I tried the hairy thing for a while. I flipped internalized misogyny the bird, and let my legs, pits, and everything else grow wild.
And then I decided I was itchy, and I took it all back.
Whether you love rocking the pit kittens or prefer to be silky smooth, there’s no right or wrong answer to the shaving debate. You do you babes, even if it means you’re hairy.
But for those of us who are way too used to the tactile sensation of smooth legs, pits, and bits, shaving is a necessary evil, and one that creates a ton of waste.
Plastic Razors and the Impossibility of Recycling
Plastic razors are, by and large, completely unrecyclable. They’re full of organic waste, complicated, and literally HAVE to be thrown out regularly to prevent razor burn and ingrown hairs.
The only exception is a solution invented by the recycle-everything geniuses over at
What Is a Safety Razor?
I’ve known about disposable razor alternatives for a while, but it took me a bit to get the guts to try them for myself.
Safety razors are
Why Safety Razors Aren’t As Scary As You Think
Safety razors are actually a lot safer than they look.
On a safety razor is a small bar, which keeps the blade directly away from the skin. The blade is exposed on both sides of the razor, so you can actually flip the razor over and get twice as much out of it.
Safety razors actually come calibrated at different angles for different levels of intensity in the shave. Women’s safety razors, in particular, are angled to be less aggressive than a man’s, to accommodate for shaving more sensitive areas.
Way Better Than Bumps: Meet Leaf Shave
Safety razors used to belong to the man’s world, but women are loving them for their close, simple shave, and the ability to recycle the blades.
I’ve used my Kingston safety razor for a few years now, and really, really grown to love it, so when Leaf Shave sent me one of their starter sets to try out, I felt a little dirty.
Like I was cheating on my sweet, macho safety razor who, sure, gave me my fair share of knee nicks, but whom I still loved.
That all changed when I took Leaf’s GORGEOUS rose gold razor for a test-shave.
Safety razors used to belong to the man’s world, but women are loving them for their close, simply shave, and the ability to recycle the blades.
The Only Multi-Blade Zero Waste Razor
Two billion plastic razors go into landfills every year, and we get to stop it today. Go ahead, try a safety razor. You’ll be pleasantly surprised with how easy they are to use — even on your most delicate areas.
When I first started using the Leaf Shave system, I was a little taken aback. Unlike a conventional safety razor, Leaf’s razors actually use multiple blades, between two and three.
Instead of using whole razor blades though, you bend the blades horizontally (while still wrapped in their paper) until they snap in half. Each half makes up one razor blade in the razor.
You rotate a little screw on the back of the razor to loosen the parts, and each razor blade fits into these little notches, one on top of the other, like layers in a cake.
And voila — you have a multi-blade razor that looks and shaves like a conventional disposable razor, but with 100% reusable parts, and 100% recyclable blades.
Shaving With a Zero Waste Razor
Shaving with Leaf’s razor was really interesting, especially on my legs. I REALLY loved how safe it felt. When you’re setting up your razor, you have the option to use two or three blades. Three felt a little too aggressive to me, so I went with two, and the results were still silky smooth, buttery soft legs.
The only thing that took some getting used to were the exposed sides of the razor blades. For a normal human being who doesn’t shave like a weed wacking maniac, this isn’t a big deal, but the broken corners of the razor blades are slightly exposed on the sides of the razor.
If you try to shave in a space that comes up against those edges, it’s not lethal, but it makes for an alarming poke.
All in all though, this razor was SO gentle on my skin, and made me realize that I had come to accept a certain amount of razor burn as just par for the course when I started using a safety razor all those years ago.
NO MO.
The Leaf razor comes with an amazing solid metal shaving stand to keep it clean, and a safe tin for used blades to make recycling less Freddy Kruger-y.
Two billion plastic razors go into landfills every year, and we get to stop it today. Go ahead, try a safety razor. You’ll be pleasantly surprised with how easy they are to use — even on your most delicate areas.
Have you ever tried shaving with a safety razor? Tell us what it’s like on Facebook or Instagram, and tag us in the post! @AvocadoMattress and @LeafShave
Shop Pillows
The Essential Organic Pillow Collection
Gentle, breathable, non-toxic support.