Let it grow! New movement encourages women not to shave during January
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Let it grow! New movement encourages women not to shave during January

Updated | By Justin Paul James

Shaving has to be one of the most dreaded tasks for women, but now ladies are being encouraged to let it grow during the month of "JanuHairy".

Women with unshaven legs / Instagram
Women with unshaven legs / Instagram

Move over "JanuWorry" and "Movember" because there's a new buzzword on social media that has everyone talking - especially women. 

Ladies all over the world are invited to participate in "JanuHairy", which basically encourages women to put down their razors for the month.

READ: New eyebrow beauty trend takes a heavenly turn

The 'movement' was started by a girl named Laura who grew out her body hair for a drama performance and just ended up liking the fact that she didn't have to shave.

"When I first started growing my body hair my mum asked me “Is it you just being lazy or are you trying to prove a point?” . . . why should we be called lazy if we don’t want to shave? And why do we have to be proving a point?" she said. 

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Hi I’m Laura, the gal behind Januhairy! I thought I would write a little about my experiences and how Januhairy came about... I grew out my body hair for a performance as part of my drama degree in May 2018. There had been some parts that were challenging for me, and others that really opened my eyes to the taboo of body hair on a woman. After a few weeks of getting used to it, I started to like my natural hair. I also started to like the lack of uncomfortable episodes of shaving. Though I felt liberated and more confident in myself, some people around me didn’t understand why I didn’t shave/didn’t agree with it. I realised that there is still so much more for us to do to be able to accept one another fully and truly. Then I thought of Januhairy and thought I would try it out. It’s a start at least . . . I have had a lot of support from my friends and family! Even though I had to explain why I was doing it to a lot of them which was surprising, and again, the reason why this is important to do! When I first started growing my body hair my mum asked me “Is it you just being lazy or are you trying to prove a point?” . . . why should we be called lazy if we don’t want to shave? And why do we have to be proving a point? After talking to her about it and helping her understand, she saw how weird it was that she asked those questions. If we do something/see the same things, over and over again it becomes normal. She is now going to join in with Januhairy and grow out her own body hair which is a big challenge for her as well as many women who are getting involved. Of course a good challenge! This isn’t an angry campaign for people who don’t see how normal body hair is, but more an empowering project for everyone to understand more about their views on themselves and others. This picture was taken a few months ago. Now I am joining in with Januhairy, starting the growing process again along with the other wonderful women who have signed up! Progress pictures/descriptions from our gals will be posted throughout the month. Lets get hairy 🌵 #januhairy #bodygossip #bodyhairmovement #happyandhairy #loveyourbody #thenaturalrevolution #natural #hairywomen #womanpowe

A post shared by Januhairy (@janu_hairy) on

Laura has put out a call to all women around the world to "let it grow". An Instagram page was even set up for "JanuHairy", which has racked up over 9,000 followers at the time of writing. 

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The page features posts of women feeling liberated, unashamedly showing off their body hair for the world to see.

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Good morning everyone! This is the fabulous @themamabelle who shared her story with us... ✨“So if you know me then you know that I choose not to shave my pits. Lots of people ask me why so I figured since there’s this #januhairy thing happening on social media why not talk about it?! • • • I think I stopped shaving my pits mid 2016 after coming across @ripsnorter on ig. She was beautiful and just so happened to not shave either and that’s when I realized who fucking cares about hair. I’m half Lebanese, hairy by nature. When i shave my hair grows back within minutes, it’s truly pointless and a waste of shower time for me considering how much hair I have to groom solely on my head. So i stopped. Eventually i stopped shaving all together because it simply did not benefit me anymore. Fastforward 3 years and i haven’t bought a single use razor since then. Sometimes I’ll shave because I feel like it and that’s the point. It should be a choice! Not a beauty standard. Sure there’s tons of criticism but it has benefited me in so many ways. No more ingrowns or razor bumps, I don’t sweat as much, I used to always have sweat circles on my sleeves, contrary to popular belief my pits don’t stink and I rarely use deodorant now because of that, and i have much more time in the shower now that I’m not incessantly worrying about removing every last strand of hair on my body. Oh and it’s also helped me weed out shallow potential mates in this freaky dating world because I don’t want to be with someone who’s not comfortable with my body choices. The point is, do whatever you want because it’s your body. Someone is always going to have something negative to say so you may as well do whatever is going to benefit you. Happy Januhairy! I challenge you to put down the razor next time you’re feeling called!”✨ -To share your #januhairy story, send us a DM or email us at [email protected]!

A post shared by Januhairy (@janu_hairy) on

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"There is nothing more rare, nor more beautiful, than a woman being unapologetically herself; comfortable in her perfect imperfection. To me, that is the true essence of beauty."~Steve Maraboli • • • @i_am_morgie~ “…Imagine if everyone just decided that today was the day they loved themselves and embraced every part of them selves. Accepting and loving your body and your "flaws" because you know they are what makes you who you are. If you are focused on being true to yourself in every moment, you are less concerned what others think, which will lead to peace of mind. When you have nothing to hide and you can freely be yourself, there is a profound peace/confidence you will emanate to the world that will inspire others.”👏 • • • All the girls joining in januhairy are shaving off their body hair on New Year’s Eve (Monday 31st) ready to kick start the new year with a new challenge! We have many women who have signed up for this charity project so far, from the age range of 16-60! ✨💃✨💃 Sign up and join in while you can! #3daysleft #januhairy #thenaturalrevolution #bodyhairmovement #bodypositive #spreadlove #behappy #namaste#hairywomen #healing #healthylifestyle #selfcare #loveyourself #beyourself #bethechange #divine #inspireothers #inspirationalquotes #positivity #goodvibesonly #lifeisbeautiful #hairy #gratitude #weareone #higherconsciousness #freespirit #empowerment #smile #feelgood #bodygossip

A post shared by Januhairy (@janu_hairy) on

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📷: @youngheartxoldsoul - “Hair under an arm of a woman - a very big and difficult subject. But why? Isn't it normal to have hair on our bodies? Isn't everyone allowed to make the desicion to not shave their hair? Who told us that hair isn't okay? Why is somethimg so natural seen as wrong in our society? Whoever made us, created us with hair and our hair did always protect us, it never did us wrong. I am honest to y'all, I always shaved my hair and it was very difficult for me to let it grow for 3 weeks. But I wanted to let it grow to show you that it is okay, this doesn't mean you should too - please keep that in mind. I was relieved when I could shave my hair 10 minutes ago after taking the photo and I was feeling myself again. I will definitly still shave my armpits in the future. But I don't think it was disgusting, I wasn't sweating more than before and I wasn't smelling more after doing something intense. I will accept it more from now on if a woman makes or already made the desicion to let her hair grow. Everyone should do it how they prefer it and we should accept it and support the desicion others make.” 💗

A post shared by Januhairy (@janu_hairy) on

We asked Jane what her thoughts are on "JanuHairy".

"Whatever floats your boat but for me, I don’t like having unshaven legs, or armpits," she said. 

She also said that she loves the process of shaving and that it feels good once it's done.

"A good shave to me is cathartic - almost like having my hair cut, roots did, or taking off chipped nail polish, I feel so much better afterwards. It’s a personal thing, and sure it flies in the face of what’s deemed sexy, but isn’t sexy something that is objective too?" Jane added.

Ladies of KZN, would you ever consider joining this movement?

What are your thoughts?

Main image courtesy of Instagram/JanuHairy

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