What Age to Let Girls Shave?

If she is asking, it is probably because she is feeling self-concious about herself. My 3 girls all started asking at different ages about shaving, but because they all needed to start at different times due to hair type/color. My youngest is almost 13 and has been shaving since she was about 10/11. I gave her an Intuition razor - the kind that looks like it is built into a bar of soap, and she didn't really have too many issues with nicks. Last year, I found my old Remington wet/dry rechargable shaver and offered her that. She has been using that one lately. Good thing - those Intution blades are EXPENSIVE! And with buying blades for myself and 3 girls, I could easily go broke :) The Remington doesn't do a close enough job for my taste, but she is only looking for her legs/armpits to LOOK hair free, not FEEL hair free.

Good luck!

When I asked, my mom said, "Not yet." So I took her razor and tried to shave... and mangled my legs! I still have scars 20 years later. If she's asking, she wants to do it. Teach her how to do it safely.

I think I was 11 when I started. If she has dark hair on her legs, you might adjust that a bit, but it sounds like she's almost there anyway. I also started off with a rechargeable electric razor :)

I was in the 6th grade when I shaved and I wasn't allowed to. I did it behind my parents back. I was being teased for the hair on my legs. I hate shaving now and wish I had never started but if I had the opportunity to go back in time I would have made the same choice. Nobody likes getting teased. I think 5th or 6th grade is good. Maybe start with an electric razor or try hair trimmers (not clippers but trimmers- the little ones they use on side burnsand hair lines) on it before she starts to make the decision to put a razor to it. It will cut the hair down very short without making it prickly. Works great on arm hair too!

i dont think the hair on our legs was meant to ever be removed. too bad there is so much peer pressure around hair on the body. teach daughters that its normal and there is nothing wrong with it. beginning to shave early begins a life long procedure that women must do every day, other day or every two days. the early you start the more often you will have to shave later in life. thats a lot of time and money.
why not teach young girls to accept the bodies they are given and not ridicule anyone else for the color of their hair.
5th grade is too early in my opinion. wait at least until 15.

I think that once she starts to feel uncomfortable with her legs it is time to start letting her shave. What doesn't look that bad to you could feel horrible to her.

Just be sure to show her how to properly use whatever type of razor you give her, what she should to if she gets a cut, and how to care for whatever razor you give her.

I remember my daughter asking to shave her legs when she was in the 5th grade. I remember that I wasn't allowed to shave my legs till I has 16 years old! I thought my daughter was too young to shave her legs but times are different from I was in the 5th grade. Girls mature early. We went to the store and choosed a razor and I taught my daughter how to shave her legs and underarms. She has been okay with a regular razor. I think electric shaver is just a good as razor. It's your call and ask your daughter what fills comfortable to use.

I taught 2nd, 3rd, and 5th grade. The 5th grade girls who DID shave were SO MEAN to the 5th grade girls that DID NOT shave. So don't let your daughter be embarassed and also, remind her to NOT embarass the other girls who do not shave yet. Remind her that maybe their parents don't let them yet. Summer's coming up, so all the girls will start wearing shorts & skirts. I say your daughter's ready to shave once she starts wearing warmer-weather clothing.

In 6th grade was the first boy/girl dance. My mom used this as our time to shave. I ended up sick for the dance, so missed my chance, and then did it anyway. :)

Whenever you decide to let her, talk to her first. Let her know that once she starts, she has to keep going. Have her only shave once every week or two, less if she is okay with that. My sister shaved every day and has very thick hair that she now HAS to shave. I was lazier and only shaved about once a month, and rarely in the winter. Now, when I get into bed, my husband will sometimes ask if I just shaved, and I sheepishly tell him that I haven't shaved in a month. But it feels soft to him, and he can't tell, so he doesn't care.

I would have to say you are probably at the right target age. To me, it's really all about a sense of self worth. If your daughter is really self conscious about it or "being the only one in class who doesn't do it" is REALLY a big thing at this age. I see no harm in giving her a wet/dry shaver and letting her go! I would certainly explain that once she starts this is a maintenance thing she will need to keep up doing for the rest of her life though!

I don't know that I agree with the NAIR because of the chemicals that are in it. Gosh, that stuff makes me smell like it for three days because it gets in my pores so bad! But that is a personal decision for you to make, not me.

I asked this question this fall, my 11 yo was wanting to start to shave and I wasn't sure if "we" were ready. You could look at my archives, but I had a ton of responses! I did let her start with an electric razor and it has been great! She does it once a week after a shower and it is no big deal! Most of her friends were shaving and she started Jr. High this year so she was embarassed in gym class. Glad I asked for opinions because the majority said they let their daughters around age 11! Good luck!

I was 11 and so was my stepdaughter. We both use razors. We got some nicks at first, but learned what to do to avoid them.

