Do you shave for you or for men/women?

[Ofashynessthatiscriminallyvulgar]

Hoping this doesn't offend anybody. I'm talking about all over, legs, armpits etc.
I shave my legs and armpits every day as I like the smooth feeling and I get stubble after even one day. I even have to pluck my chin hairs most days and have regular dermaplaning as I seem to have a very hairy face.
However I realise that I'm conditioned to think bodily hair on women is 'gross'. It's expected that women have smooth, hair-free bodies, of course you see the odd woman with full armpit/leg hair in retaliation, but generally not. I remember forgetting to shave once, going out in a dress and feeling so ashamed and 'dirty'.
Men don't have these pressures.

I don't shave because I think body hair bid is "gross" but I'm also not going to kid myself I do it for me. I make the decision on whether it needs doing based entirely on who I'll be seeing/what I'll be wearing that day.

I don't think it's about men though, more about social convention. I actually think I'm more bothered about being judged about these things by women. Late DH saw my legs hairy much more than my running club friends did, for example.

I shave when I want to, legs rarely in winter but if it gets too long I find it itchy under tights. In summer I shave my legs a couple of times a week, and exfoliate/moisturise so my legs are not dry and chalky when I've got them out, and I don't like the feel of suncream in my leg hair, that's for me and no one else.
Armpits every couple of days, no matter how much I scrub I get sweatier/smellier when I don't. And I tend to use roll on and again don't like the feel of liquid in my armpit hair.
This is the same married or single so it's definitely not for DH

I do it for me.
Legs very rarely do it in winter. In the summer I do it more often, as I will often wear skirts and dresses and I dont like seeing hair (though it is very fine and light, so I can get away with a lot!)

Underarms I just dont do, ever, these days. Theres just not enough for me to even bother. Youd have to get really up close and personal to see my GROWN pit hair.

Bikini, I do a close trim every couple of weeks. The first few days it feels like a shave, and is fairly smooth, and it starts ti annoy me when I can grab the hairs. Also, the shorter it is, the easier it is to trim, I find!

When I was younger (I’m 42 now so I’m talking about when I was 20ish) I used to shave everything off everywhere because I thought it was sexier to have no hair anywhere. I don’t know where this came from because I led an incredibly sheltered childhood and didn’t have any awareness of porn etc but I guess it must have filtered down from somewhere. Oddly enough though when I started dating around 21ish none of the boyfriends I had ever seemed to give a shiny shite about whether I’d shaved or had a full bush or whatever else. So I slowly stopped caring about it. Been married to dh 15 years now and I don’t even own a razor or do any hair removal at all. Mainly because it’s itchy and uncomfortable now I’m older and my skin is more sensitive. Maybe I’ve just been lucky but I’ve never had anyone say anything negative about whether I’ve shaved or not, so when I did do it I was definitely doing it for me. And now I don’t do it for me!

I don't do any of it, ever. My body is fine as it is

Although it was so bloody muggy and uncomfortable today, I was seriously tempted to shave my head.

I shave my legs every few weeks. They start getting all itchy when the hair is too long. When I do that I usually shave under my arms as well.

Trim the bush with scissors every so often, when it gets long enough to plait.

DP doesn't care how hairy I am. Which is just as well, as I get rid when I feel like it, not because of him.

It's a combination of the two I think. I prefer to be clean shaven, and get a bikini wax once a month.
However like a pp, how often I shave is dependent on what I'm going to be wearing, gym schedule, who I'm seeing.
If it wasn't such a faff I'd do it every day (dark hair) but I just can't be arsed sometimes, so will purposely put trousers on, or wear long sleeved top

I do it for myself.

I like the ’glide’ of bare skin as well as how it looks and I love the feeling of freshly shaved legs sliding over soft bed sheets.

I’m big on textures though. (Neurodiverse.)

I don’t think any of us can truly say whether we do things purely for ourselves: ultimately, most of how we portray ourselves physically and our grooming trends are born out of social conditioning and cultural beauty standards.

I might believe that I choose not to have pubic hair because it feels gross and gets stinky quickly if you exercise a lot, as I do. But if I was surrounded by social messaging that pubic hair was the sexiest thing ever, would I feel quite as strongly? I think that hairless arms and legs look better than hairy ones, but how much of that is actually my personal opinion and how much social messaging?

