Shaving Legs on a 12 Year Old

Don't have anyone there (yet), but I can tell you that I would discourage her from shaving with a razor, either electric or not. A product I WISH I had known about when I started shaving at 13 is Moom. It's an all natural, sugar based "wax" like hair removal system. It does NOT hurt like wax does, and the hair grows in thinner and lighter each time. I'm to the point now where I only use it four times a year.

Moom was created by a MOM who wanted something better for her daughters. It's good for a younger girls sensitive skin, and it takes longer for the hair to grow back in, so no having to shave every other day. http://www.moom.com/

You'll likely want to do it for her the first few times, or even for a few years. I used to have my hubby pull the strips off for me while I was breastfeeding (hooray for multitasking!). lol

Just be forewarned that while it doesn't hurt a lot, it does still hurt a little. The first two strips hurt the worst and then it gets better and better from there.

Also, if you can discourage her from shaving the tops of her legs, even for a little, that's good. My Mom encouraged me to shave only from the knee down. The hair from the knee up on me has never turned dark and is still barely noticeable.

Best of luck with your young lady!

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She is old enough to do it herself. Set aside some time to teach her to properly do it.

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If she wants her legs shaved, she should do it herself. If she's more comfortable with an electric shaver, buy her that one. If she wants to use a razor, then show her how and have her do it herself. Remind her that once you start shaving, you really can't stop.

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Can I tell you what *my* mom did when I was ready?

She let me use her electric razor. I think part of shaving one's legs is that your daughter is old enough to be independent and to *care* about it.

Let her get the hang of an electric razor, on her own. Be sure to get her a chalk stick or powder to help the process. I thought they were great. They were like safety scissors, to help a young woman understand *how* to shave the leg. A good first step without paying for the extra water or risking slip and falls accidents. Then, when she's old enough to care about a close shave, switch to the razor. (me, personally, I had trouble with the balancing/ shaving in the shower for a while, so this is just my preference).

Personally, if my mom had shaved my legs for me, that would have just been weird.

PS-- Once you start shaving your legs, you CAN stop. You are just going to have hairy legs! (said from someone who hasn't shaved her hairy legs in years and is fine with it)

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My daughter uses a razor and has since she was about 10.

Good for you for listening to your daughter. You know when it is time.

Moms who forbid shaving, etc create so much havoc for the children because this becomes a self conscious issue with the child.

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My vote is that if she can't handle shaving her legs herself she is probably not ready.
If she's ready, buy her a nice razor and some shaving cream and let her do it herself. Maybe you can let her watch you (side by side).

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When I was that age, I told my Mom I wanted to start shaving and she gave me a razor and shaving cream and told me what to do, while she sat there with me until I got the hang of it, and then i've been good to go since then.

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awww, this brings back memories for me! i wasn't allowed to shave til i started my period, so when i did start, my mom surprised me w/a cute bucket of girly stuff such as - pads, shaving cream, razors, nail polish, lip gloss, y'know - just to celebrate it. :) i love that memory, so sweet. (i have a boy so won't be doing that one :(
anyway, i didn't use an eletric razor but i remember her being in there w/me supervising the first couple of times...if that helps at all.
awww....sweet mommy/daughter times. :)

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Do it yourself??? No, let her do it. I'm surprised she'd even let you.

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The electric sounds like a good idea... I've got four girlies, oldest is only almost 8, so I'm not there yet, but i think I'd go for the electric.

It is very good of you to notice this and have her shave. This one girl who was my classmate was 11 and was just particularly hairy (totally beautiful girl, though!). She wanted to shave her legs- because they were pretty hairy. Her mom said no -that she was too young. So she sneaked around her mom and used her mom's regular razor and shaved and cut herself in several places:( This was also after a boy (who she had a crush on) made fun of her legs being hairy:( My mom heard the story from her mom, and instead of sympathizing with the girl, my mom used it as an example to not allow me to shave my legs until I was 16 or so... however, I shaved anyways by the time i was 13 or so- I was just a lot more careful.

