest hairs while leaving the skin intact.
It's incredibly gentle on intimate areas and for facial and underarm waxing.
Coral Film Hard Wax
This fast-drying formula is formulated with Mediterranean coral calcium powder, which offers gentle waxing that balances the skin tone and speeds the recovery of the dermal layer after waxing.
This wax boosts skin luminosity for a genuinely smooth post-wax glow, which is just what mature skin needs!
Calendula Film Hard Wax
Mature skin needs support in the form of water retention, oil production, and protection against free radical damage, therefore providing it with powerful antioxidants and protecting healthy lipids.
This wax contains some serious actives that meet all of those needs and then some, making it a superior wax for mature skin.
READ: Lip Waxing: The Complete Guide
Final Thoughts
When waxing mature clients or those with looser skin, the waxing techniques we’ve outlined can go a long way in keeping clients safe and giving them the best results.
Always give clients with aged skin a little extra pampering to give them a relaxing and effective experience - it will make a big difference in the health of their skin, and will keep them coming back for more.
Having the knowledge on your side to give clients of all ages their best hair removal experience will allow you to be a better esthetician, and will reflect in the quality of your work. Your clients will also notice your skill and will trust you to give them the smooth skin they’re looking for safely!
