Monday, 16 March 2009

  • Armpit Hair Isn't Only For the French

    When I was a little girl, I remembered asking my aunt why she didn't shave the hair under her arms like my mom and the rest of the aunts did. Her husband immediately chimed in and said, "French women leave their armpit hair because it's really sexy."

    At that young and innocent age, I didn't really understand what sexy was yet, but I agreed anyway. But as I got older, my uncle wasn't the only one who told me about french women having armpit hair. It almost seemed as if it was common knowledge that it was only french women who stayed au natural when it came to their armpit hair.

    Then when I got older, I began to travel. Yes, I did notice women in France with armpit hair, but I noticed this in other countries too such as the Czech Republic, Brazil, Spain and various countries in Asia with long armpit hair.

    Honestly, the guys I know tend to think this is kind of gross and would like a clean shaven woman. Every single strand has to be plucked or they'll make rude comments. But that doesn't mean that my aunt is the only woman in the US that has unshaven armpits. I've seen it around pretty often.

    So now that I've had the chance to see the world for myself, I realize that what I thought when I was young isn't true. Armpit hair isn't only for the french!

    How is armpit hair viewed in your culture? Do you often see women with unshaved armpits in your country?

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Comments (95)

  • Kristenmomof3@xanga

    I have armpit hair and leg hair. My husband loves me that way.

    I myself don't understand why women shave. Makes no sense to me.
  • Sugarling@xanga

    I live in Washington state of the US of A. lol As far as I know it's viewed as unclean with the general populace. I'm even horribly disgusted by my own armpit hair. Really. And it seems everytime I go to the store to try on new clothes I always make note that I need to shave my armpits to look better in what I'm wearing. I think it's..really gross and I have a very hard time thinking it could be attractive. I remember from a very young age I saw my mom's friend who had recently shaved, but that area was a dark gray and I remember feeling pretty revolted. It shouldn't be that way, though. I wish I could embrace how natural it is, but I don't think I ever will! haha
  • NiDH0GG@xanga

    I live in Italy and the vast majority of women I know shaves their armpits..I don't know men who consider armpits unshaved as sexy..

    armpits not shaven? GROSS!!!!!!!!!!!!
    cut it out!!!
  • x_last_first_kiss_x@xanga

    I just don't want to SEE the hair. If it's not on your head and someone's going to see it, get it off.
  • kimmieheart@xanga

    I most definitely don't find that sexy.
  • quiet_strength@revelife

    i am a product of my culture...i do not know how to not think it is gross. i honestly would rather be who i am and like it, and it not be seen as gross or uncleanly...not to mention shaving often hurts, and because i shave when it grows back it hurts...but i feel verrrry self-conscious if i haven't shaved either my armpits or legs...so i just keep doing it. it is a never ending cycle. it is really stupid if you think about it, though, because as far as i know shaving on the whole was marketed during WWII while the men were away at war they tried to sell the razors to women to be sexy for when their men came back, because they needed to sell razors. and now we feel like we need them...doesn't that make us look kind of silly?
  • CarmineKiss@xanga

    i find it disgusting to have unshaven armpits.
  • Blueberry_xh@xanga

    I don't know about other people. I only have a few armpit hair, and shave once or twice a year.

  • seriously_meredith@xanga

    I personally think that the reason that men in the U.S. do not like armpit hair is because lack of it makes a woman look younger. I'm sure there is at least one person reading this who would agree that the media in this country projects that the younger (and skinnier) a woman looks means that she is more attractive to men.


    Young girls who have not entered puberty yet do not have armpit hair or leg hair or hips and that is the "model" by which all women are judged or at least the majority of women in the U.S.


    I have no problems with a woman who wants to shave for her own reasons, it just bothers me when those reasons are only to please a man. I shave and I only do it for myself. It is a bonus for my Hubby since he likes it as well. If one day I decided to stop, nothing he could say would make me start again unless I felt that I wanted to.
  • nattata@xanga

    I live in Germany and it's not exactly a rare view, at least on older women. I don't like it but it's not the grossest thing in the world. lol
  • dannyb0y@xanga

    I personally don't like it. I think because in the US culture, body hair is viewed as masculine and women who have it appear so.

  • Kristenmomof3@xanga

    @dannyb0y@xanga - I highly doubt anyone would mistake me in anyway for a man and I don't shave
  • black_lie@xanga

    i used to not shave but i got so much criticism for it that i started shaving just to shut people up
  • mysticalchild@xanga

    some hippie girls don't shave. not all but many.
  • roy_j@xanga

    Sure there are many women in the world that does not partake of this practise but on the same idea there are many people who does not wear deoderant. Some thinks they are stinky and others thinks its au naturel, sexy. So these woman who don't shave their underarms, do they also neglect deoderant as well? Odor accumulates on body hair nad accentuates the odor even more on hot humid summer days. My vote id off with arm pit hair and on with the deoderant.
  • anne

    @roy_j@xanga - you have a very good point that i didn't even think about! no deodorant plus hair does mean more odor. 
  • Kaysera@xanga

    Here it's considered: Ick.
  • TakingxOverxMe@xanga

    @roy_j@xanga - I was going to say something similar.  =]
  • Arodi@xanga

    Almost every young girls shave their armpit hair in Hong Kong there. They believe shaving the hair is a tidyness behaviour.
    Actually, Im a hong Kongese also,but still im not used to shave it ah. Just when going outdoor activities with sleeveless clothing, i will shave defore niight
  • MoonFaeEyryan@xanga

    I don't like unshaven armpits on either gender.

    Where I live, men and women shave off EVERYTHING (arms, belly, armpits, everything that's not your eyebrows or your head).
  • cacarmina@xanga

    i dnt like my leg hair and armpit hair.


    i slave them all away-v-
  • AmeliasRADduh@xanga

    HA hair anywhere is gross!
    I cant stand it if i see it growing in i shave it off..


    being hairy is yucky
  • thilette@xanga

    I don't think it has anything to do with men wanting us to look younger, puberty, media, skinny women, and blah blah as someone stated. I just think its a matter of different cultures adhering to the various "norms" within their culture. I've always thought hair was gross before anyone told me anything. I remember a teacher when I was maybe 4 that had extremely hairy legs. The hair poked through her white stockings. I knew shit about shaving or what a razor was at 4, and I thought it was gross. I also don't like hairy men, and not because I want them to look like pubescent teens.
  • its_a_castle@xanga

    I'm planning to get laser hair removal on my entire body (where ever possible) so, I'll never have to shave again. I really hate body/facial hair. It gets in the way and it makes you look unkempt. (guys & girls alike) I've never liked hair anywhere but on your head & eyebrows.
  • mixedbabiesrock@xanga

    I don't like being fuzzy so I shave or wax.  I'm not a big fan of overtly hairy men either, simply because hair traps odors etc. and isn't aesthetically pleasing to me.

    But if you like it, leave it.  I have way too much hair on my head for one person so I like to think that makes up for whatever I shave, wax, or pluck out.

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  • anne
    • From: anne
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    • About Me: Age: 27, Location: New York, NY Favorite places I've visited: Trick question! I've been to so many amazing places, but if I absolutely had to pick, I'd settle on a couple places to shorten the list. Madrid, Spain because that's where I did my study abroad program when I was 18 and it was there that the travel bug bit me so hard it left a scar. I haven't been the same since. And Vietnam. That's where my family is from. Although, I'm Vietnamese American, I never actually visited Vietnam until I was 26. It was an awesome experience to learn about my family's history and I was quite pleased to show off my vietnamese language skills to the locals. It's quite a big deal for an american-born.
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