What is threading

Though eyebrows are the most popular area for threading in the Western world, in India threading was traditionally used to remove hair from other parts of the face as well. The upper lip, chin, sideburns and cheeks were all subject to hair removal by threading, and some salons in the West offer these services in addition to eyebrow threading.

Currently, aesthetician training does not include learning how to thread. Many owners of threading boutiques are Indian or Middle Eastern and opened their shops because they could not find quality places to have their eyebrows threaded in their cities [source: Kazakina ]. In many cases, they were trained in their native countries before bringing the practice to the United States. While learning their craft, threading artists will often practice on an eyebrow-shaped piece of velvet before moving on to human hair [source: Blacksberg ].

Depending on a threading artist's heritage and training, he or she may have slightly different methods, as the practice differs a little bit from country to country.

Now that you know what threading is and where it came from, read on to find out why it may or may not be the hair removal technique for you. Threading may seem like a simple or primitive hair removal method, but experienced technicians make it work beautifully. They begin with a loop of cotton thread that is about the thickness of dental floss [source: WebMD ]. Then, they twist the loop to create a series of "knots" in the middle. Finally, practitioners move the twisted area rapidly back and forth across rows of hairs, grasping them at the root and removing them quickly and completely.

No chemicals or other tools are needed [source: Facter ]. The benefit of threading that most sets it apart from other hair removal techniques is its precision.

While waxing and plucking can often leave unwanted stray hairs around your eyebrows, a threading artist goes through your hair row by row, giving eyebrows a clean and defined shape. Threading only removes hair, not skin, and because it is so exact, it can remove hairs that are finer than those that can be removed by waxing or plucking.

Threading is also very fast -- sessions will only take about 15 minutes of your time, and sometimes even less. It's also relatively inexpensive.

Different practitioners have varying rates, but threading generally costs about the same as plucking and waxing [source: WebMD ]. People on particular medications or with certain skin conditions may turn to threading to remove their hair because it's gentler on the skin than some other types of hair removal. For example, some dermatologists recommend that people who use acne medications -- including Accutane and topical retinoid creams -- choose threading over waxing because the former only affects hair and not the skin underneath.

Waxing, on the other hand, can remove a layer of skin along with the hair, especially in people whose skin has become more delicate or fragile in response to treatments [source: Kazakina ]. Also, allergic reactions to threading are rare, because the only equipment used is a simple cotton string instead of a wax, for example, that could contain irritating substances. Though the point is debatable, some say that threading is less painful than waxing and plucking [source: WebMD ].

This, again, could be due to the fact that threading has much less contact with the skin than the other procedures. Additionally, many believe that your hair will grow back thinner after multiple threading sessions [source: Blacksberg ]. One of the biggest problems in choosing threading as your hair removal technique is its availability or lack thereof.

Although the technique has been gaining popularity rapidly in the western hemisphere, it still may be hard to find reputable threading professionals unless you live in a major city. Threading is a type of hair removal that originated in India, Iran, and central Asia. Threading practitioners use a twisted cotton thread to remove several hairs at a time. It is mostly used for hair removal on the face, including eyebrows, upper lip, chin, and cheeks.

However, you can use threading to tidy up a small area of the bikini line. Typically, threading happens in a spa or salon with a certified esthetician, trained in this technique. There is also some risk of folliculitis—inflammation of hair follicles—but no more than with other types of hair removal such as shaving, waxing, and tweezing. So where waxes remove any swath of hair it comes into contact with, which can sometimes result in harsh lines, threading allows for a more natural look.

Jaimineey Patel, head of training at Blink Brow Bar in London adds, "The cotton thread technique enables you to dictate the hairs that you want to keep or remove — meaning the perfect shape every time. The hair factor is, of course, vital to hair removal, another area where threading stands out is its effects on the skin—or rather, the lack thereof.

You see, waxes typically involve heat as well as chemicals natural or synthetic that can cause some skin types to break out and the removal process can sometimes damage skin, leading to redness and peeling, especially for those using skin treatments like retinol.

Not exactly what most of us hope for when we get our brows done. While tweezing is generally less damaging for skin than waxing, accidentally poking, scraping, or pulling on skin with a pair of tweezers especially an unsterilized pair that's been sitting in your medicine cabinet can lead to breaks in the skin and even infections. Since threading is performed with soft fibers at the surface level, it won't accidentally grip the edge of a follicle or scratch skin. In fact, Tummala is such a believer in the safety benefits of brow threading that she doubles down at her Shobha locations.

The short answer: yes. While some argue that threading is less painful that tweezing or waxing since it's fast and doesn't involve tugging on the skin, the reality is that any form of hair removal that pulls the hair up from the root is going to involve some amount of pain.

Everyone's hair grows at a different rate, but on average, hair removal from threading can last between 2 and 5 weeks. You can also maintain the look for longer with touch-up appointments that are less intensive than a full-scale brow shaping.

Essentially, yes. The lack of skin damage and chemicals makes threading appropriate for those on medications that can cause skin sensitivity, like retinoids and certain acne medications as well as those prone to breaking out after waxing.