The Bluebird Method

At Bluebird we have made significant developments in the last five years that greatly improve care for our trans clients. And we are always working to find methods that get our client’s hair removal complete in fewer sessions, with greater thoroughness, and in more comfort.

For trans women, facial hair removal is often one of the most important steps we take as we begin to show ourselves in the world. At Bluebird, in many ways, we consider this to be the most important work we do. But the strides we make in treating our transgender clients benefit our cis clients too!

The Bluebird Method involves three primary developments. Let’s take a deep dive:

The first of these developments is around the use of our laser hair removal machines themselves. We have diode (810nm), alexandrite (755nm), and Nd:Yag (1064nm) lasers here. These are the three wavelengths of lasers currently in use for body hair removal around the world. We are able to utilize all of these machines on the faces of our trans clients. The specific machine we use depends on a client’s individual combination of skin colour, hair colour, hair caliber (the thickness of each strand), and hair density. These are the factors that determine which laser will be most effective.

But often we use these machines in combination on a single client. It is common that we begin a client’s treatments with an alexandrite or Nd:Yag and then switch them to the diode for the later portion of their treatments. The alexandrite and Nd:Yag lasers, with their more sophisticated cooling systems and shorter pulse widths, gently reduce density. While the diode, with its longer pulse width and direct skin contact, sends the heat deeper for the final knock-out. The ability to work with multiple lasers during a client’s treatments allows us to optimize each session for maximum results.

The second development is around the fluences, energy levels in laser-speak, that we are able to use on our clients. Let me back out a little bit here: The entire laser hair removal industry, and the equipment developed for it, has been designed around the treatment of cis women. Worldwide, cis women make up over 95% of laser hair removal clients. Subsequently, the machines developed for this industry are optimized around treating these clients, not around treating trans women. Removing the body hair, and in particular the facial hair, of someone born with male anatomy is a completely different ballgame. The facial hair of trans women is larger in caliber, denser, and more deeply rooted than hair anywhere on a cis woman’s body. Effectively and efficiently removing this hair requires fluences completely different from those used anywhere on a cis woman’s body, and from those understood by the laser machine manufacturers themselves. At Bluebird, over the course of treating thousands of trans women, we have developed our own treatment parameters that allow us to clear trans women’s faces faster and more thoroughly than any other clinic. And we have developed supplemental care protocols that keep our client’s skin safe and healthy while we do this. As a trans woman myself, it is something I am deeply proud of, and it’s what makes Bluebird different than any other clinic - for transfolks in particular.

And doubling back, we are able to take these same techniques and apply them to hair removal for our cis clients, improving their results and speed of care too! It’s a win-win; what is good for trans women is good for everyone!

The third development we have fine-tuned here at Bluebird is the use of laser hair removal and electrolysis in combination to create a process that is both seamless and thorough. This is not a technique that Bluebird invented, but it is one we have perfected here for the benefit of our trans clients. And it is one that we practice in conjunction with a handful of skilled electrologists here in Toronto.

Let's get into the details: Laser hair removal and electrolysis are two completely different methods of doing the exact same thing: disabling the cells that grow the hair.

Electrolysis was developed in the 1870s and was the first permanent method of removing body hair. It is a technique of using tiny pulses of electricity to disable the cells at the base of each hair follicle. It is very effective, but it is also very slow. With a tiny probe, a skilled technician, working with a microscope, needs to trace each hair shaft down to its base and deliver just the right amount of electricity, and at the right depth, to disable the follicle. Too little electricity, or electricity delivered at the wrong depth or location, and the hair is not killed. Too much electricity and the client may be left with scarring or hyperpigmentation. While very effective when done well, it is a technique that takes skill and concentration, and therefore time.

The technique of using lasers (light) to remove body hair was developed in the 1990s and quickly revolutionized the laser hair removal business. Laser hair removal caught on fast because, for most cis women, it was faster (and therefore less expensive), and less painful. The technique uses very bright light to penetrate the skin and heat the portion of the hair shaft beneath the skin. In a matter of milliseconds the hair shaft is heated to a temperature that kills the cells that grow it. In this technique, light is used to deliver a lethal dose of energy down to the follicle, without ever physically penetrating the skin. It is a fascinating little bit of science that, in the end, does the exact same thing that electrolysis does. Instead of a physical probe, a laser technician uses the variables of light - wavelength (nm), pulse width (mm) and energy (j) - to ensure the correct amount of energy is delivered to the correct depth to disable the hair follicle.

While the drawback of electrolysis is that it is slow, the drawback of laser is that it only works on hair that is dark enough in colour to absorb heat from the light. Because of this, laser only works on black, dark brown and medium brown hair. And only on hair that is larger in caliber.

So both methods have benefits, but both methods also have weaknesses.

At Bluebird, rather than pledging allegiance to one method or the other, we harness the strengths of each method to clear our trans client’s faces faster and more thoroughly than either method used alone. The smart utilization of both techniques is at the core of The Bluebird Method. Using both modalities in combination is the fastest way to clear the hair from a trans woman’s face, forever.

For our trans clients with mostly black and dark brown hair on their faces we begin with laser and typically clear upwards of 90% of their facial hair by laser alone. We then switch these clients to electrolysis for the remaining 10%.

For our clients with a mix of hair colours on their faces including red, white, blonde, light brown, medium brown, dark brown, and black, we again begin with laser. Laser will take care of the medium and dark browns, and the blacks. This may be anywhere from 30-90% of their facial hair. We then switch these clients to electrolysis to remove the remaining lighter coloured hairs.

For all of our clients, by beginning with laser and clearing what we can, we make the process of getting to 100% removal faster, less expensive, and more comfortable.

The combination of skilled laser hair removal and skilled electrolysis will bring our clients to 100% removal forever. It does really work. We have done this here for hundreds and hundreds of women. And we will do it for you too.

While we don’t do electrolysis here, we work seamlessly with Azka Ali, Nat Vincent and Alison Stockport, all who understand this method, and are doing great work for our trans clients.

By these three innovations - using multiple wavelengths of light, developing our own fluence parameters, and utilizing the techniques of laser and electrolysis in combination, we are able to give our trans and cis clients the best possible care. This is The Bluebird Method.

If this is the level of care you are looking for, we look forward to seeing you.

Djuna Day