How far would you go for the woman you’re dating? Mischa, an arts journalist living in New York, went all the way to the beauty salon for his girlfriend–and got his pubic hair waxed off. Ah, the things we do for love.
“She actually took me to a salon on the Upper East Side where she had gone and told the Russian lady how she wanted it,” said Mischa, 34, who declined to give his last name in an attempt to preserve at least a scrap of privacy on this extremely personal topic.
Although getting waxed was excruciatingly painful, Mischa’s girlfriend was very appreciative, and while the relationship didn’t last, his habit of getting waxed did. Since the end of that relationship, Mischa has tried all kinds of waxing, from a basic cleanup to getting his backside waxed and even the extreme full Brazilian.
In an era of the metrosexual and the dandification of straight guys by queer eyes, bikini waxing has moved to more open maintenance efforts by all types of men.
Broader trends in male vanity–including high-end skin care lines, fashion magazines and hair products all geared toward the American male–suggest that male beauty is no longer the exclusive domain of a handful of Dapper Dans. The marketplace is demanding more products and services for men, and looking good is a growing business.
At Nickel, a spa for men in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan, the clientele has moved from predominantly gay to more mixed. Heterosexual men now account for about half of the clients at the spa, and their numbers are growing.
More men are coming in, and not just for common salon indulgences such as massages and facials. They’re getting body waxes, including the $40 Brazilian wax that involves laying strips of cloth over warm wax spread over the skin and ripping it off quickly to remove all the hair normally covered by underwear.
“Straight men are becoming more conscious,” said Jill Shaffer, 29, an esthetician at Nickel. “I tell them, ‘Now you know what women have been going through.’ “
Michael Hall, 36, a computer programmer, shaves and plucks his pubic hair with tweezers three to four times a week but says he’s planning to try waxing after his hair grows out more in the hope of conquering the problem of stubble. He says he’s willing to try it because being hairless feels cleaner, and he likes the way it looks. Plus, the women he’s been with appreciate it.
“The reason I’m considering getting waxed is because of the shaving-every-other- day thing and to have better results,” Hall said. “Shaving is a little difficult because of the texture of the skin down there. It takes extra effort to get good technique going.”
Not all women, however, are fans of the fastidiously groomed male when it comes to bikini waxes. Nona Jones, 34, a photo editor who lives in Brooklyn, prefers the natural look for men.
“I dated one guy who waxed around there, and I found it a big turn off,” she said. “It’s too girly. Then what does he think of me? That I’m a hairy beast, and he’s the smooth one? It’s too much pressure to keep up.”
Chicago grooming for guys
– American Male: 401 W. Ontario St.
– State Street Barbers: 1151 W. Webster Ave.
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Edited by Cara DiPasquale (cdipasquale@tribune.com) and Drew Sottardi (dsottardi@tribune.com)
