Braun Silk Epil 9 Flex Review.

Last year’s big and exciting Prime Day purchase was the Opal ice maker. This year, it was my epilator. I was influenced (once again) by Courtney Grow and I have to tell you, I absolutely love it! Besides being a most-loved recent purchase, this has become one of my most asked about products so I wanted to do an in-depth review now that I’ve had it for about a month.

I realize everyone feels differently about body hair and hair removal. I’m personally a religious shaver and waxer. I have never waxed my legs before (only shaved) and the epilator gives results most similar to waxing as it pulls the hairs out from the root. To be honest, I don’t think I will ever shave my legs again. I will say that I miss the exfoliation that comes with shaving so have been trying to do a better job at using body scrubs etc.

PS – for more on at-home hair removal, check out my guide to at-home waxing! Also, sugaring vs. waxing.

Braun Silk Epil 9 Flex Review

Before we dive in…

WTF is an epilator?

An epilator is an electronic device (some are battery operated, some (like this) you charge with tons of tiny tweezers. As you roll it along your body, it pulls hair out by the root. Epilators have come a long way since I first heard of them. Years ago (I was living in Boston so it was probably 2004 or 2005) my mom gave me one for Christmas. I hated it. It was super painful and slow. To me the pain wasn’t worth the hassle of shaving.

This one has 40 tweezers and a flexible pivot head. It goes fast, pulling quickly. The quicker the pull, the less pain. It feels more like a shock than anything (less painful than waxing, more like laser I would say). Braun epilators are all very high quality but this one is their Rolls Royce, it’s the fanciest (the pivot head + wet and dry capabilities).

Epilator FAQs

Does it hurt?

It hurts a lot the first time you do it but then it gets better as you do touch-ups. The first time, my legs were red + a little swollen kind of like they would be after waxing. It feels a lot like laser hair removal.. that zapping sensation. The first time you do it, there’s a lot of hair (and the hair itself is probably thicker if you are a life long shaver like I am). So it takes longer to do it, and it hurts more since more hair is being pulled out. Once you have the first time behind you, it’s all (literally) smooth sailing after that.

How much growth does there need to be?

This is probably one of my favorite things about the epilator. You don’t need as much growth as you do when you get waxed. Just a few days growth should be just fine.

How many “swipes” do you need to give each area?

It kind of depends. I basically just run it over the same area until there is no more zapping sensation because there’s no more hair to remove. I’d say I spend about ten minutes with it per week?

Can you use it on pubic hair?

It’s absolutely fine for the actual bikini line and maybe a touch up here or there but I would advise against going too “low.” Don’t try to give yourself a Brazilian. Like if you are going to the beach and notice a few stray hairs, YES, GREEN LIGHT. The actual bikini line is great. I wouldn’t do much more than that. The tweezers go fast. You just don’t want to chance hurting yourself.

What about under arms?

Yes, absolutely! Although I will tell you I almost screamed when I did mine. I love this for my legs but have to really psych myself up to do my underarms. For that reason these days I am using it mostly on my legs!!!! It might be too much for the sensitive skin of my underarms – though it does really work!!! I will add that I have not experienced any ingrown hairs when using this, which is a definite perk.

How long will results last / how often do you touch up?

It really varies since each hair follicle seems to grow back at a different time. For that reason, once you’ve done it the first time and pulled out all your leg hair, the worst part is absolutely over. From there, you’ll mostly be smooth for 4 weeks (as if you had waxed) but I like to do touch ups every week or so just because that is much easier than waiting and having it be really painful!

BRAUN SILK EPIL 9 Flex features

Materials:

The best part of this epilator is that it has a pivoting head, which makes it so much better than other epilators as it really facilitates the perfect grab. This also comes with a few different heads (two different epilator caps) and a facial cap (the facial cap is great for facial touch-ups… I tried it out on my upper lip and between my brows… it worked really well!).

It also comes with a body exfoliation brush, meaning you can use it like a Clarisonic (RIP). I used this once. It was nice but IMO not really necessary or exciting. I’m just here for the hair removal.

Shaving capabilities:

This comes with a shaver / trimmer cap as well, which is nice but I have not used it. I probably won’t use the shaver head, I don’t really see the point. But it’s a cool feature: the shaver head turns the epilator into a fully functional shaver, while the trimmer cap lets you trim hair if you prefer.

Convenience:

This product could not be more convenient to use. Just charge it up and you are good to go. It’s portable enough to easily travel with, it can be used wet or dry, etc. I have used this in the bath, sitting on the couch when I notice a random stray hair, in the shower, pretty much every where.

Ease of Use:

This is super easy to use. I think that the flexible head really helps here. Kind of like how our razors have a flexible head, so does this… allowing you to get harder to reach areas like knees and underarms. This is the only epilator I have seen that has a flexible head and while it is more expensive than other epilators, I think it really makes a difference. It’s also pretty great that you can use it wet or dry!

Efficiency:

This epilator is FAST. I probably spend about ten minutes with it a week and my legs have never been smoother or silkier. Furthermore, it is more efficient than waxing, removing 4x shorter hair than waxing. This also uses Micro-Grip technology with a 40% wider head removes more hair in one stroke, for more efficient epilation!

Charging:

The Braun Silk Epil 9 Flex battery lasts about an hour. I think it lasts even longer than that. But because I probably only epilate for maybe ten minutes at a time I found it lasts me a long time (I think I charged it to full and then it lasted me about a month). I LOVE that this is portable but battery free. It makes it great for taking it on trips, etc. It takes one hour to charge the epilator to full.

How To Use The Braun Silk Epil 9

You can use it wet…

I love that you can use this wet (in the bath or shower) as well as dry. I was asked in the DMs if I use a shaving cream or oil when using it. No, I don’t and I don’t think that would be a good idea – I (think?) it would make it harder for the tweezers to grab the hair. Since this is pulling hairs out vs. shaving we care less about glide!

And you can use it dry!

My favorite way to use this is dry. Usually while watching TV or doing something to distract myself, ha ha.

Touch ups…

I probably touch my legs up once a week? It is a little bit addicting, and touch-ups don’t hurt very much so I kind of just grab it any time I see a stray hair or two. Regrowth is so much nicer than with shaving (it’s the same as waxing, no stubble!) so I don’t always notice regrowth. Once a week seems to be the sweet spot.

Facial Hair

The facial cap is great. Honestly I felt like it was a little bit awkward using it on my face (you totally can) and would prefer my trusty Flamingo wax strips, but it works!

Where to buy!

Again, I bought mine on Amazon. But it is also available at Target, Kohl’s, Wal-Mart, and Best-Buy.

Is the Braun Silk Epil 9 Worth it?

In my opinion, yes – this is absolutely worth it. Especially if you regularly get waxed. While I use mine primarily for legs and still get bikini waxes, this would pay for itself in a few months instead of getting your legs waxed at the salon. It’s a super effective product. It’s more expensive than a lot of other epilators but I think that the flexible head makes a huge, huge difference. Also the ability to use it wet or dry. I really love mine.