A few weeks ago I watched a YouTube video that annoyed me and intrigued me all at the same time. It was a suggested video on female facial shaving, sometime I'd read about years ago and cast aside due to the negative spin the article had.
The video (which you can watch below) also has the negative vibe of 'erghh facial hair... how embarassing' and even brought out the underlying feminist in me when it was suggested we should all get rid of our facial hair because "men don't like it". Which is frankly ridiculous and rage inducing for myself!
However I persevered with the video and by the end I was eager to give it a go. NOT because I care that my peach fuzz can be seen glistening in the sun or what any man thinks (though I do truly believe most men notice general facial hair like they notice well blended eyeshadow - they are blind to it). But because I was interested to see if it would improve how foundation sat on my skin and the exfoliating effects it would have.
Now this isn't literally shaving your face with your boyfriend's razor or the one you use to shave your legs with. This is using a fine eyebrow trimmer that you use over dry, clean skin. Knowing this made it a lot less daunting so I went ahead and purchased a set of 3 Eyebrow Trimmers from Amazon for only £1.69 here.
Shaving my face... for the first time!
I will admit the first few strokes along my jawline and chin with the trimmer felt very alien and I was still concerned about how the hair would look and feel as it grew back, especially if I decided not to do it again (I realised later I had nothing to worry about!). But once I started to feel how soft it was making my skin I was eager to do the rest. I decided to go the whole way and carefully removed all fine facial hair!
The results
For the first hour after removing all the fine hair I really couldn't stop touching my face as it just felt so incredibly soft, especially my top lip and chin. The next day I applied my foundation as usual and was amazed at how it applied and looked. Blending in my foundation was noticeable easier and it just sat on my skin so much better without any facial hair making it look cakey/heavy. Two weeks on - After initially shaving my face I have I done it once more as I was starting to feel the hairs grow back slightly, the hairs didn't feel course or any different but to maintain that soft feeling I decided to quickly do it.
Final thoughts
This has come as such a revelation to me and I can really see myself keeping it up as I love the feel of my skin now and the difference it makes to products sitting on my skin - I've even noticed how my contouring looks more seamless. However I still hate the idea that people do this due to how they think other people think of them... at the end of the day it's fine facial hair which we all have, that isn't disgusting or ugly.
My tips if you are thinking of giving it a try...
Hopefully I've convinced anyone intrigued by it, like I was, that there isn't a worry of hair growing back thicker or darker and it really isn't like normal shaving. My main tips would be to use the Eyebrow Razors I purchased here or similar as they finely trim off the hair without the risk of cutting the skin. Make sure to do this when your skin is free from makeup but if you do have dry skin you may want to moisturise behind hand or use a small amount of coconut oil over the face. Also I have found holding the trimmer at a 45 degree angle works best.
I also discovered this is a hidden trick that a lot of celebrities use. Again for better makeup application but also due to flash photography highlighting facial hair on the red carpet.
This may seem like a drastic measure to take but I absolutely love the results it gives!
Fee xo.
