Shaving question from a GG

[Paige.]

What is the difference between shaving your face and shaving your legs?

I am curious because I have never read a post that says something like "OMG, I just shaved my face again. My cheeks feel incredibly smooth and sexy and I was so turned on the whole time. It must be the 6,143rd time for me and my make-up is going to look so good."

I don't mean to mock, but when you want to dress you shave your face to look pretty and feminine. But it isn't the same as doing your legs is it? Is it because a beard is strictly a male thing and leg shaving is a female thing? Can anyone enlighten me?

[kristinacd55]

It's definitely a crossdressing thing. Just like for a GW to say "it's sexy to shave my legs". Not gonna happen!

[Dr.Susan]

Because you don't put hosiery on your face. Unless your robbing bank.

[Paige.]

Because you don't put hosiery on your face. Unless your robbing bank.

I'm still laughing at this one. Thanks for the chuckle.

[trisha59]

There is a difference in how you shave too. At least for me. Face shaving I'm looking at my piss in the mirror usually in the morning still a bit tired and "looking forward to work. With leg shaving I'm usually in a nice bath getting ready for a night of fun. I have also heard GG's say on occasion Something like "this is a really important night I'v even shaved my legs. Reinforcing in my mind that its something you girls do for special occasions.

[Jenny Beth]

Simple. Face shaving is a guy thing that most of us hate. For sure we have to get a close shave to get a decent make up job but nothing beats a smooth pair of legs to slip a nice pair of stockings on. But don't take my word for it, don't shave your legs for a year or so and you'll see what we mean!

[MonikaW]

A significant part of the difference is the sensation. Male body hair is generally thick and acts as an insulating layer against the skin. When that body hair is not there, the skin exposed directly to what ever touches it whether it is clothing or simply air. This sensation feels very different especially to one who is not accustomed to it. I remember when I was much younger and shaved my legs for the very first time, the sensation was amazing. My leg hair at the time was very thick, and not having that layer of hair felt incredibly different as my skin could directly feel all sorts of things it never could before. Clothing just glides along the skin and one doesn’t feel the hair. I suspect that someone who has worn a beard for sometime and then shaves it probably notices a similar sensation as their face is exposed directly to air after removing the beard. Now that I keep myself relatively hair-free, I am accustomed to the feeling, so it doesn’t feel so amazing. However, I definitely prefer the feeling of being hair-free.

Apart from the sensation, another difference is the ritual. Shaving one’s legs is part of the ritual of becoming feminine. Shaving legs is not generally part of one’s male grooming habits, so doing it helps one get into a different state of mind. Shaving the face is just a part of the daily routine like brushing your teeth.

[docrobbysherry]

I'm still laughing at this one. Thanks for the chuckle.

--- for the same reason most GGs don't shave their faces! Shaving stimulates the root and hair usually comes back thicker and darker! Probably the reason the ONLY PLACE ON MY MY BODY THAT I CAN GROW DECENT HAIR is my face!

The hair on the rest of my body is fairly invisible, Paige. Also, my skin is so thin, I've never been able to use a razor without getting a rash! Do some women have that problem, too?
I use an electric. Because they don't cut as close. Men that have dark beard shadows r much like GGs with dark, thick, leg hair. They must shave very close, and often to reduce shadow and remain smooth! With the exception that u ladies can always put on dark hose if you don't wish to shave rite then!

As previously mentioned, if men tried that on our faces, we mite end up shot!

[sometimes_miss]

This is for Doc R, but I suppose others may benefit as well, because up until recently, I never knew the right way to shave.

Shaving stimulates the root and hair usually comes back thicker and darker!

Always read that was a myth. The hair just gets thicker as we get older, giving the impression it's caused by shaving. But I had a beard the first 25 years of facial hair, and only trimmed it, never shaved. It came in thicker anyway. So much for that theory.

I've never been able to use a razor without getting a rash!

