I used to wax, but it became such a pain to go to the salon, plus, you are right... there is the grow-out phase. I went back to shaving with a razor, but have found that using a shaving gel is important. I used to use soap, but no more! A good foaming shaving gel with a nice scent and a built-in moisturizer did wonders.
Once, in a pinch, I used my BF's Gillette foaming gel on my legs. It worked well, but then I smelled like a guy for a while. A clean-shaven guy!