What is a good age to let your daughters shave their legs?

[bigbelle]

Advice! Thanks!!

[mrsravelstein]

i did mine for the first time with one of those weird sandpapery mitt things (it was the 70s, i don't even know if they still make them) when i was about 8 i think... i was very hairy-legged by then. my odd mother thought i shouldn't be shaving them til i was 14 or something, so i ended up having to do it with crappy bic razors and doing a very bad job of it. so i would agree with several of the others that you let them do it at the point where they feel the need to, whatever age that is.

[Eglu]

This is something I will now have to deal with as I have just had a DD after 2 DSes. She seems to have my colouring so is probably going to be pretty hairy. I will absolutley let her start whenever she wants as I was v. embarassaed by my hairy legs at school.

[bigbelle]

Went on holiday & missed all these good replies, thanks! I like the ladies electric shaver idea. The first time I shaved I looked like the victim of a lawn mower incident. White bits of paper all over to stop the bleeding etc. Not so into the cream, all those chemicals with 14 syllables that one can't even pronounce. Can't be good!

[TransatlanticCityGirl]

My mother allowed me when I got my first period (aged 11).

I was first to start puberty in my class, and I got teased a lot about my hairy legs!

[Blindcavesalamander]

I wouldn't like my DD to use hair removal creams because of all the chemicals. If it was unavoidable due to teasing/bullying I would let her have hers waxed. She's only 10 but worries about dark hairs (they look absolutely fine to me, silky and not thick) and i told her she was lovely and looks beautiful and she is too young at the moment. I will keep it in mind though. I wouldn't want her to have prickly stubble, it's so much worse than soft, natural hair. I feel that once she starts and it's prickly it's sort of hard to stop.
She will be trapped in the hair removal pattern for ever and become a victim of the cosmetics industry and pressure to conform to "Female Eunuch" type attractiveness. Is it a losing battle in this commercially driven world where young girls are encouraged to wear 'sexy' clothes and make up. I don't want her to feel awkward or embarrassed, but I don't want her to swap her natural beauty for something so much more plastic, conformist and lemming like. She has to decide for herself obviously, but at her age her parents do have the responsibility for deciding so much for her.

[NotJustKangaskhan]

I would say that when she asks, she's ready to discuss hair removal choices and care for the stuff that goes with it.

And shaving doesn't make it darker, though the colour can change due to hormones and other body changes. As someone who no longer shaves, I notice my hair gets darker in pregnancy and goes back to light soon afterwards so I guess the darkening common in teenagers that is attributed to shaving is likely due more due to their hormones than hair removal methods.

[Ormirian]

It wouldn't occur to me to stop her if she chose to. I'd rather she didn't at all I guess but as I do i can't really complain if she does. Actually what I mean is I'd rather she didn't feel the need to shave them. But if it stops at shaving her legs I'll be happy.

[BadTasteFlump]

I don't think something like this is a case of 'letting'; more helping her make the choice of how to remove the hair once she's decided she wants to.

And as others have said, shaving is not something you're stuck with once you've started. One session with waxing or depilatory cream gets rid of the shaved off blunt ends and you're back to square one... All more hassle than shaving though. I think when the time comes I will be buying my DD a good electric shaver.

[TheReturnoftheSmartArse]

Mine both started in year 7 - aged 12. But I wax their legs for them, rather than shaving.

[EightiesChick]

Definitely let her if she is at secondary school. I also got told not to by my mum (will grow back darker etc) and had a bad time of it at first, then moved to spending hours scraping foul-smelling Immac (as it then was) off my legs. Wish I had just gone ahead.

[monoid]

I started shaving when I was 13. I had started high school and realised everyone else was doing it. My Dad said that if I had gone to him first, he would have paid for me to get them waxed because of the frequency that the hair grows in. However, I have still never done that but use hair removing cream most of the time. I remember when I was about 15, I discovered "silkymits" from superdrug (don't know if they still do them) They're like fine sandpaper and you rub your skin in circles until the hair is ground away. It also exfoliates your skin. I liked them :) I find it too time consuming now though.

[Steeplearningcurve]

I agree with letting her as soon as she asks. I remember how horribly self conscious I felt before my mum would let me. I also agree an electric shaver is a good option- I still use it now due to my clumsiness with a razor!

[RMutt]

My dd is 12 and is asking to. She's very blonde though, it doesn't really show imo.

I thought it seemed a bit young. Looks like I was wrong

[jetsetlil]

My DD is 11 and just finishing year 7. Not long after she started she was complaining about her hairs on her legs so I got her some hair removal cream and showed her what to do. I wish my mum had done that for me - would have saved me from some very painful dry shaved legs!

[Stricnine]

Another one for the as soon as she wants to arguement... DD was one of the first to be noticibly hairy at school and was very self concious about it, so we tried both hair removal (veet) and shaving (her choices, with my help/advice)... it's become less of an issue as she's got older (now 14) and more of her school peers are similar, so she's really only shaving if she knows she'll be wearing shorts/skirt etc...

[bamboobutton]

another one here here who wasn't 'allowed' to shave and ended up doing it anyway and cutting my legs to bloody ribbons.

also recommend taking to a salon to get it done, a good salon will do a half leg in super quick time and regrowth is softer and less noticable.

[OddBoots]

Whenever she feels the need, in this house it isn't an issue, shaving or not shaving, whichever is fine. DD(8) has not felt the need to use it but has access to her own electric shaver. Knowing her as I do I don't think she will be bothered for a few years now but knowing she can when she wants to and it isn't some kind of rite of passage will hopefully mean she is relaxed about it.

[monkoray]

It depends how dark her hair is but if she is asking to do it then its probably time. I recommend taking her to a salon and getting it waxed, it thins out the hair and doesn't grow back stubbly. Its also a bit painful so she'll only want to do it if its really bothering her. I started shaving my legs aged 12.

[chocolateyclur]

As soon as she wants to. I had to wait to be allowed to by my mum - it destroyed my self esteem, gave me another reason for bullies to target me - and I ended up hacking chunks out of my skin with an inept dry shave.

[supergreenuk]

Yes as soon as they notice and are feeling self conscious. What's the harm. Take it from me. I was not allowed until I left secondary school and well through hell.

[Tigresswoods]

As soon as she needs to. If you were hairy you would want to do something about it.

[MrsDmitriTippensKrushnic]

DD tried to do hers last week - climbed up and got my razor from the shelf and cut both her legs (it was a bit blunt!) She's 7... With a bit of subtle probing it turns out that she was just curious and she's promised not to do it again without asking me first Thing is, she never sees me shave my legs as I always do it alone in the shower - it can only be from adverts. I'm planning on putting her off until maybe Yr6, unless she has a real need to do it earlier (she's half Cypriot and very dark and hairy already. If she gets embarrassed earlier than 11 then we'll talk about it)

[Knackeredmother]

I dis mine when I was about 8 after playground comments about my dark hairy legs. I was very conscious of them even before this age.
8 is very young but I felt so much better afterwards (I used to nick my dads razor and also made the no water mistake the first time)