I had heard about people dyeing their armpit hair, but I wasn’t sure how common or celebrated it was until I saw a recent post on Refinery 29 highlighting an Instagram account with pastel-dyed pits and other images of natural body hair. I was intrigued to know more about it and asked Anna Biotics, the creator of LadyPitHair, some questions about her empowering project and some tips for newcomers like me.
What inspired you to start your Instagram account?
I noticed on shows like Lost and The Walking Dead, the characters are living in peril for months, fighting for their lives every day, and are often not able to bathe, but the women still find time to maintain hairless armpits. They never even have stubble! It’s unrealistic. I wanted to create a place in the media where women with armpit hair could be visible. Many people who come across LadyPitHair have never even seen a women with armpit hair. I believe just the images existing in an accessible place can have a positive impact on people’s perspective of gender expression.
I’m a firm believer in choice. I know a lot of women who say they like being clean shaven, and I agree that the feeling of smooth legs in silky pajamas is to die for. I’m not against body hair removal, I just wish people would try the other side. Many people have been removing their body hair since it started coming in, myself included. I wanted to see what my body really looked like. I was surprised I liked it.
Do you have a favorite submission or is there anything that has surprised you about the submissions you get?
What surprised me most was how much people enjoy the LadyPitHair page. All kinds of people send me their photos from all over the world. Most of the comments I get are positive; people who are excited to have found other people who feel the same way. I’m glad I could help forge this little community. So many people don’t know that shaving is a cultural construction. In the United States, shaving for ladies only became popular about 100 years ago as clothes became more revealing. It started with an ad campaign to sell razors, expanding the market outside of just men.
Do you have any tips for first-time dyers?
If you have naturally light hair, don’t bleach it. Just get a vivid dye or darker color like cobalt blue or blood red. If your hair is darker, use a low volume bleach like 10 or 20. If you have sensitive skin, be very careful. Do a test patch first. And when you’re ready for the color, cover the skin around your hair in a stain barrier, petroleum jelly or Chapstick works fine. Carefully apply the dye and wait around 20 minutes with your arms up before you wash it out. Be careful what you wear the first few days or you’ll end up with colorful pit stains.
Do you think people are less likely to dye their pits in the winter?
In summer your pits might get more exposure, but people generally sweat more and shower more so it won’t last as long, and you’re more likely to have it coming off on your clothes. Dyed pits are great year round.
Is there anything else you’d like to share?
I get a lot of hate. Comments, mostly from teenagers who feel they have the right to post “ew” and “nasty” all over pictures of confident ladies. Honestly when I was 16 I thought armpit hair was gross. I didn’t give up shaving until I was 20 and comfortable with myself. I also had an awesome group of feminist friends and I realized I didn’t need to shave. Why should some people get to have all the fun shaping and growing their facial hair into ridiculous shapes but if you identify as a lady you aren’t allowed to have a little tuft of pit hair? It grows naturally from my body, and I like it as much as my head hair. I challenge anyone who’s never seen their body hair to go a month without shaving. You just might like it.
[H/t: Refinery 29, All photos courtesy of Ladypithair]
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