For some of us, it's hard to get a close shave without irritation. My dad didn't teach me to shave, so I was doing it wrong until a few years ago. Try showering first, use shampoo and conditioner on the beard as well as head, and do it last so you don't constantly rinse all the conditioner off. Use a good lubricating gel, (I use Edge) lather and wait a few minutes (yeah, I hate waiting too, but you have to). The skin MUST be held firm and taught. You'll have to discover which direction to shave, I suppose it depends on your face. I shave in a downward direction above and just a bit past the jaw line, then in an upward direction from the chest/neck line back to the jaw line. ONCE. ONCE. If you go over it again without more gel, the lubrication is gone, and you're scraping the skin. And, depending on how fast your beard grows, you may be able to get a closer shave if you wait an extra day between shaves (at least, I can) because the multiple blade razors need a long enough hair to grab on to and pull it taught before the last blade shaves it off, leaving the stub slightly below skin level. Oh, and for a good shave, you have to use a new blade. Yeah, it gets expensive, but sometimes you get what you pay for. I buy my blades by the hundreds on ebay, price comes down to about a buck a cartridge. Yes, you can sometimes get by with a used blade, but for important dates, spend the cash and do it right. For those of you with thicker beards, you may have to re-shave in different directions to get all the stubble. My tutor told me he had to shave up, sideways and down in every section to get a smooth shave, and that it takes a lot of time but he didn't see any other choice.
Legs? Same, after a long shower, using Edge gel, I shave upwards to keep it close. Just takes a lot longer, I guess partially because I don't do it that much so I'm not as good at it. Maybe I'll try nair next time.
Doc, if you still get irritation in some areas, you might consider electrolysis for those sections only. Good luck.

[KellyCD]

--- Shaving stimulates the root and hair usually comes back thicker and darker!

I find it funny this myth is still around to this day. It was busted on national TV a few years ago. I guess people still believe it because it sounds like it could make sense. Kinda like warm water freezes faster than cold water. (it doesn't btw)

[Sammy777]

It is sorta simple.
It is what is socially expected of us, so there's no fun in it.

Men: Have to shave there face. Fun could be growing a beard for some.

Women: Have to shave their legs [unless you live in France J/K] lol

So the fun part could be from doing the opposite of what society says we can't or shouldn't do or it could just be the feeling of them after.
To each his/her own on fun vs. feeling.

I find it funny this myth is still around to this day. Kinda like warm water freezes faster than cold water. (it doesn't btw)

Actually, it's boiled water that freezes faster.
Even if it is a higher temp then nonboiled water it will freeze faster because there are less impurities in it.
People just sorta screwed the wording/facts over time.

It is the same as distilled water will NOT boil.
[Distilled water is boiled, turned to steam then back to water removing most or all impurities]

Water only boils [bubbles] because of the impurities.
Distilled water goes from water straight to vapor without all the bubbling.

If you bring distilled water to boiling temp it will just sit there.
Now, drop something, anything in to it and it will instantly & violently "boil" [bubble up].

[docrobbysherry]

Always read that was a myth. The hair just gets thicker as we get older, giving the impression it's caused by shaving. But I had a beard the first 25 years of facial hair, and only trimmed it, never shaved. It came in thicker anyway. So much for that theory.

Lexi, the myth I heard, goes like this: "If u shave OR CUT your hair, it grows back darker and thicker".

I find it funny this myth is still around to this day. It was busted on national TV a few years ago. I guess people still believe it because it sounds like it could make sense.

Lexi and Kelly, I can ONLY site my 60 years of experience. ( Not counting the hair on my head, that has been falling out since age 19), here's what I've experienced:

1. The only places on my body I've ever cut or shaved my hair, is on my face and in my nose. Both of those places have MUCH thicker hair than when I was, say 16, when I started shaving. (Yes, I know men's nose and ear hair increases as they age). Brings me to my next point.

2. My ear hair DID increased in volume, but NOT in thickness! I've always plucked it. Never cut it! There's much less of it now, and it's much finer, than 10 years ago. At about the same time, I began trimming my nose hair more often. It's gotten denser and thicker!

3. The hair on my; arms, legs, and pits, is still baby fine. As it was when I was 16. I'm not sure about the amount of hair there, just the thickness. It may be longer and denser now, but not thicker.

Maybe I'm the exception, don't know. Or maybe the "myth" came about, because for many, it's true!?

[carolinoakland]

Oh I don't know, I've often heard FAB ask another " Did you shave your legs? No? Then it's not a real date." Does that get close to what you mean?

[avril findlay]

Because you don't put hosiery on your face. Unless your robbing bank.

That's one of the best one line answers to a query I've ever seen. Take a bow Susan, brilliant!

[prene]

Paige,
This takes several hrs but I pull 80% of the hairs on my face.
I don't have that much though.
When I pull the face hairs I get such a clean face I do not have to shave for 4 days. It is great. I usually use creams on my legs.

The hard parts to shave is under the arms(pits).

I can't be the only ones am I ???

[StaceyJane]

Can I just say one more time that I love shaving my legs. I wanted to do it for the longest time. and now that I have done it I can't imagine not shaving and having those hairy legs back.

[Nicole Erin]

Because you don't put hosiery on your face. Unless your robbing bank.

What did somebody mention, nevermind I plead the 5th...

OK so yeah it is like this -
Shaving the face is merely getting rid of the curse of the beard, for at least a little while. It is a chore, it doesn't feel luxurious or even sexy. The makeup feels sexy well can look that way...