I think this is one of your "pick your battles" types of issues. Ask her why she wants to try it/start? Is she being teased? Does she have dark hair/is she embarrassed? Is she trying to act older? Just talk with her to see if there's a deeper issue that you need to discuss.

I agree that if you don't show her the ropes, she'll just do it on her own. It's not like once she starts she can never stop. But do explain that if she starts, it's itchy and uncomfortable until it grows back in.

Maybe you can "let her try it" when it's shorts season?

In any case, I don't think it's a big deal. SHE's the one who will have to deal with the maintenance. If not, then SHE can deal with growing it out.

In my opinion girls should be allowed the option to shave as soon as they would like to/start feel self-conscious about it.It's great that your daughter is comfortable discussing personal subjects with you keep the communication lines open. It's so much better for you to teach her than her friends.

I noticed that my 9 1/2 year old daughter was starting to grow breast buds a month or so ago. I sat down with her and reviewed that puberty talk that we'd had before. During our talk she asked if she could shave. She said that most of her friends already shaved. I looked at her legs and her hair was getting darker and thicker. I remembered that when my Mom wouldn't let me shave, I stole one of her razors, did it behind her back, and cut myself all up because I didn't know how to do it. I decided that I would rather give her permission, and show her how to do it correctly than have her do what I did. A few days later we went to the store, bought her her own razors, shaving cream, and lotion. Then I took a bath and shaved with her in the room, showing her how to do it, step by step, and warning her about the harder areas to do. Then she got in the tub and shaved with me watching and offering advice. I watched her the first two times, and she's been shaving on her own, about once a week, for the past month. I warned her ahead of time that once you start, you can't stop, but she seem very pleased to be able to do it, and feels better about herself. Overall, I figure that a girl should shave when she begins puberty, and asks to do it. That varies for each girl!

Hi, this was a tough one for me. My daughter is 12 and she was asking at 11. A few of her friends shaved. I didn't want to let her but after talking with family and friends decided it was a self esteem issue with her. I was concerned about the razor because I remembered lots of shaving cuts. I found a product called Veet that is like Nair. It is spread on and you use a plastic razor to wipe it off after it sets for three minutes. took the concern of cuts away and she loves it. She shaves when she wants. It has been wonderful for her and less worrisome for me. I told her that once she started, she would be doing it for the rest of her life. She feels better about herself when she is wearing a dress or shorts and that is important.
Good luck.

R.
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Talk to her about it. I have always had hairy legs and was so embarrassed as a kid about it. My Mom wouldn't let me shave and wouldn't listen, she doesn't have a lot of hair on her legs. My underarms were hairy for a couple of years and Mom wouldn't let me shave that either. Talk to her if she is self-conscious let her shave.

I would say if she doesn't need too, then wait until High School years. Explain to her that once she starts shaving, then she will have to keep it up because the hair will grow back thicker and a lot faster.

i doubt 10 is the time. if her hair is still light enough to not be seen, i wouldnt worry i guess. but its up to you.
its really all up to you and your daughter.
why would you use an electric shaver and not a razor? because of cuts or something?
i use the venus breeze and i never get knicks or cuts.

Why not? It's really not a big deal, unless you make one of it. My first daughter asked when she was about 10-11, and a great friend told me to just let her, and be sure to show her how. We did, and now she shaves about once a week, and it is no big deal to her anymore, knowing that she can shave whenever she wants to. It took all the pressure off me and some of the excitement out of it, because it wasn't a challenge anymore! She's 13 now, by the way.

I was about 11 when I started with an electric razor.

13 when I started using a hand one.

Like others have said, make sure you are the one to teach her. If you wait, will she do it on her own or at a friend's house? I was in the 6th grade a neighbor friend of mine told me I needed to shave and that's what we did one afternoon in my parent's house. No one knew.

If you decide to let her use a razor, try the Intuition one. Like another person said, they are expensive but much easier. They are a God send to me now during my third trimester. It makes it quicker and doesn't seem to shave as deep as other razors. I can get two shaves out of one blade, your daughter may be able to get 3.

Good luck to you and your daughter....no judgements here!

My daughter was about 10 1/2 last summer when she started asking. So I asked people what they would do. Then we found a little battery operated on at Target for about $10. She was as happy as could be, I didn't have to worry so much about her cutting herself. (I had discovered she had borrowed my razor during my questioning this!) She actually rarely shaves, but she just feels better being able to! And yes, she inherited my hairy italian legs so I could see her point!

I wish my mother had allowed me to start when I was your daughter's age. She made me wait until I was 12 and the teasing was almost unbearable. I would NEVER want my child to go through the kind of self-esteem damaging experiences that I had over something as insignificant as shaving. I know it may seem young, but it could make all the difference to her in these delicate pre-adolescent years.

