Let’s be honest, body hair removal is deeply personal. Whether you shave every single day, touch up once in a blue moon, or switch between untamed fuzz and silky-smooth depending on your mood, hair removal should always feel like your choice, and not a chore.
Despite the sheer volume of hair removal trends that seem to endlessly come and go, from painful waxing sessions to futuristic lasers, shaving remains the undisputed champion of body hair management. But how did sliding a sharp blade across our skin become our go-to routine, and how can we actually do it without suffering from the dreaded strawberry legs or ingrown hairs afterwards?
Let’s take a closer look at where shaving started out, why it remains a worldwide favourite, and how to level up your routine, fast!
A Quick History: Shaving Wasn’t Invented Yesterday
If you thought that shaving was a modern invention driven by 20th-century advertising, think again. People have been removing body hair for tens of thousands of years already.
Back in the Stone Age, our ancestors used sharpened flint, obsidian and clam shells to scrape away unwanted body hair. In Ancient Egypt, smooth skin was the ultimate symbol of cleanliness, status and wealth. Both women and men used bronze razors, beeswax and depilatory pastes to remain hair-free from head to toe.
Fast forward to the early 1900s: King C. Gillette introduced the safety razor, making self-shaving accessible and safe for all, at home. Shortly after, sleeveless fashions in the 1910s and shorter hemlines in the 1940s turned underarm and leg shaving into a standard beauty preference for women across the globe.
Why Women Still Choose Shaving
With so many high-tech methods available today, it’s pretty impressive that shaving still hold the crown. It may be due to the instant gratification of becoming hair-free, as waxing requires growing out your hair to a noticeable length, and laser treatments can take months to show any results. Whereas, shaving takes five minutes in the shower, giving you immediate smoothness whenever you want, or need it most.
You can decide when, where, and how much you choose to shave, with no need to book in at a salon, drive to appointments or schedule around hair growth cycles. When done correctly with the right tools, shaving is also entirely pain-free and affordable, compared to recurring salon visits, keeping a quality razor on hand is significantly lighter on the wallet.
Because shaving cuts hair off right at the surface of the skin, rather than removing it from the follicle root like waxing or epilating, hair usually starts to peek back through within 1 to 3 days. And contrary to popular belief, shaving does not make your hair grow back thicker or darker. When hair is shaved, it leaves a blunt tip rather than a naturally tapered end, and as it grows, that flat edge can feel stubbly or look slightly darker, but the structure and growth rate of your hair remain completely unchanged.
The Ultimate Guide To An Ingrown-Free Shave
We’ve all finished shaving, put on our favourite jeans, and within 24 hours we’re dealing with red bumps and itchy ingrown hairs. An ingrown hair happens when a shaved hair curls back around and grows sideways into the skin, causing inflammation. Fortunately, achieving a glass-smooth finish on the skin, without irritation, is all down to technique.
That’s why we should never shave dry skin, or rush in the second you step into the shower. Let the warm water soften your hair shafts and skin for 3-5 mins first, and gently exfoliate with a scrub or body wash to clear away any dead skin cells that could otherwise trap growing hairs.
Plain water or a drying bar of soap won’t cut it. As a rich, hydrating shave cream instead creates a protective cushion between the blade and your skin, allowing the razor to glide effortlessly without dragging. If you have sensitive skin, or are prone to razor burn, then try to shave in the direction that your hair grows rather than against it. If you want a super close shave, go across the grain gently, but avoid pressing down hard! Let the weight of the razor do the heavy lifting.
Using a dull, blunt blade is the number one cause of razor burn, nicks, and ingrowns. So remember to replace your razor heads regularly! Rinse off with cool water afterward to soothe the skin, and lock in moisture with a gentle, alcohol-free body lotion or oil.
Estrid: An Upgrade For Your Shaving Essentials
If your current shave routine feels a bit uninspiring, and you revert to cheap plastic disposables or razors designed like men’s sports cars, then it’s time you met Estrid.
Estrid has completely reimagined hair removal by creating shaving essentials that treat body care as self-care. Unlike flimsy plastic razors, Estrid features a heavy, ergonomically balanced steel handle that feels premium in your hand and gives you effortless control without needing to apply extra pressure. Plus, it looks gorgeous in the bathroom!
Each cartridge features five sharp, high-quality steel blades surrounded by a soothing vegan strip which is infused with aloe vera, shea butter, and jojoba oil to melt onto wet skin and cushion every glide, protecting against irritation.
Whilst traditional razor moisture strips often use animal-derived ingredients, like lanolin, Estrid is proud to be 100% vegan and cruelty-free. And with flexible subscription plans, there’s no need to search for overpriced replacement blades at the pharmacy or supermarket anymore, as Estrid delivers fresh razor refills directly to your door right, when you need them. With free shipping and total flexibility to pause or cancel your subscription at any time, you’re fully in control of your personal grooming.
Shaving shouldn’t feel like a compromise between convenience and skin comfort. By combining smart prep with thoughtful design and conscious ingredients, we can enjoy a smooth, irritation-free, flawless shave every time.
