“You Don’t Have to Be Hairless to Wear a Bikini,” 2 Women Claim and a Debate Ensues

As the weather starts to warm up, many women turn to body hair removal methods such as shaving or waxing before hitting the beach or putting on a skirt. But according to 2 young women, having smooth, hairless skin shouldn’t be a necessity, moreso an option.

Sara Puhto and Bella Davis are 2 influencers and body-positivity activists.

Sara Puhto and Bella Davis are 2 young women who have each garnered thousands of followers on their Instagram pages. Their usual content includes body positive posts about their own ’imperfections’, urging women to accept, love and feel confident in their bodies, no matter what society thinks of them.

Recently, they caused quite a stir, declaring that shaving for the beach should be an option, not an expectation.

Recently, they posted a collage showing the 2 of them wearing swimwear, with their bikini lines unshaven. “It’s your personal choice to shave, wax or grow your body hair,” the caption reads. “There’s no wrong way for your body to look. You don’t owe anyone a smooth, bump free, hairless body!”

Their post quickly went viral, and received over 40k likes, as well as several hundred comments. But the women who decided to reply to their hair-positive message didn’t all agree with the 2 influencers.

Their post divided public opinion, and they received comments from many people agreeing or disagreeing with them.

“I would never wear a bikini with a full hairy bikini line like this, never, not even if paid,” someone voiced their disapproval. “No, no, no....,” another person wrote. But even more people thought Puhto’s and Davis’s message was much needed. “Seeing posts about body hair like this always means so much to me since I have a lot of body hair and it’s just nice to know that I’m not alone,” a woman confessed.

“So wild that we have to ’normalise’ something that is normal,” a second woman interjected. “I go through periods of waxing/ shaving and periods of everything being hairy. I’ve learned to accept both now as a personal choice that appeal to me for different reasons, no more different than choosing to put on boots or trainers,” wrote a third.

Nowadays, more and more women are ditching the razor and starting to think of body hair removal as an option, not a necessity.