What’s the obsession lately with eradicating physique hair? I imply, what’s it with portray on thick eyebrows, excruciatingly painful waxing, and clearly fake-looking hair extensions?

This child boomer should be feeling my age as a result of I simply do not get it.

Sure, I shave my legs, however I am unable to assist noticing that ladies are overly preoccupied with hair these days. Have been we ladies bamboozled into this obsession by entrepreneurs?

In keeping with the e book, Plucked: A Historical past of Hair Removing, greater than 99 p.c of American ladies take away their physique hair.

Apparently, Gillette launched the primary razor for ladies in 1915 together with the message that physique hair was “unpleasant” and “objectionable” and thus wanted to be eliminated. And so they simply so occurred to have the right software. The corporate now earns over 9 billion {dollars} a yr in gross sales.

The Brazilian bikini wax was created in Manhattan by seven Brazilian sisters within the early Nineteen Nineties, who now earn six million {dollars} a yr from waxing, hair, and nail remedies.

Individuals are profiting large time from this obsession to take away hair. Not solely do ladies wax their legs and armpits, however abruptly it turned crucial and ever-so-fashionable to wax different locations as properly. I imply, OUCH! When did ripping scorching wax off delicate areas grow to be empowering?

In actual fact, ladies spend about $10,000 and the equal of over 4 months of their lives eradicating hair. Those that wax a couple of times a month will spend a median of $23,000 throughout their lifetime.

Actually women?

Does this all appear a bit unusual to you child boomers who fought for the feminist revolution with the conviction that as an alternative of obsessing over bodily magnificence, ladies ought to give attention to their intelligence, careers, achievements, and making a distinction? In the course of the 60s and 70s, ladies felt free to make their very own selections about hair removing and lots of selected to go au pure. As of late, ladies really feel ashamed and in some way soiled and not using a bikini wax. What occurred?

To not sound old school, however aren’t there extra vital issues to consider and do than obsess and spend money and time on eradicating physique hair? Again within the outdated days (okay, now I sound historic) individuals appeared extra targeted on non secular issues and household. They did not spend all their time worrying about whether or not their armpits have been correctly waxed. And plenty of would have donated that $150 for a full physique wax – to take away hair that is going to develop again actual fast – to a very good trigger.

And whereas we’re discussing this, simply when did ladies grow to be so helpless? Have you ever child boomers seen that ladies do not know find out how to pluck their very own eyebrows, shave their very own legs, or paint their very own fingernails and toenails anymore? Along with all the cash spent on waxing, ladies spend about $1,300 a yr on manis and pedis alone. Sure, I splurge now and again to do my nails but it surely’s not rocket science to use nail polish. Would not you quite make a journey with all that cash?

We boomers did not go to the hair salon for a “blow dry.” As a substitute, I deftly wielded my very own blow dryer like a professional and caught prongs into scorching rollers with out burning my fingertips to appear like Farrah. If we wished our hair coloured we picked up a bottle of Clairol on the drugstore. We even dared to perm our personal hair! Sure, we regarded like poodles however who cared? And provides me a break. Not less than we did not appear like a Dr. Seuss e book with multi-colored rainbow hair! What’s with that loopy development?

When ladies aren’t busy making an attempt to take away each scrap of hair from their our bodies, they’re clipping or taping on hair extensions to appear like a Actual Housewife or one of many Kardashians. Some ladies grow to be hooked on the extra everlasting sort of extensions which leaves pure hair wanting like a conflict zone. Did I point out the ache of ripping out the tape from the extra everlasting sort of extensions? The opportunity of bald spots? Does this sound like a good suggestion to you? Even Jennifer Aniston has admitted that her well-known locks had grow to be skinny from extensions.

Okay, I need to confess that within the 60s it was fashionable to frost hair. For these of you who do not bear in mind, this course of concerned a tight-fitting rubber cap with tons of little holes. A small metallic crocheting needle was then used to tug items of hair by means of the holes – one after the other. So, it was kinda tortuous and girls might have misplaced a few of their hair within the course of. And we child boomers will not discuss concerning the bristle rollers ladies in some way slept in or teasing hair till it regarded like a chicken’s nest. Girls again combed their hair till they regarded like Marge Simpson after which utilized sufficient sticky hairspray to make hair crunch.

However that was completely different. Type of. Why do not we modify the topic?

Can we discuss a minute about these wonky eyebrows, deemed the “energy forehead?” These stylish fuller brows are purported to appear like artworks, however they only look foolish to me. Darkish forehead fillers create these squared off however completely arched eyebrows that look something however pure. I’ve nothing towards eyebrows, however ought to these two arches in your brow warrant this a lot consideration, trigger a lot work, and value a lot cash? And why wax off your eyebrows in the event you’re solely going to attract them again on once more? I am so confused.

Okay, perhaps I should not be too crucial. My senior image shows skinny, arched eyebrows which can be maybe a tiny bit over-plucked. Really, I am unable to consider I walked round so proudly like that, however that is irrelevant. Not less than I plucked them proudly all on my own and it did not price me a penny!

Nonetheless, this complete cultural phenomenon puzzles me. However wait a minute. Possibly armpit hair is making a comeback. There’s an Instagram account referred to as Girl Pit Hair that options ladies going towards social magnificence norms and rising out their armpit hair and dying it vivid colours.

“At this time’s magnificence requirements actually bum me out as they continuously police ladies’s our bodies,” says Taylor Carpenter, a 23-year-old whose scorching pink pits are featured on the web page. Apart from the difficulty of rebelling towards norms society forces on us ladies, she has one more reason for brightening the colour of her physique hair: “Actually, I actually like how they appear. After I catch a look of my scorching pink pits, it makes me smile.”

Okay, I sorta just like the sentiment of standing up towards this cloud of disgust over any scrap of non-waxed physique hair, however I am nonetheless mystified. Is fluorescent inexperienced leg hair the subsequent development? Possibly I get outdated!