It was only several months ago that the first TV advert to show mock period blood as red, not blue, was aired - and now the conversations moved onto razors. Adverts showing men shaving weeks’ worth of facial hair and women shaving already-shaved legs in contrast, are being challenged by a couple of pioneering brands. 

Though women are reclaiming the treatment of their body hair – when, how and if they choose to - we’re still drowning in relentless images of smooth and shiny Barbie Legs that are not only unrealistic but embody the worship of the sexualised female. This concept of female beauty and desirability has plagued the media space for too long. These ingrained approaches to female maintenance, the domination of patriarchal ideologies and the perpetuation of beauty standards are just a handful of reasons we need a change.

Following the recent online campaign from US shaving brand Billie, titled ‘Project Body Hair’ which showed natural body hair being shaved, Friction Free Shaving (FFS) provides the answers to normalizing body hair on women. 

Here to dispel societal requirements, Friction Free Shaving and their honest, realistic and humorous advert for women who actually use razors to shave – shocking! FFS have produced the first TV advert in the world to feature a woman shave real leg and underarm hair. 

Briar Keen, Co-Founder of Friction Free Shaving says: “Women shave stubbly not smooth legs and yet until now it’s been taboo to showcase this fact in a TV ad - instead we’re used to seeing women pretending to shave already smooth skin. We wanted to call time on this old-fashioned approach and to portray women’s shaving in a more honest and modern way, while having a bit of fun at the same time.” 

Featuring the company’s iconic Rose Gold razor and the UK-born brand’s cheeky sense of humour, the advert follows a woman in the process of shaving her body hair. Though the advert touches on a more glamorous presentation of hair removal, FFS have also acknowledged the physical challenges of shaving in a previous campaign.

Banned by Facebook for ‘implying nudity’ their #shoga campaign, released last year, detailed the combination of yoga and patience that shaving entails. Friction Free Shaving’s new advert can be seen on TV and online for six weeks starting today! Keep your eye out for it in between Love Island episodes or watch it below.

Main image: Getty