Shaving the legs feels nice but is kind of optional. there are long skirts or dark tights or whatever...

Shaving legs is a luxury, shaving the face is a chore.

[DanaR]

Paige,

If I shave my face (closely) to often it gets irritated, because my skin is fairly sensitive. After shaving my face, I'll moisturize and put my makeup on; none of this helps. So after a few days my face is breaking out. When I shave my legs, it is a completely different sensation. My legs feel nice and silky, even without hose.

[Shikyo]

I need to shave, because otherwise my face would look so stupid, for anyone near enough. I got thin and blond body hair, for most parts of my body, including the facial hair. It does not even grow that long, the longest it has ever grown, should not have been maybe 1cm.
It looks very bad from close, as you can kinda see it, but you cannot see it. It makes the face seem uncared for, doesn't matter in which mode I am. Though I do not get any kind of beard shadow.

I even tried to sugaring my facial hair, but it only works partially, I am unable to get all the facial hair out with it, unlike for the rest of my body. I looked into this issue and it seems the root system for the male beard is different compared to all the other hair in the human body, this root systems makes it impossible/very hard to get them out besides by plucking each of them alone or shaving it.

[Sara Jessica]

Actually I do feel that way sometimes. Usually soon after electrolysis so that I have an unusually smooth face. Shaving , then moisturizing, then applying makeup is so nice at that point!

I do as well, but not so much to the extent Paige so cutely exagerated

It used to be like most of us I'm sure, all about shaving the face to create the best canvas I could. But of the blue I went and did the plucking thing and now, I'm not satisfied unless I can pluck the face smooth. Afterwards, I can keep it up for nearly a week but all at once it seems, most of those insidious furs start their march to break the skin's surface and at that point, neither tweezers nor a razor can do a good job in getting them. This whole routine unfortunately goes far to dictate when I can plan outings and even apply makeup at home.

I HOPE I HOPE I HOPE that in 2009 I can actually start an electrolyis routine. I figure I don't need facial hair in guy mode (I can't grow a normal beard or stash to save my life...thank goodness, but I have enough to make quite a mess) and I'll be MUCH HAPPIER not having to deal with the plucking routine any longer.

[Gizmo, Debbie]

I hate shaving full stop! It would be great if there was a quick and fairly cheap way of getting rid of ALL body hair!.
In saying that? There is something i find slightly theraputic about shaving my legs that i just can't quite put my fingure on??? It's the massageing in the shaving gel then carfully drawing up the razar, trying to avoid the nicks around tricky parts like the knees,.The watching the white lather of the gel and the black hairs comming off and the skin looking all pink and delicate.
Plus there is the face shaving is a guy thing and the legs a girly thing, and me prefering girly.

[Raya]

What did somebody mention, nevermind I plead the 5th...

OK so yeah it is like this -
Shaving the face is merely getting rid of the curse of the beard, for at least a little while. It is a chore, it doesn't feel luxurious or even sexy. The makeup feels sexy well can look that way...

Shaving the legs feels nice but is kind of optional. there are long skirts or dark tights or whatever...

Shaving legs is a luxury, shaving the face is a chore.

I couldn't agree more. I think it's basically a matter of routine. When I was 15, shaving my face was the thrill of a lifetime because it was something I finally got to do. After years on end of doing the same thing, it's nothing but a chore. It's something I have to do.

Women aren't too different. For a lot of teenage girls, make-up is a new, exciting way to look beautiful, glamorous, sexy. To a lot of adult women, make-up is a time-consuming, obligatory way to look "presentable". Which one of the two sounds more like us CDers?

I think that most of us dress up on a sporadic basis, so it never has time to become routine. That keeps it "special" in our minds for a lot longer. A few of our lucky sisters, though, dress quite regularly, or even full-time. I wouldn't be surprised if their answers were similar to other GGs.

[acdee]

I hate shaving my face but somehow shaving my legs relaxes me and makes me feel more comfortable.

[Elsa Larson]

I hate shaving my face - to the point that I wore a full beard from 1991 to 2007. My beard is finally white/gray so when I do shave, I no longer need to do "beard cover" as the first step in a total transformation. Even so, the feeling of sandpaper-face after half a day takes a lot of fun out of crossdressing.

But waxing/plucking the beard is a whole 'nother thing. If I grow my beard long enough to get a good grip on it, I can clear my whole face in less than 2 hours. The FEEL of a silky smooth face for at least a week afterward is HEAVENLY and DEEPLY SATISFYING.

I notice from the boy pix of "sisters" that many grow a beard between their appearances en femme. SO I suspect I'm not the only one who does the waxing/plucking thing.

[Kitty Sue]

Because you don't put hosiery on your face. Unless your robbing bank.

It's true.