‘It’s part of me. It’s part of my ancestors and it’s part of my beauty and that’s how I view it,’ says Esther Calixte-Bea about ditching razors to embrace her natural body hair. The 28-year-old grew tired of the social media norms that expect women to have completely hair-free bodies and she made the change six years ago.
And having body hair in the summer doesn’t put Esther off her enjoyment of any activities she chooses to do. Gone are the days when she refused to go swimming because she hadn’t shaved. ‘For me, my body hair makes me beautiful,’ she says, stating that her body hair doesn’t get in the way of her femininity.
‘When I’m wearing a dress, when I’m wearing a skirt or whatever, I feel beautiful with my body hair because I know it’s feminine on my body.’ In the summer of 2022, Esther travelled with her family from her home in Canada to Ivory Coast, where she wore a bathing suit with her hair on show for the first time. She says she felt incredibly confident – like it was a challenge she’d overcome – and it has become one of her most memorable moments.
Just like Esther, there are thousands of women embracing their natural body hair while encouraging others to follow suit on social media. A shift towards embracing body hair has been gaining traction over the years as well, with celebrities like Madonna’s eldest daughter Lourdes Leon and Cara Delevingne proudly sporting armpit hair. Research from beauty app Cosmetify in 2021 also .