Called khite in Arabic and fatlah in Egyptian, it's a less common method in the West for removing hair at the root, used primarily on
facial hair. Rows of stray hairs are yanked out with twists of cotton thread.
The process involves a cotton thread which is wound around fingers and twisted so as to create a knot. The thread is then scraped across the face when the hairs are caught by the knot and pulled from the follicle/root creating a smooth skin. This form of hair removal produces the same results as Waxing but is less painful. The practitioner holds one end of the cotton thread in his or her teeth and the other in the left hand. The middle is looped through the index and middle fingers of the
right hand. The practitioner then uses the loop to trap a series of unwanted hairs and pull them from the skin. There are also devices made that can hold the thread during the procedure.
Everytime hair is removed by the follicle/root, the root which forms again moves up the skin layer and
eventually, with regular threading, it reaches the skin surface when the follicle becomes so weak that it can not grow & hold root anymore and so disappears altogether.
This form of hair removal is hygienic, does not require chemicals, batteries or
electricity. Inexpensive, fast, neat, considered less painful than plucking for many. Good for eyebrows and
facial hair. Like plucking, results can last
up to two to four weeks.
Can be painful and cause itching afterwards. Side effects can include folliculitis, a bacterial
infection in the hair follicles, skin reddening or puffiness, and changes in skin pigment.
