Men and women around the world are embracing body grooming. However, when it comes to resources on body grooming for men, it tends to be more limited than what is readily available for women.
This leaves men to be slightly confused about how to go about body grooming at home, and one main part that is a bit confusing is trimming armpit hair.
It is seen as a norm for men to have armpit hair, but too much armpit hair can be a breeding ground for bacteria.
When it comes to trimming armpit hair, how do you do so without itching? It is pretty simple, using scissors or clippers, mixing the direction of your trimming, and having appropriate post-trim care, you will be able to trim your armpit hair without any of the itching or other nasty side effects.
Keep reading to learn everything you need to know about trimming armpit hair without itching.
Trimming Armpit Hair The Right Way
Here is a simple way, along with some tips, on how to effectively trim your armpit hair, and to avoid the itching that usually comes along with it.
Use Scissors or Clippers
If you have not trimmed or shaved your armpit hair before, or for a long time, the worst mistake you could make it going straight for it with a razor. The razor can become snagged and tangled in the long hair, which can turn out to be really painful!
Instead, use scissors or clippers and decide how long you want your armpit hair to be. It is best to keep the hair at a length of an inch or less, but any shorter than ¾ of an inch can be scratchy and itchy.
Trim the hair down to a lesser length, and then use clippers to even it down and trim it down a little bit more.
Don’t use kitchen scissors for this. It’s best to invest in a pair of affordable, high-quality beauty scissors like these.
Opt For A Clean Shave
If you want to completely remove the hair from your armpits, you will need to use a razor to finish it off. You will still need to trim the hair down considerably using scissors or clippers, to stop the razor from becoming stuck.
It is important to remember that the concave shape of your armpits makes it easier to nick and cut your skin, so you should take it really slow. Use an oil balm to prep the area and to give it some protection against these nicks and cuts. This is my favorite pre-shave oil for both men and women.
Don’t Stick To One Direction
Unlike leg hair, armpit hair is fairly unruly and grows in different directions. In order to remove all of the hair, you will need to move your razor both up and down, to catch all of the hairs. Avoid moving the razor sideways, as this is a good way to cause irritation, razor burn and ingrown hairs.
Post-Trim Care For Armpits
Post-trim care is super important, and something that needs to be fully embraced if you want to avoid itchiness, irritation or ingrown hairs.
Once you have finished trimming or shaving your armpit hair, you should use a shave balm to calm the skin and give it some much-needed hydration. You can also use baby powder as an anti-perspiration after your shave to avoid any further irritation from normal deodorant.
You should also scrub under your arms gently with a loofah a few times a week to break away any dead skin cells that could trap new hairs. This will prevent ingrown hairs and lots of pain!
Hair Removal Tips For The Whole Body
If you don’t want to stop at your armpits and are looking for hair trimming or removal tips for the rest of your body, ones that will not cause irritation or itchiness, here is how to tackle the other areas for the best results.
Tweezing Eyebrows
While most men might not want perfectly sculpted brows, the monobrow look is still not always the best. For men, the best way to keep eyebrows looking neat and semi-done is to use tweezers.
Waxing will remove too much hair and look a bit unnatural, whereas tweezing lets you pluck away only the stray hairs that need to be removed.
You simply need to grab each hair as close to the root as possible and give it a pull. All you need to do is clean up any stray hairs along the edge of your brows to sharpen the shape and make them appear neater.
Waxing The Bum and Back
This might seem a little odd, but many men do actually want hair removal for their backside. The best way to remove hair in this area is to go for a wax. You can choose a back and butt wax to remove all the hair at once, although remember that it will be pretty painful!
Shaving isn’t recommended as the stubble and regrowth can be really painful on your behind, and you run the risk of ingrown hairs from sitting down often.
Removing the hair from your backside is hygienic and helps to minimize sweat.
Waxing is by far the best option for the back, and your back can remain hairless for up to six weeks. It is best to see a professional to wax your back, as it can be difficult to do yourself.
Cutting Chest Hair
You don’t need to remove too much hair from your chest, but a little grooming goes a long way. Chest hair is best when kept a little longer than half an inch, and anything less can be uncomfortable.
Going for a clean shave on your chest can be so difficult to contain, having to shave every few days, as stubble on your chest is not comfortable at all.
Trimming Nose and Ear Hair
Ear and nose hair should always be kept in check, and there are a couple of ways to do so. The easiest and most pain-free option is to use an ear and nose trimmer or scissors. This snips away at the hairs, to keep them at a controllable length, but does not remove them completely.
You are also able to use a nose wax to remove nose hair, which comes in the form of a little applicator that is stuck up the nose, adheres to the hair and then is pulled out. However, this is pretty painful, although effective.
You should avoid plucking nose hairs as this can lead to an infection.
Clipping Pubic Hair
There is always a debate on what is acceptable down there, but it should be down to what you are comfortable with.
To keep it neat and tidy, use scissors to trim the hair down to a quarter of an inch, and the use a clipper with a short guard to trim the hairs down your inner thighs, but keep the skin taught so it does not catch onto anything and cause some serious pain.
Related Questions
Are you supposed to trim your armpit hair?
Most people believe that yes, you should trim your armpit hair. While there are various reasons why, the most important is that it is more hygienic to do so. Others believe it is better to trim hair for aesthetics, and others for athletics.
Will you sweat more without armpit hair?
No, you will not sweat more or less without armpit hair, but you will notice less of a body odor when you have no armpit hair. Armpit hair is a breeding ground for bacteria if not trimmed or kept clean, and mixed in with body sweat, it can start to smell pretty bad pretty quickly.
Is it better to shave or wax armpit hair?
Waxing removes the hair from the follicle and allows for a much longer time between the hair growing back. Over time with waxing regularly, hair growth will be thinner and fewer, which is a huge benefit for many.
Shaving can be done often and with little pain, but it does not remove the hair from the follicle and the hair grows back pretty quickly, often thicker and coarser than before.
Are disposable razors okay to use?
Disposable razors are definitely not as good to use as proper quality razors. They often only have one or two blades and do not help to protect the skin as good quality razors do.
It might be more expensive, but you will be saving yourself from some skin damage, irritation and razor burn by investing in a good razor. You can buy replacement blades for your razor, which you should do every few weeks to ensure the razor is kept free from bacteria and sharp enough to properly remove hair.
Final Thoughts
By trimming your armpit hair properly, and by using some aftercare products as well, you should be able to remove armpit hair without any itching.
Removing your armpit hair can help aesthetically, but can also help to remove body odor, and reduce the bacteria that might be flourishing in overgrown, sweaty armpit hair.
You do not have to remove your armpit hair completely to be more hygienic, but by just giving it a trim and keeping it at a controllable length will be all that is necessary for proper hygiene and better-looking armpits!
