Me My Elos(version 1) IPL Review

During our feb BKK trip, I was mostly decked in shorts because I'm terribly afraid of heat. There was once when we were seated at the small lounge area of Budacco Hotel and Lyn suddenly ran her hand through my thigh and then drifted down to my lower legs. Lol. It sounded pretty kinky but I can assure we're both straight. She merely remarked that it feels smooth to the touch and asked me whether I wax. I said I dont but I do shave occasionally. She was surprised because shaving usually cause unsightly and rough bumps. I then said, that's probably because I always do scrubs before I shave and I seldom need to shave my legs now because of me.my.elos. =) Less shaving naturally means less friction with your skin and definitely means smoother legs. Of course, moisturizing your legs is a must if you sleep in air-conditioned rooms.

It has been around 2.5months since I've started using me.my.elos. As you can see, the cartridge capacity lighting is flashing at "empty" which means there's around 5% left. It's due time that I do a review and I must say I'm very pleased with the results.

me my elos from Clariancy

Background info

I actually spent some time on researching info and reviews before making any decision. Unfortunately, there arent many reviews online. And the few reviews online arent very concrete. I did try out the real thing at Clariancy at Jurong Point. It's very easy to use and saves time for big areas like legs because you can "roll" over instead of zapping all the way. Of course I cant expect results with just 1 try. Eventually, I decided to go ahead after reading info online and doing some cost calculations on my own. However, before I can buy it admist the very busy Dec where I was swamped with work, dearie bought it for me as a Christmas present!!! Love you honey!! Smuacks!! You know...actually all this...is all for you. Wahahaha!

Since this is a review, I will not dwell too much on the specifications of the model as it's all in the links. me.my.elos(version 1) is only suitable for light to tan skinned people with dark hair. They're not for dark people or light hair. It can only be used from the face down. I.e, anywhere except the face. For a super basic info, me.my.elos uses the combination of 2 technology, namely the IPL(Intense pulse light) and RF(Radio frequency). There are actually other kinds of technology for hair removal, like VPL(variable pulse light), laser etc and I read that RF is a newer type of technology compared to IPL, which was the more common one with no downtime.

I have experience with IPL as I did my underarms with a salon quite some time back. And although I seldom need to shave anymore, I'm afraid it will come back as it wasnt totally gone . I was informed by a very honest professional that in actual fact, IPL does not promise permanent hair removal like all advertisements do, more like permanent hair reduction. I guess it varies with people. Some people need to wear their teeth retainers for all their life while some enjoys straight teeth forever after braces. It's kinda hard to say. You should know that with frequent shaving, hair will turn coarser and everything will just go back to square 1. Therefore, I wish to use me.my.elos as a kind of maintenance for my underarms and to significantly reduce the need for shaving my lower legs too. I have dark hair, as for skin tone...actually I dont feel I'm fair because I have much fairer friends like Lin, Jes, Gra, Li......but somehow many friends always comment that I'm fair (=.=)'''''...so I guess I'm slightly fairer than the usual skin tone bah.


My Review:
Firstly, I need to say not all info from the sales assistant is correct. She said, when the cartridge is 100% full, you can only use low to medium mode and only when the cartridge is 50% full or below, then you can use high mode. That's not true. I did start out with low mode because I wasnt sure how my skin is going to react. It's like a luke warm feeling with the device flashing very brightly like camera flashes and doesnt cause any discomfort. So for my 2nd try, I used medium. It was slightly warmer but I'm totally fine with it. So I tried high for the 3rd time. Increasingly hot but bearable. I "rolled" it for my legs but use the "zapping" method(like tapping) for my kneecaps and underarms because these areas are not easy to roll over.

I will say there wasnt any significant results for the first multiple sessions. The need for shaving is the same frequency. It wasnt until...say...until the 12th session that I see significant results for my legs. The frequency for shaving reduced significantly, which also means the frequency for using me.my.elos also dropped. Now, for underarms, I think I shave like....once every 2 months? For legs, maybe once every 3-4weeks? Hairs also became very fine, soft and light(colour) instead of coarse and dark. Even if the legs arent really hair-free, they're nice to touch(and see, haha) because the hair are so fine and light(colour) that they're not really visible.

There is no downtime or side effect although using "high" mode sometimes might cause some redness on my fair skin. But it doesnt hurt and will go away after awhile. There's no need to apply anything(that's for me).

There are reviews which said me.my.elos isnt effective. Other than results vary with different people, I must say, I do wonder if they are using it correctly and efficiently. It's pretty effective for me so here are some of my tips: (which works for me). I do not guarantee it works the same for everyone.


