Wow, at 11? I mean, I don’t know the first thing about the anatomy of girls in that age bracket, so enlighten me: is this an unusually young age to start shaving legs? I always figured girls started doing this at 14 or 15 or so. But maybe I’m incredibly naive or just ignorant in this regard.
Well, Coldie, things may be different over in Europe, and I may be oversensitive due to my childhood “trauma,” but I know I didn’t encourage her one way or the other. I just decided when she was old enough to ask I would let her.
And yes, she does have noticeable hair on her legs.
OUCH OUCH OUCH! Please for the love of God get a decent razor! I despise disposable razors for shaving my legs. Use a Mach III. They’re great. At least your lovely daughter will still have some skin left tomorrow!
BTW, kudos on the support. I shaved my legs the fist time without telling my mom, and used one of those old razors with the removable heads. I suppose that just shows my age. In the end I had no hair, but I didn’t have a lot of skin left either.
It seems like it’s something that should be done when it is biologically time, Just setting an age to it makes no sense (what happens if she hits the age and didn’t start yet?) - when the hair grown it is customary to shave it.
BTW some blame hormones added to cattle for the earlier development of female 2ndard sexual characteristics, but I asked a med student and he was told the most likely cause is over nutrition.
I second the Mach III razor! Best razor ever invented, and all advertising is aimed at men. I don’t even know any guys who use anything but electric razors…
I started shaving at 11 as well. Very hairy, with dark hair. Pubescent girls are not kind at all. I just decided to shave my legs one day. I don’t think my mom ever noticed. Good of you to notice and have a relationship so the two of you spoke about the situation!!
See, I never would have dreamed about shaving my legs without asking permission.
Now, funny enough, I started shaving my underarms when I was 10 or 11. Let’s just say it was “necessary” that I do so. My daughter doesn’t have anything under her arms to shave yet, thank goodness.
I was never extremely hairy, but I was quite light-skinned and had dark hair, so whatever I had showed and showed well. I was kind of an early bloomer (started developing breasts at 9, started growing hair at 10, first period at 11). I started shaving at about 12, and didn’t ask my mother’s permission to do so. She had never shaved her legs, and had blonde down on them as proof. She told me not to feel pressured into shaving, but I wore shorts often and decided that it wouldn’t do to have hairy legs. My two favorite shaving gels were Skintimate and BeneFit Bathina’s shaving cream. I find that Gillette’s Venus razor is very soft, effective, and easy (not to mention comes in three colors). Maybe you could buy her one of those products to kind of “welcome her into shavinghood”. Which is something she’ll soon want to be ushered out of, as shaving can be a pain in the neck!
I first shaved my legs when I was 10, early puberty here too. My mom found out 'cause I used a safety razor and cut my knee. I used an orange washcloth to stop the blood. First she was mad that I cut myself and bled on a “good” washcloth. Then she was mad because “shaving makes the hair grow back darker”. Then she showed me the right way to shave my legs (and hid the safety razor).
And Ivylass, make sure your daughter has clean sheets on her bed. That’s the best part of shaving!
I started when I was 11 as well. My mother kind of forced me into it only because she didn’t quite know how to introduce the idea. She handed me a razor, and showed me how, and kept checking on me to make sure I wasn’t cutting myself. After that first time, she would routinely ask me if I had shaved again, and checked a few times. That was awful! But after a few weeks of doing this, she gave up and let me be.
Electric razors flat out suck. The hell with them. The sideburn attachement has its uses, yes, but other than that…electric razors shouldn’t be mentioned in polite company.
Remind your daughter of the first rule of shaving: Don’t drink and shave.
Ivylass, I think the shaving party is a terrific idea. I started shaving my legs at 10. It had nothing to do with puberty. I’m a brunette and genetically disposed to long dark body hair. I couldn’t wait to be old enough to get rid of my chimp legs.
Well, my daughter has now joined the ranks of the silky-smoothed.
I did one leg and she did the other. I told her that I was not going to help her in the future, since this was a grown-up thing to do and if she needed my help she wasn’t old enough, and I warned her that she probably would cut herself.
I know in watching her that she missed broad swatches of hair on her leg, but with time will come experience. I am also not going to bug her about shaving her legs. If she wants to regrow and become Sasquatch again, that’s her business.
Jeez, something else I have to look forward to. happy happy joy joy
I’m a guy & don’t know anything about leg shaving.
My wife is asian & doesn’t grow hair on her legs.
My daughter is about to turn 11. This should be fun.
On a brighter note, once my older daugher gets through this stuff, she’ll be able to help her younger sister out.
I asked my daughter about shaving her legs, she’s only 6 by the way, and she said when she gets olders she wants the hair removal cream, thinking ahead a bit eh?
If a child has hairy legs and wants to shave, I say big deal. It’s not like she wants to put on skimpy clothes and pack on the make up. Enjoy your party ivylass…
I started shaving when I was in the 3rd grade (about 8 I think?) because the dark, thick hair on my legs made me self-conscious. My mom let me, but when my younger sis wanted to at the same time (she was about 5) my mom took the blad out of the razor
