Manscaping:
Southward-Bound?
In the age of the metrosexual, some men have already
begun to improve their grooming habits…above
the chin. A new revolution is hitting below-the-belt,
targeting his back fuzz, toe hairs and, well,
everything in between. By Sarika Dani
These days, most
guys have gotten the metrosexual memo: They keep
their nails clean, embrace the idea that Irish
Spring shouldn’t double as shampoo, and
some even allow spouses to gleefully weed-whack
their unibrows. But venture below the chin (we’re
talking chest, back, shoulders, and nethers),
and it’s still a no-fly zone, grooming-wise.
Or was.
In certain Hollywood
circles, rumors of x-treme manscaping are beginning
to circulate. The latest trend, gaining in popularity,
is known, poetically, as the “back, crack,
sack wax,” raising the question: How low
do you want him to go? Most women who value manly
men don’t want their partner transformed
into Mr. Bigglesworth, and yet most of us might
give the green light to a little “lite”
maintenance for the hairier sex.
Then, if you do
come down on the side of manscaping, how to broach
the subject? Delicately, to be sure. And don’t
be afraid to offer a bribe, says John Esposito,
co-founder and co-owner of Truman’s Gentlemen’s
Groomers in New York City. “Get him a gift
certificate to a salon, and make it fun,”
he suggests. And if your fuzzy-wuzzy honey still
insists on wearing his thatches like bearish badges
of manhood, here are five reasons for him to reconsider:
- Survival of the
trimmed-est. “Men have become more objectified
through the media and advertising, and that has
raised both self-awareness and competitiveness
among [them],” says Michael Flocker, author
of The Metrosexual Guide to Style: A Handbook
for the Modern Man. “The result is that
people stay single longer and are more selective
in choosing their mates, so for better or worse,
you have to work a little harder to stand out.”
Tango Tip: According to Philips Norelco, 50 percent
of men aged 20 to 49 body groom—try asking
your partner if he really wants to be the only
guy on the beach wearing a “sweater”
this summer.
- He can get drunk
while getting shorn. We admit, it’s got
to be intimidating for a guy to walk into a salon
full of women, and say, “One back wax, please.”
Enter the full-service men’s salon. Vic
Sosikian, founder of Mark Matthew Fine Gentlemen’s
Grooming Club in Los Angeles, which opened last
year, describes his establishment as a “cross
between a barber shop, salon, and day spa for
men.” Leather arm chairs, flat panel TVs,
and free alcohol create a discreet, masculine
environment—not even a guy who says “I
don’t do salons” can argue with this.
- It doesn’t
have to hurt. Let’s not beat around the
bush: As women well know, waxing smarts, and it’s
not the only way to tame his tufts. “Men
have been asking for an alternative to waxing,”
says Sosikian. “They don’t mind [having]
the hair, but they want to trim it down.”
The pain-free solution? Special razors,
like the Philips Norelco BodyGroom, designed for
manscaping. With features like a hypo-allergenic
shaving foil instead of a rotary head, it allows
men to trim hair at different lengths in the privacy
of their homes. But regular maintenance is required:
“The problem with trimming is that it’s
going to come back quickly, just like with shaving,”
Esposito warns. “You’ll have to trim
at least once a week.”
- David Beckham’s
doing it. So are porn stars. After the trend-setting
soccer star boasted about his “back, crack,
sack” wax, some guys warmed to the idea
of going bare. And according to Esposito, the
rise of smut is also partly responsible for encouraging
men to clean up their acts: There’s now
pressure, he says, for men to hold themselves
to the unrealistically tidy standards the industry
has heretofore demanded of women. Which brings
us to…
- It’s payback
time. Women have endured all sorts of torture
in the name of beauty, from the risk of crimping
your lashes (or worse) with an eyelash curler
to the agony of Brazilian waxes. In The Reluctant
Metrosexual: Dispatches from an Almost Hip Life,
author Peter Hyman recounts his own experience
of getting a Brazilian: “I did it because
I felt it was unfair for men to expect women to
be perfectly groomed without at least some appreciation
for what they go through,” he says. Thank
you, Hyman, for taking one for the team. Esposito
goes one better: “It’s not payback,”
he says. “Back and chest grooming is all
vanity. Grooming below the waist is just a nice
thing to do for your partner.”
Tango’s Take:
Agreed. But, unlike putting the seat down, being
nice to your mother, and knowing “no, you
don’t look fat” is always the right
answer, manscaping below the chin is optional,
not something a man should be forced into. That
said, we’re not above gentle cajoling. Then,
with any luck, you’ll see the monkey-see,
monkey-get-his-back-waxed-too effect kick in:
After all, “The majority of men
come in because they choose to,” says Sosikian,
and Esposito concurs: “Guys realize it’s
not that bad. Then they start coming in on their
own.” Both agree they see an equal mix of
single and taken men, which means body grooming
is fair game for any male body, bachelor or betrothed.
Know someone who missed the memo?
Text from tangomag.com |