Good M. for being understanding and noticing when the right time is!

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My mom let me use her electric razor....I would have done that too if my girls hadnt decided to do it on their own before they asked.....

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she can definitely do it herself! whether its electric or regular razor!!
my mom handed me a razor and said, "dont cut yourself, and dont shave your thighs"
that was about all the instruction i got. and i did fine! i also did both of those things.
also, if she doesnt cut herself while shaving she wont learn how NOT to cut herself shaving. sad, but true!

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I got a nicer razor and cream ... may I suggest getting her the Schik Intuition ... it comes with the moisterizer bar around the razor so all you need is water and you are good to go ... LOVE IT!

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I would say no to the electric razor, but show her how to shave with soap and a razor.
My older sister taught me to shave. She put some water in the bathtub and we sat on the side together with our feet in the water. She had me watch her shave, and then gave me a new razor to shave with. She watched, offering advice (don't push hard, never pull the razor sideways, bend or straighten my leg as needed to reach everything, etc.). She made sure that I knew what I was doing and wasn't going to cut myself up.
She supervised the first few times I had to shave, then I was on my own.

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I started shaving my own legs with a razor and cream a few years younger than your daughter. She can handle it.

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why in the world would you do it?!!

be thankful she hasn't tried this on her own....most girls do!

& as a head's up: if your child is in Scouts or FFA, they've played with knives by the time they're 7.....& have been taught proper safety instruction!

Give her the supplies & let her go to town.....Peace!

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Give her a good razor, sensitive skin shaving cream, and let her do it. Show her how to do it once, and she should be able to shave her own legs just fine.

Well my mom shaved mine for me when I was 11 for the first time and then sat by me the first couple times then I was on my own...

Let your daughter choose it all herself. Go with her to your local Rite Aid/Walgreens and help her choose her razor. Any of the Venus' are great! Then let her choose her shaving cream. They come in all scents now. And finally, show her how to shave with the razor. Careful around the knees and ankles. If she is ready, she will be more than willing to learn and ultimately do it herself. Good luck!

My kids are too little still, but when I was around that age, I started shaving my legs too. My mom bought us normal razors and we used shaving cream and shaved them ourselves. She taught us how, explained the dangers, and we did just fine:-)

let her do it. Get her a razor with the shave cream built in like the intuition, it is great and limits nicks, and than let her do it on her own.

My daughter (almost 11) uses an electric razor my mom gave it to her as a gift. When she got it, it was my younger daughters birthday and unfortunately I did not pay much attention to it. That night she went to shave for the first time and she shaved her arms (not just her underarms) and everything. I still feel so bad for not instructing her on what to shave and how to shave. Anyway, I def. think electric razors are the easiest and safest.

My mom actually bought me a variety of things. First, she got me those cream things. Yes, they reaked, but I was less scared about it cause I didn't want to cut myself and I could kind of practice reaching around with those little fake razorless things that are used to get the cream off. Then, when I was ready, I used the razor myself. She didn't really do a whole lot of "helping" me each time. For the most part I did it myself and then I would usually "discuss" with her later lol. She just kind of encouraged me to ask questions if needed.

Let her do it herself! Make sure she has a good razor and some shaving cream, and then tell (or show) her how to do it. At 12, I'm sure she can figure it out and has probably seen it done before or read articles in magazines about it. You could probably Google and pull up a how-to for her if you want.

My parents gave me a normal razor and I just did it myself without being taught.

My daughter is 12 also. I got her an electric razor first until she got the hang of it but it wasnt long before she was asking for a razor and shaving cream. I let her go and pick a few different brands to try but she likes the intuition best. :)

Does she actually NEED it? Or does she still have fine, downy, blondish hair on her legs? I'll be honest, when my mom tried to encourage me to wait while my leg hair was still fine, downy, and blondish I wish I had listened and not shaved it. That's when it turned dark, stubbly, and ugly and I've had to shave it ever since. If I hadn't ever shaved I never would've HAD to shave.