Get beach ready with clever hair removal, says our expert

Quick, easy and accurate, the Gillette Venus Bikini Precision Trimmer (£22.49; boots.com) is brilliant if you find yourself donning a swimsuit unexpectedly and haven’t had time to tidy up.

It shaves close, has a guard for cropping to a uniform length, is smaller than an electric toothbrush and slimline enough to throw into your carry-on if you are heading away for a long weekend.

While my love affair with the Gillette Venus razor, which comes with gel bars, is not going to be over any time soon (who doesn’t want a razor you can use without the faff of shaving foam?), the Wilkinson Sword Intuition FAB Razor (£12; superdrug.com) is definitely worth a look if you like a new gimmick.

With “bi-directional blade technology” – in layman’s terms, it shaves forwards and backwards – this makes hair removal simpler as you don’t have to keep trying to re-angle the blades when you want to go against the grain.

With a domed head for ease of application, Veet BodyCurv Bikini & Underarm Hair Removal Cream (£7.35; veet.com), with aloe and vitamin E for soothing, is great for anyone who finds shaving leaves them with lumps and bumps that really don’t flatter when wearing a swimsuit. Stubble rash is never going to be on trend.

If you aren’t someone who screams when you rip off a plaster, you’ll probably be OK to give home waxing a go – but it might be worth having someone on standby to do the yank for you if you bottle it at the last minute.

Made with natural beeswax and infused with soothing honey and camomile extracts, Nad’s Body Wax Strips For Sensitive Skin (£8.54 for 28; nads.com) remove unwanted hair from the root, so the results last up to four weeks.

Women – and men – looking to ditch the need for monthly epilation completely might want to consider a more high-tech, “permanent” hair removal technique. (Nothing is ever completely permanent and occasional top-ups will probably be required by most people.)

Bios Square Epil is the fastest laser hair removal system in the world and Bodyvie in Richmond, Greater London (bodyvie.com), is the first UK clinic to offer it.

Combining two powerful lasers to destroy the root of the hair, my tester reported back that each 20-minute session hardly hurt at all – there was some slight stinging but overall it was much less ouch-inducing than a wax.

At £550 for a package of six bikini treatments, it isn’t cheap, but there’s almost no downtime needed after each treatment, with just a small amount of redness that lasted a day. The growth between treatments also became sparser each time and by the final treatment, regrowth was almost 100 per cent banished.

Advances in laser treatment are happening all the time and there are now some very effective DIY tools if you want to cut out the salon visits entirely.

Philips Lumea Prestige Face and Body Hair Removal Device (£520; johnlewis.com) may cost the same as going to a professional to have your bikini line done, but you’ll also be able to do your legs as well for free (six sessions of full leg treatment cost £1,250 at Bodyvie).

I’m hearing more and more that girlfriends are going in together to buy them – you can lend it to your sister, pass it round your NCT group and invite friends round for lasering parties, which means you can split the cost of the gadget between you.

The Lumea Prestige is proven to reduce hair growth by up to 92 per cent in just three treatments and comes with four attachments with different “window” sizes and curved shapes for getting into all the nooks and crannies, from armpits to ankles. 

Anyone with sensitive skin should check out the Braun Silk-Expert 5 IPL (£399.99; boots.com), which gives impressive results, reading and adapting to different skin tones as it works.

If hairy shoulders or chest are your bugbear, Gillette Body Disposable Razors (£7.49 for three; nationwide) are designed for manscaping below the neck.

With floating blades that are rounded to minimise irritation and an antislip, ergonomic handle, you can stay in control even in the shower.

Just make sure you toss it away as soon as it blunts – nothing causes shaving rash faster than a dull blade.

When it comes to finding “the one”, non-greasy appears to be the most desired quality men are looking for in their grooming products these days.

Heath Hand Salve (£10; waitrose.com) ticks that box, shielding against pollution while moisturising with shea butter and still passing the door handle test.

Aroma goals

Not one but four footballers have put their name to the latest Boss Bottled United (£49 for 50ml; nationwide) campaign – winger Julian Draxler, attacking midfielder Philippe Coutinho and forwards Alvaro Morata and England captain Harry Kane.

As for the aroma, herbal buchu, citrusy blood orange and vetiver combine to create a fresh, woody scent in a stylish, limited-edition flacon.

It can be hard to find stylish washbags for men, but Elemis has joined forces with British design house Lily and Lionel to create a sharp geometric-print bag for this summer’s Luxury Travel Collection for Him (£45; elemis.com).

It contains products worth £66, including the Sharp Shower Body Wash, Ice-Cool Foaming Shave Gel, Deep Cleanse Facial Wash, Instant Refreshing Gel and Daily Moisture Boost.