Beauty treatments in Bristol

Extensions add lashes and need infills roughly every three weeks. LVL lifts and tints the lashes you already have and lasts six to eight weeks with no maintenance at all, so if you would rather not commit to a schedule, LVL is the answer. Book a removal rather than pulling extensions off yourself: applied and removed properly they do not damage your own lashes, and removal takes about fifteen minutes.

First appointment is about two hours including consultation, with a patch test two days before. A follow-up at six to twelve weeks is part of the process and is charged separately, so budget for it. Most people return for a colour boost at around a year. Results cannot be guaranteed: oily skin blurs strokes and heals lighter, which is why powder brows are often the better call.

A standard bikini is £25 and tidies what shows. A Brazilian is £39 and leaves a strip at the front, as thick as you like, or a triangle, with everything else removed underneath and round the back. A Hollywood is £39 and removes everything. You get five minutes of private time to get ready with wet wipes provided, and privacy again afterwards, plus a soothing oil.

• No saunas, hot tubs, steam rooms, hot baths or sunbeds. Cool or lukewarm water is fine.
• No tanning of any kind including fake tan, and no swimming or chlorinated water.
• No sport, gym or sexual activity for 24 to 48 hours.
• Clean loose clothing, and do not touch the area with unwashed hands.
• Exfoliate gently a few days later, then three times a week, and moisturise. That prevents most ingrown hairs.

Perron Rigot Euroblonde hot wax on intimate areas: it shrink-wraps each hair, so it grips better and hurts less than strip wax. A hypo-allergenic, fragrance-free honey wax on larger areas, which suits skin that reacts to sticking plasters. No chocolate wax, no hazelnut wax. Fragrance in wax is a marketing decision, not a skin-care one.

Vinylux is a weekly polish and it is what every manicure and pedicure is finished with as standard. The colour coat is self-adhering so there is no base coat, and the top coat hardens in daylight rather than softening, which is how it holds a week without chipping.

Gel is £13 on top of a manicure or pedicure, or £46.50 as an appointment in its own right. It is dry the moment you stand up and wears up to 14 days. Book the removal rather than picking it off: picked gel takes the top layer of the nail plate with it.