My Tips for using me.my.elos
1) Do not epilate. I dont understand why they sell the epilator cartridge together with the device when long time ago, I was told not to wax/epilate prior to doing IPL because IPL needs to destroy the hair follicles/roots. When you epilate or wax, the whole root was removed thus the IPL/RF wouldnt have worked.

2) Always shave prior to using me.my.elos. with a sharp razor. And prior to your shave, always have warm shower and do a scrub so that pores open for smooth shave. After shaving, drench with cold water to close back the pores. For me, I always shower, then scrub, then shave, then use me.my.elos. Without fail.

3) Be consistent.
I took a longer time and more money than needed to do IPL for my underarms because I was kinda lazy to travel to town on some days. And when hair grown back without the consistent IPL treatments, again, you need to start from square 1 again. So really, you have no excuse to be lazy when the device is right at home. Whenever I need to shave, like maybe a 2mm growth, I will do the whole procedure of shower-scrub-shave-me.my.elos. Please dont let your hair grow to 0.5cm or 1cm then you shave hor, it's like back to square 1.

4) Use a mirror if you're doing your underarms, so that you can see clearly. Use the "tapping" method. It's okay to go over the same spot twice but not more. 宁杀错，不放过. Do not miss out any area.

5) For areas like hands and legs, you will use the "rolling" method but be sure to roll s l o w l y. I heard  some people reviewed that the results are kinda patchy and my guess is they roll too fast and not all areas were being zapped properly. You'll use more flashes definitely, but would you rather use more flashes to have an even result OR have patchy areas where some area have hair growing out faster and some area with no hair? And even if you roll very slowly, be sure not to linger over a spot too long or you'll burnt your skin.

6) Try your best to make sure the device lies flat on your skin; 100% contact, to ensure maximum efficiency. It might be difficult for some corners, if so, use the "zapping" method. Avoid moles(dark in colour) on your skin if any. I have 1 on my hand and it hurts when I zapped it.

7) Use only after every shaving occasion and not as and when you're free. Because it wont be effective and too much of it will cause your skin to tan. You dont wish to have dark armpits, do you?

8) Try to work out the best way to maneuver your me.my.elos along areas which are hard to reach, for e.g, your outer upper arm. When you're at ease, naturally, the more efficient you are.

9) It's of vital importance that your skin is not very dry when you use me.my.elos. Yes, we CANT apply anything prior to using it, so it's very important that you use a very moisturizing shower foam, a good but gentle scrub and moisturizing shave gel. Because when your skin is too dry, you'll experience some discomfort and minimal pain when using me.my.elos. Ultimately, it's harsh light flashing on your skin. Keep your skin  moisturized by apply moisturizers at night(not right after). For my favorite shower foams and moisturizers, you can view my monthly favorites or anything under beauty.

10) Do not follow the recommended frequency of use blindly as set out in the guide because everyone is different. The manual said me.my.elos is to be used once every 2-3 weeks. BUT I used it everytime right after my shaving session. Which started as twice a week and gradually decreases to once a week, once a fortnight or once every 3 weeks etc.

The sales also said things like use "low" mode for the first 5 sessions and then increase to "medium" and then to "high" after Xth week etc etc. Nahz~ It depends on which area you're doing and how long have you been doing the area. For example on bikini areas, since it's very sensitive and the skin there is very thin, naturally you should use "low" or "medium". But for areas which you have been treating for quite some time, hair must have become very fine, so you can use "high". Always monitor and do your own adjustments. 



The last time I know, me.my.elos(version 1) costs around S$1000 in Singapore at Clariancy. I think it's cheaper now since version 2 is out(can use on face). It's definitely very cost effective especially if you have large areas to do and so far, I have no regrets. Even though I'm not the one who bought it(Oh I love you my dearest hubby!), I will say it's a very very worthy investment. By the way, per cartridge is S$120. And hopefully they can bring the price down. Hope you find this review useful. \(^o^)/ As hair removal is such a sensitive topic, any questions you can drop me an email at fionlim89(at)gmail.com and I will try my best to answer. I wont reply if a sensitive question is dropped here(if insensitive, I will reply here) or simply any questions from people who demands me to email them my replies. How presumptuous. I'm not selling anything, merely sharing.

*Updates 13th April 2013*
Recently I went back to purchase 2 more cartridges since they're having a 20% sale. And the sales assistant told me version 1 can use on face. But I remembered previously there's another sales assistant who told me before that it cant be used on face. Arrghhhhh...dont know who should I believe!!!! .....But I guess....it should be okie...maybe just use a "low"....

I will update after I try.

With Gra, my sweetie BFF!!

To smooth and hair-less legs always!!!

For all my favorite products like shower foams, scrubs and such, usually they're in my monthly favorites. 


Next beauty post will be on teeth whitening!! I will share how I whiten my teeth and my favorite whitening toothpaste....Hee~

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