I have wanted to try laser hair removal, but haven't. From my understanding you are a best candidant if there is a big difference in your skin color and hair color. Like pale to med-light skin color with dark hairs. Doesn't work as well for someone pale with light colored hairs or somone dark with dark or light hairs. It's the same whether you are naturally darker toned or are usually light but have a tan from sun exposure or sunless tanning products. Also, your hair grows in 12-week cycles where it is dormant for 10 weeks (approx) and actively growing for 2 weeks. Only the hair follicles currently active will be killed in any one treatment. I don't think 100% of the active hair follicles are killed, but I don't know what percentage are. I know that it takes about 6 treatment sessions to get about 70-80% of all the hair follicles. That being said, being the cheap-o that I am, I am trying the Igia Finally Gone. It only claims to kill 50% of the active follicles in any one session. So, if only 2/12's of the hairs are active and it only kills 1/2 of them, that is 1/12 of the total hairs per session, so I can expect to be hair-free in about 12 sessions ? I have only done about 4 (maybe 5) sessions over the last couple years. It is very very time-consuming even with the pads that cover more area at a time because I am doing my lower legs ... a lot of area to cover there. I can see some reduction in the number of hairs that grow on my legs and both legs have areas that are almost completely bald on the lower half of the lower legs towards the front and the inside. These are the areas that are the least "meaty". Don't know if that has anything to do with it ? For what it's worth, I have very hairy very coarse very dark hair on my lower legs and I am able to tell a difference already. When I "treat" my lower legs, I shave and then let the hairs grow for about 1-1/2 to 2 weeks, then I spend a saturday morning zapping my legs, and a few days after I have my legs waxed. Igia says you are to pull out each hair after the treatment, and waxing is the fastest way to get all of those hairs out ! I have also heard the "infomercial" for Nad's and they say after you wax a number of times that eventually the hairs stop growing. Not sure how true that is but don't try Nad's ... it does not work ... it is painful and it does not remove all of the hairs. If you want to wax, buy Gigi Honee All Purpose Hair Removal Microwave Formula from Sally's. It's also painful, but at least it removes all of the hairs ! You can also buy a Numbing Spray by Gigi that helps a lot. http://www.sallybeauty.com/ I don't have the guts to rip the waxing strips off myself, so I have someone else do the ripping.

Catherinet, It is sad that we have to be so careful on line all the time. I was suspicious of both of these docs after reading the web sites. They toot their horns way to much for my liking. One would thing that if this procedure is so wonderful, far more opthamologists would be using it, and using it all the time. The costs are exhorbitant and though they claim that ins. pays for it, if you check with your ins. you will find that they don't. I checked with mine, just for fun today, and they don't pay for it with MA ins. I have BC/BS and have not restrictions on where I go for medical care in state or out, but it has to be a covered service. They told me that the Yag/NG laser is not only not covered by MA BC/BS, but no BC/BS anywhere in the country pays for it, and as far as they know, no ins does. This really peaked me, so called my sister, who lives in Florida and has BC/BS down there. No coverage, she checked with my niece who has different coverage and no coverage. My son in Kentucky doesn't have the coverage. By the time I was through checking with people I know in MA and other states, couldn't find an insurance co. that pays for it. Red flags again, as this isn't a life saving operation. One of the docs bragged that he new only 2 docs in the country that did this, and to me that was a red flag too. So unlike my spinal surgeon , who used a relatvely new method in doing my surgery. It was being done in Michigan only 5 years ago, by one doctor. This doc waited to have it perfected, then published the info in a medical journal with a request for other spinal surgeons to contact him for further info and offered to teach it. This doc divided the country into 25 sections and taught one leading spinal surgeon in each section the new procedure. He chose leading spinal surgeons who chould stay with him for 6 months to be perfected in it. My doc was the first doc to go from the new enland section. He has been doing this procedure for 4 years and is the leading teacher in the New England area for this new technique, which saves so much of the vertebrae in the spine instead of removing it. When you compare this attitude to these docs, you know for sure that something is really fishy with this laser stuff for floaters. I have always been of the thought that G-d gave us 2 eyes for a reason. If we lose the vision in one, we still have an eye to see with. Vision may not be perfect, but one can still see. Also of the thought that surgery is done as a last resort, and experimental and wacky idea surgery is only done when there is nothing else that can be done. Glasses are fine for me. Not having anything cut in my eye because of vanity not wanting to weaar glasses. I like being able to see, same for this laser stuff too. My doc told me the same thing about the floaters and also said that many times they can go back into the viscous fluid, which some of mine have done. The hydration thing really does work. I found myself with worse floaters early today and started pushing the fluids this afternoon and sure enough, they are better tonight. I had some of the vision things at night to and the extra fluids really made a difference. My eye is bloodshot some of the time and the doc told me to use refresh endura drops to help keep the eye moist, especially in the winter with the heat on. that has helped too. Give that a try and see if makes any difference. I use it 2-4 times a day and it really helps. it's not cheap, $15.99 a box. But it has individual doses in it. One thing if you start to use it, you won't use the full dose container at once, just one drop in the eye that needs it. Put the cap back on it and use the rest during the day. don't hold it overnight though. the company wants you to use it just once but the doc says no reason not to use up each individual container. Best place to buy it is Walgreens. If you buy it in quantity, I buy 10 boxes at a time, they will give you a discount on the price. Brought it down to $12.99 a box when I bought to boxes at once. Good luck and let me know if you try the refresh endura and it helps or not.

Yes! I had the IPL laser treatment for my roscea(sp?). I had it done at 2 different places. The first time i payed around $2,000 for 7 treatments. Was it painful? It feels like a rubberband smacking against your skin. After the 7 treatments i looked pretty good. But they did tell me that eventually it will come back. This is what my skin wants to do. They also said to stay out of the sun to help make the treatments last. It did come back 5 years later and i did it again. I went somewhere else because they had 1/2 off specials. I didnt think they did as good of a job that the first place did. I dont know what your interested in. They offer sevices now to get rid of age spot. This new laser is suppose to be great. What ever you decide you MUST stay out of the sun before your treatments. The laser focuses on the red from roscea or brown from the age spots. If your tan then the laser wont be very helpful. Which reminds me, the laser works best on white skin. Not women of color.

You can do better than a laminate countertop and still stay in budget. Check out Craigslist and Habitat Re-Store. Check Craigslist once a day and when you see quality at a good price, pounce. We got a pure white stone (supposed granite but never saw pure white granite before) countertop, 61", double sink, sinks included, for $175. Just be patient. It took me about two months. You also can look for a longer Corian counter and cut it down to fit since your sink is offset. Even HD or Lowes will get you a cultured marble or solid surface countertop for a decent price. You might consider a big pedestal or console sink if you can do without the under sink storage, HD has a huge pedestal sink for about $124. That's if the flooring continues under your current vanity. It would expand the space so much, get rid of the blocky feeling and narrow entrance. Do wall storage instead, shelves or cabinets between studs. Some people here have done fantastic jobs painting faux granite countertops. A curved shower rod, chrome, no telescope line, white paint on all wood. I just painted our kids' bath a robin's egg blue - close to Palladian blue - it's so much better now! I can't believe I lived with the dreary white so long! It almost makes the dreadful marble laminate vanity and pea green sinks look good. The tub surround isn't integral to the tub, is it? Here is a link that might be useful: pedestal sink