in my opinion, depilatory cream is a false advertised waste of money. so is smooth away. if anything, depilatory cream is good for melting off thick amounts of hair to make it easier to shave afterward. i've been through a depilatory cream phase, and everytime after using it on my upper lip, i had a prickly irritated feeling that lasted for a couple days. i thought this was just what it felt like to have stubble there, but i was wrong. i finally decided to start shaving my face after using every femenine facial hair removal method, and i get little irritation from it.