Something that totally stumps me is an extremely good looking, well dressed woman with hairy arms! What’s with all that hair? It’s the same women who take time out to have the smoothest legs. Do you think those bear (I didn’t misspell it) arms are invisible? Read on to learn how with just a little effort you can have arms that are as smooth or even better than your legs and take your style quotient up a notch.
I am in a light mood today and just wanted to write about this observation that has been killing me. Feel free to agree, argue or explain.
The rationale behind bushy arms (my guess!)
I think it might have been started by blonde women who have fine to very fine hair growth on their arms which by virtue of the color is not very apparent against their fair skin (from far!). And then it just became a convenient trend for all the lazy women. My opinion: First of all I don’t agree that blonde hair is invisible. It may not be too obvious from a distance but if you are in a meeting or are out at dinner your hands are more noticeable than legs. So even for keeping the visual interest high, hair on arms needs to be removed.
(Image by: Alex Bellink)
Secondly, doesn’t how your skin feels against your partner’s matter at all? Wouldn’t a smooth skin be preferred over a fur coat? I can understand if in general you don’t care about your looks. But that’s certainly not the case. You pay attention to every little thing that makes you look stunning – your clothes, jewelry, shoes, bags, make-up and most of all smooth hairless legs! Then how can you be so oblivious to your hairy arms? It’s just beyond me!
Is it a US thing?
This is something I am really interested in finding out. Women from other parts of the world can probably answer. Even the ads here only proclaim hair free ‘legs’ for days! The movies and the TV shows just talk about women shaving their legs to prepare for special occasions. Why this injustice to arms? Would it kill to have smooth hairless arms? I am sure once you see how amazing it is, you will never wanna go back.
Techniques
I have always been against shaving and feel that’s even more important for arms. Instead of deciding on your clothes based on whether or not you found time to shave in the morning, put your morning time to better use. Switch to epilators and you will need to spend only about 45 min a month to enjoy hair free arms and legs for the rest of the time. Shaving also leaves your skin feeling rough and the hair grows back thicker, while epilator reduces the growth and thickness of hair. Hair grows finer and gets a lot easier to manage with time. And guess what it’s cheaper too… a lot cheaper! Read 9 Reasons why Epilators are a Boon not a Pain.
Why have hairless arms?
Why not? I can’t think of one good reason why you shouldn’t go for silky smooth, hair free arms when it’s so effortless. Just coz most women don’t care, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be different. Set the trend. Don’t always be a follower. Imagine going to a party in a brand new outfit and showing off beautiful velvety arms. Isn’t your sophistication going to go up a notch? Wouldn’t your girlfriends be totally jealous of your visibly smoother skin on your arms and feel conscious and awkward about their hairy arms? Your partner is going to love it too. And if you haven’t found one yet, it might just be the deal clincher. All I am saying is consider it – you won’t regret the decision.
Summary:
- Hairy arms can be a total turn off
- Smooth hairless arms look chic and sophisticated
- The best technique for hair removal is using an epilator
- Give smooth silky arms a chance – you won’t regret it
Hi,
I am from the US and you are right, I never shaved my arms. I don’t know why. nobody did it and it never occurred to me either! I didn’t really think it looked bad or anything but I am willing to give it a shot. I might just like it!
Thanks for all the posts. I enjoy reading every single one. keep writing
Hi,
I really love your site. Just came across it while googling and I am so glad I did!
I am from India and I am pretty sure everyone here removes hair on their arms. I go in for waxing just like my legs. Never tried an epilator before. I am surprised to know women in the US don’t shave their arms. I always thought it was a western thing. It definitely will be interesting to find out what women from other parts of the world do.
I came across this article completely by accident while shopping around a bit or an epilator, and frankly I am shocked by your vanity and narrow minded-ness!
Your comment:
“Wouldn’t your girlfriends be totally jealous of your visibly smoother skin on your arms and feel conscious and awkward about their hairy arms?”
totally disgusts me. Why would I want to promote this kind of heightened body consciousness anywhere, never mind amongst my friends? As if women haven’t got enough media pressure to look a certain way without making them feel embarrassed about their arms! I am a British girl in my early twenties who has olive skin and extremely dark hair and the want or need to remove the hair on my arms (which is very obvious) has never occurred to me – and why should it have? I am not lazy, as your suggest of women who don’t remove it – I take great care over my appearance and am proud of how I look and frankly find your opinion both narrow minded and shallow.
