By Emily Johnson

Getting rid of unwanted body hair can be expensive and time-consuming. This summer, try a sweeter tactic—body sugaring. An ancient, all-natural hair-removal process, sugaring can be done at home with ingredients from your kitchen.

This recipe from Asma Khanani, body sugaring expert and owner of the Sugar Sugar Body Sugaring Studio in Toronto, combines sugar, lemon juice, and water, and works for even the most sensitive skin.

You will need:
1 cup water
1 cup lemon juice
1 cup raw sugar
Large saucepan
Spoon
Small spatula or tongue depressor
Several strips of clean, sturdy cotton cloth

Heat water, lemon juice, and sugar on low heat in large saucepan, stirring until sugar melts and mixture starts to thicken to tacky consistency. Remove from heat. (Avoid overheating or it will crystallize.) Let mixture cool to slightly above body temperature (warm to the touch, but not hot). It should be thick and gooey, but not so thick that it can't spread easily and thinly. Apply small amount to clean, dry skin with spatula or tongue depressor. Press clean strip of cotton cloth onto sugared area and pull off gently in direction of hair growth. Continue process and reheat sugar mix as needed. Store leftovers in an airtight plastic container at room temperature. Simply reheat to use again (it will keep for several months).

Have you tried sugaring? Let us and other readers know if it's better than waxing or threading.

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Your Comments:

We spoke with the Sugaring experts at Shobha in New York and they told us that lime juice and orange juice can work as substitutes, however they also contain citric acid, which might be the component of the lemon juice that you are allergic to. They suggest doing a patch test and if sugaring isn't a good fit for you, waxing, which contains no citrus, might be your best bet. Good luck!
-- Olessa Pindak, Beauty Editor

Your Comments:

Also, you forgot to mention that when you press the clean strip of cotton cloth onto the area, you should press down rubbing the cloth in the direction of hair growth, but when you pull it off it should ALWAYS be in the OPPOSITE direction of hair growth not in the direction. Surely you misinterpreted this experts recipe...
-- LANA WILKES, Herbalist

Your Comments:

It's actually suppose to be in the direction of hair growth for sugaring.
-- Anonymous

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