Ok after reading the posts I am definintly in the minority here. But....I started shaving my legs in the 3rd grade behind my moms back. She didn't find out until 4th/5th grade. As an adult with an almost 8 year old with really hairy legs I've decided as soon as she asks me about it I'm going to allow it. I'll help her & teach her .... But I'd rather me have that teaching moment with her than her go sneaking it.

I would definitely let her. When I was a teen, my mom didn't show me how to shave or get me a bra or show me how to use tampons or anything...and I was so miserable and ashamed of myself. Eventually I taught myself those things. Honestly I think my life would have been VERY different if I had gotten to be "like all of the other girls" at that age. It may seem silly, but I think it is very important to let her do it, especially since she was the one to ask

10 seems early to me, how about 12. I had this idea of 13, but when my daughter was 12 she insisted, and I couldn't stop what she was doing in the shower.

Decide on an age that feels right to you, and tell your daughter to wait till she's that age.

Meanwhile, if she insists on shaving earlier, I discovered that it's not really a big deal.

My daughter started shaving at 10...she is 12 now. I also started her out with a regular shaver, as an electric razor really isn't any safer than a regular one, and can be more painful to use if the hair is longer. I just made sure to show her how to properly use it, and had her sit on the side of the tub the first couple of times she shaved while I was in the room with her. I believe I was about the same age when I began to shave. In reality, if your daughter wants to start shaving her legs, she will do it whether you know about it or not - she'll just use your razor if you leave it out.
Good luck!

I'm going to be in the minority here, but I say wait for leg shaving till she's older - 14 or 16 yrs old. I started with deodorant and shaving under arms in 7th grade. It was part of personal hygiene (and also part of periods, sanitary pads and tampons, and bras). With all that going on, my Mom felt that shaving legs and ear piercing and panty hose were better left till 16 yrs old - to signify becoming a young lady. (Actually- it was her warning shot for me to ACT more like a young lady or else - I was a bit of a tom boy.) Once you start shaving the legs, it's hard to stop - the stubble feels awful, and it's time consuming. Safety razors make it safer than it use to be (who of us hasn't shaved a strip of skin off an ankle once in awhile?), the chemical stuff can eat away your finger nails and burn your skin, and waxing just hurts. When she's grown, has a job and can afford it, she can have the laser hair removal and be done with it. For now, I think she's a bit young for leg shaving.

My daughter started using Nair when she was 9. She has extrememly dark, thick hair and it got to the point where she didn't want to wear shorts, skirts, dresses, etc. because of it. The first few times I actually did it for her, but now she does it all on her own. She'll be 11 next month. Good luck.

hello, i have a 12 yr old that i just let start shaving. she wanted to shave also at age 10, but i said no, not until she was 12 or close to that age. my daughter is very light skinned with dark hair, so the hair on her legs was very noticeable!
i do have to say that i had to let her shave her pits at about 10 1/2 because she had hair already!
i think it just depends on the parents and the child. our girls these days start maturing way earlier that we did as young girls, so that means we might have to do things a little bit earlier than we want too. my daughter was very self conscience of her hair and i didnt want anyone to make fun of her, so i had to give in. now of course it isnt an issue anymore and she feels a lot more confident about herself! good luck!

I don't know if my story will help, but when I was 10-11 years old, I had a lot of hair growth. My mother said I was too young to start shaving, and I totally disagreed with her. I had hair in my arm pits that I could actually use a comb on it. I have always had very long hair, and my legs where also very hairy, so I took upon myself and started shaving. It made me feel so confident, but I kept it from my mother. I say get your daughter an electric shaver, which is much more safer than a razor blade. My story probably did not help you, but at least you and your daughter have a relationship to talk to each other.

Both of my daughters grabbed my Intuition Plus razor without my permission and shaved when they were 9 years old! I did not know they were even thinking about doing it, and I don't think they were, it was just an impulse. Both informed me of it right after they did it and neither have sufferred any nicks from that brand of razor. They were too proud of the deed for me to dash their confidence, so I simply asked them why they felt the need to and that since it's a bit of a right of passage, I really wish they would have asked me about it and included me firstm, then gave them some pointers. With my oldest daughter, I had already had the puberty talk with her, so after she shaved the first time, I bought her her own Intuitiion razor gift box that came with a manicure set and wrapped it with the "Care and Keeping of You" book by American Girl. I know she really appreciated my recognition of her becoming a young woman, and I know that everytime she looks at those items, she remembers she can trust in me with the issues of becoming a young woman. I highly recommend doing this as it was a real relationship builder! I have not yet done the same for my younger daughter as we have not had the puberty talk yet. She seems a little less serious/mature and that would be too much information for her right now, but when she's ready, I will buy her the same thing. Also, neither of my daughters really maintain their shaving and just do it here and there. The Intuition blades last us for months and I have very dark,thick hair. It is not true that shaving will make hair come back thicker/darker!