Should Girls/Women Shave Their Legs?

So you're looking for reasons not to 'shave' your legs eh? You've come to the right place but before you jump to premature conclusions, read the full post first...

...and this is assuming you're 21 and above.

Shave, wax, tweeze, thread, laser treatment, epilation, sugaring, electrology... whatever method of hair removal (we shall explain them all soon) you know or use, is what we mean. All these names are too long for the title so we chose 'shave' which everyone can easily identify with, plus it's more attention-grabbing than hair removal, right? Ha ha!

Let me just mention that this particular post is inspired by the question a Caucasian girl asked - 'Why don't Nigerian Girls shave their legs?' So here are some of the reasons I came up with. Feel free to use the comments section to include your opinion.

1) The girl only wears trousers, full leggings, panty hose, maxi skirts/dresses and nothing else. Since the legs are always hidden, there's no point shaving the legs.

2) The girl lives in a city where it's Winter/Harmattan all year long. She has to dress warm so again, her legs are always hidden.

3) The girl is Androgynous and can't care less about feminine beauty regimes

4) The girl is single and uninterested in looking good for no particular person. 

5) The girl is living in a cave in the stone age and yet to realize that we are in 2016

6) The girl is lazy and can't be bothered to do more than the barest minimum.

7) The girl is averse to men and what they think.

8) The girl is not interested in being called beautiful/hot/sexy.

9) The girl just doesn't know there's such a thing as shaving of the legs. 


Fortunately or unfortunately, we live in a world that tells women that to be desirable is to be hairless and smooth. So it doesn't really matter how many other excuses you want to come up with. The truth is that hairless legs will always be deemed cooler and sexier than hairy legs until proven otherwise... probably by a hirsutophilic person.

So, if you're now inspired to have smooth, hairless, sexy legs, here are some of the various options and what they entail. (If you ain't though, no one is going to arrest you for having hairy legs, except the girlfriends beauty & fashion police perhaps. LOL!)

Waxing - You can remove the hair on your legs by using strips of wax or the kind of wax that comes in a jar. Waxing will make you scream blue murder(Hehehe) but it's very effective for making the hair stay away for about 4 to 6 weeks depending on your legs' hair growth cycle. There's also a DIY waxing version known as Sugaring where you use sugar, lemon, cornstarch and/or other ingredients to prepare your own  wax.

Shaving - This involves using an electric razor/shaving stick or hair removal cream. If you're going with razor; never shave dry or you'll itch for days. If going with cream, never use a razor to take off the hair. Most hair removal creams come with a spatula that you can use. Shaving is quite painless but you'll need to do it every 1-2 weeks. Always use your razor or spatula in the same direction your hair grows. If you're not sure, use downward strokes to be on the safe side.

Tweezing - Tweezing is just a fancy word for plucking and it's for the super-patient person because, you'll have to pull out each hair one  by one using a pair of tweezers. You'll scream blue murder on this one too but if you can handle it for eyebrows(you shape your eyebrows don't you?), you can handle it for your legs too. If done right, tweezing can also last 4 to 6 weeks like the waxing method.

Epilating - If you like the idea of plucking but find the tweezing too manual and time consuming, then an epilator is what you need. An Epilator is simply a motorized plucker. You can get an electric or battery-operated one. Again, you'll probably be screaming out your lungs because what it does is to grab and pull out multiple hairs at once, but if you can handle tweezing for your eyebrows, then you can handle epilation on your legs plus you'll still get the 4 to 6 weeks period of grace. Click here to read up on the different kinds of Epilators before you purchase one.

Threading - Just as the name suggests, it's the use of cotton thread to remove short lines of hair at the same time. This method is actually more popular for eyebrows but if you feel more comfortable with it for your legs, please go ahead. Before you do it yourself, please learn the right way to do it before you peel off your skin. There are even several methods of doing it. Click here for some tutorials.

Electrology & Laser treatments - These are mechanical methods of hair removal and reduction respectively. Be ready to shell out some serious bucks for these kinds of treatments. The good thing though is that they are permanent or become permanent after a few sessions because they effectively destroy the hair follicles. So once permanent, you can forget about having to do it again and just enjoy your smooth skin.

Downsides - As with any situation or thing, there's the good side and the not-so-good side. Some people have experienced bumps, cuts, in-growths, dry skin, coarser more visible hair growths while using these methods of hair removal. So you have to do some more research and find out what method best suits your skin, and if done right, you shouldn't have issues. 

General Tips - 

*Always moisturize properly after hair removal. You can also try aloe vera gel or honey immediately after the treatment.

*Drink lots of water. We can't emphasize this enough. It helps keep your skin supple and ready to handle whatever method of hair removal you throw at it.

*We recommend starting with professional help if you can afford it. 

*For the pain, the results far outweigh any inconvenience. Remember, 'beauty is pain' and 'no pain, no gain'. Welcome to the world of girls. Hehehe 

In summary, the relationship you'll have with the pain of hair removal will be the bitter-sweet, love-hate kind. At some point you just get used to the pain and ride it out without batting an eyelid. Hehehe. So, go get those smooth, elegant legs and you'll be ready to step out in bum shorts, mini skirts and high heels. Don't forget to wear red lipstick :) 

Have fun!

xoxo...

Girlfriends

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