I agree with Stacey. This article just made it seem like you SHOULD remove arm hair, otherwise it’s disgusting or unattractive. I think hair on the arms is one thing that you should just leave alone. Though it’s anyone’s decision. Having hairy arms shouldn’t be a thing you should be self conscious about. Judging someone by their arm hair is stupid. It’s almost like saying having small breasts is unattractive, and that anyone with small breasts should get plastic surgery to ‘enhance their beauty.’
That statement you said is not true at all. I honestly hate the feeling of making my friends jealous. That’s pretty shallow to say that making your girl friends jealous is better than receiving compliments. I think compliments are flattering, it boosts my self esteem. Rather than feeling somewhat superior to my friends.
@Christine – Why should hair on the arms be the only thing left alone? Like fitnchic says, how’s it different from hair on the legs? If you are conscious of hairy legs and take the pain of shaving it everyday, why should you ignore the hair on your arms and not feel self-conscious about it? We live in a world where looks count and I do believe hairless arms are definitely more attracive. To compare hair removal with cosmetic surgery is plain dumb!
I agree with you on the compliments though… I prefer real compliments as well
Both the article and the comments 🙂 I get what you are saying. There is no harm in trying something this simple. And it’s not like it’s a permanent thing. If I don’t like it I can always go back to my usual self. I just don’t get why some women are making such a big deal out of it. Maybe I am just more open to new ideas.
I honestly never thought of removing the hair on my arms. I am medium/olive skinned with dark hair and while I have always made sure to groom my eyebrows, remove the hair from my upper lip, groom my binkini area, shave my armpits, and shave my legs. I never really thought about my arm hair. I guess it’s because I have never known anyone with the exception of one of my girlfriends that has removed the hair on their arms. But I’m willing to give it a shot now that I have thought about it. I’m curious to see if my husband will notice =)
I don’t think that it’s vain to take pride in one’s appearance…heaven knows how long it takes me to get ready anyway, so what’s a few more minutes for smooth arms? lol
I am a 16 year old mixed race girl in the UK with dark hair on my arms and legs. I have been shaving my legs since I was 10 but did not start shaving my arms until about 4 months ago. I had never really thought about it before and it just made sense to do it. I also recently bought an epilator and have been using that ever since. The pain is nothing compared to the benefits of using one and it is great.
I think that any type of hair removal is entirely up to the person involved and no woman or man should be judged for their body hair. If you are happy with the way you look then who is anybody else to tell you otherwise?
I have been shaving my arms ever since I started shaving my legs!!
I am 25 and living in Britain, I have very dark brown hair and very pale skin. recently I burnt my arm and didn’t shave due to the healing process… OH my! I looked like I had gorilla arms, even though I know that no one was bothered about the look of my arms.. I was! I didn’t feel like my glamorous self and I constantly wore long sleeve tops.
This is not because I am vain or because I think that it’s fashionable. but because it made me feel better. If something bothers you then I suppose that you should do something about it.
we have evolved as human beings from apes… we do not need our body hair any longer!
I think my final thought on this subject would be that:
Apes don’t have clothes… we do!
Hi Stacey,
Thanks for stopping by. I am glad to hear some argument. It’s always nice to see a different point of view.
Let me ask you something… would you wear a mini skirt with hairy legs? How about a tank top with hairy underarms? Just coz something never occurred to you or to anyone around you, apparently, doesn’t mean it’s shallow or narrow-minded.
You being the girl, who takes “great care” over her appearance, shouldn’t really dismiss another beauty enhancing tip as vanity!! All I am saying is give it a try before judging it…. You might be surprised.
Also, whether we admit it or not, seeing jealousy in our girlfriends’ eyes is the ultimate adulation for any girl – much better than any real compliment we might get!
Hope you read some of my non-controversial articles too!
Thanks Christine and Danielle for sharing your views.
Just to clear the misunderstandings, here’s what I have to say…..
Hair removal is like putting on make-up… doesn’t always imply that you are an unattractive “before” …. it’s just that, done the right way, you are certainly a better looking “after”.
And about the jealousy part, you got me all wrong – It’s got nothing to do with the superiority complex…What I meant was, you might get compliments from people for various reasons – they don’t wanna hurt your feelings, they are trying to butter you up, they feel obliged to return a compliment you gave them or they genuinely like your look… but jealousy is unmistakable and leaves no room for doubt…. it’s a vindication that you are looking truly awesome!!