I do it mostly for me. Dh isn't fussed, and I don't think colleagues or friends would bat much of an eyelid tbh. I just don't like the look of my unshaved legs/armpits with a dress/skirt/sleeveless top etc. I realise that is because I have been conditioned to think that. So be it.

I shave only when I feel I have to so, underarms, yes, when armpits may be shown. Other than that I am a big, fat, old and not very hairy biffer so it's minimal

I do it to avoid embarrassment, fear of others being judgemental. So is that for me or others? I don't mind being hairy for my husband

I do it for other people. Sad.

given the choice I wouldn’t bother. But I am aware that going out in public with hairy armpits, legs, and swimming/beach with pubes showing is seen as dirty, unhygienic, and generally socially unacceptable.

so I will shave armpits in summer to wear short sleeves, bikini line before putting on a bikini, and legs if they’re on show.

completely for other people.

Do you shave your arms? I didn't realise that was a thing.

Definitely other people mostly. I will shave my legs if my legs are going to be out, for instance, and am more likely to just leave them if no one will see them. I shave mainly for my partner now (he has never asked me to or said anything about not liking hair on women, or complained if I havnt gotten to shave, it's just engrained in me that men prefer it I suppose).

But I will also shave just for me too, from time to time. Shaving my armpits feels more comfortable for me, I havn't let that grow out in a while. Legs I can leave longer if no one is seeing them, but I'll shave them eventually "for myself". Other areas I can leave alone for a long time back when I were single, but even that I'd end up trimming/shaving for my own comfort if I felt like it.

I have quite noticable facial hair, which I pluck/sometimes shave if lazy whenever I feel/notice it. That one is for other people solely. I totally wouldn't care about it if I were on a deserted island or something, it's not uncomfortable

I exercise a lot too. I also shower afterwards.

As for body hair being seen as 'dirty', surely anybody fit to be allowed out on their own knows that it's not washing properly that makes someone dirty, and nothing to do with the presence (or not) of hair?

I shave my legs and armpits in the summer depending on what I am wearing.

Don't bother in tights weather.

Never shave my fanny ever. Never have never will.

DH is not arsed if I'm hairy or smooth and frankly I wouldn't care if he did or not. I would never ask him to shave his bollocks.

Radfem 15yo DD refuses to shave her legs, cos patriarchy, and sports hairy legs in her school skirt. She doesn't get any grief for it and wouldn't care if she did.

Definitely for other people. I don't bother in winter or when DH is working away. And I only shave my armpits if it's hot enough to wear sleeveless tops, I personally prefer them grown in but I can't be bothered with people judging.

I've never removed any of my body hair by any method.
You don't like my hairy pits in my sleeveless tops? Don't look at them then.
I don't feel ashamed, dirty or embarrassed for being a human being, why would I.

@DogbertMcDogglesworth I need your confidence!

I shave much less than I used to. I’ve tried to challenge the shame I’ve historically felt about body hair but doing things like going swimming without shaving armpits and legs. I could not have imagined doing that even a few years ago. I felt a little self conscious but nothing bad happened! My husband doesn’t give a shit at all.

You can. All you need is a fuck you attitude.
I go on holiday and I put my swimwear on for the pool or beach, in all my hairy glory. I'm never going to see those people again once they leave, so why should I care about their opinion.
At work, I once had a woman exclaim eew, when she clocked my pits. My response to that was to reach my arm above my head and stroke my pit while smiling at her.
Liberate yourself....and your body hair.

For me.

If my armpits get hairy I notice that I smell more/sooner.

I wax my pubic hairs otherwise they cause chafing when I'm cycling.

My legs get shaved for races (yes, wind drag on hairy legs is a thing!) and for special occasions because I like how silky/smooth posh clothes feel on freshly shaved legs. Day to day I walk around in shorts and skirts with hairy legs 🤣

I shave underarms as it physically annoys me if it grows too long, I do not shave anywhere else or remove hair anywhere else ever and never will

Shave my underarms for hygiene. Haven't shaved my legs in years, but they aren't that hairy. I did when my husband was alive, on occasion. Never did anything in the pubic region.