Kim Kardashian has once again got people talking – and this time it’s about women’s body hair. But is she onto something ? Kim has ripped off the plaster of this taboo and made it mainstream
When Sex and the City’s Samantha Jones spots a stray hair peeking from Miranda’s bikini line, she says: “I could be on death row and not be in that situation.” The situation being a missed Brazilian wax appointment. It was a far cry from the hairy body positive moment in 2022 where people liberated their hair down there. But now, Kim Kardashian has brought pubic hair back into the public debate.
The 44-year-old star’s SKIMS clothing brand introduced the world to the Faux Hair Micro String Thong, which features a “a mix of curly and straight faux hair in twelve different shade variations”.
Are we back to embracing the bush? Kim Kardashian seems to think so with her new range of jaw-dropping thongs. And despite the push for ‘bush’ freedom – there is still a taboo around it.
For so long, we have seen body hair as a taboo subject, where women should be hair-free and the mention of pubic hair was never something that was discussed. So is pubic hair the next area brands are going to experiment with? Will we all be wearing designer hairy pants soon?
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The bush fell out of fashion in the late 80s and 90s with a shift in beauty ideas, as hairlessness came with desirability, youthfulness and hygiene. More and more people were booking in for brazilian waxes and by the late 90s, the trend had spread across fashion magazines, television and porn culture. Even a whole episode of Sex and the City was based around Brazilian waxing thanks to Carrie Bradshaw.
Women were seen as “put together” with smooth skin, but Kim is changing that mindset. Her fans, most who are Gen Z, have already redefined numerous beauty standards through a strong focus on authenticity and self-expression, so it’s no wonder Kim is going down this path.
Kim has taken an area of our bodies that is so hidden and private, and put it at the forefront of the media and the internet. It’s an extremely Kim Kardashian thing to do. Since she ‘broke the internet’ with her Paper cover shoot – it appears she’s been chasing that high ever since to keep people talking.
The business mogul has taken the female body sculpted it, celebrated it, highlighted it and contoured it, so it’s not really that shocking to think she’s now embracing it in this way.
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It can be argued the Kardashian dynasty surged interest in BBL procedures over the years. Former NFL Quarterback Cam Newton blamed Kim for the rise in the surgery after he said: “ Kim Kardashian is responsible for impacting the look for what we deem or women deem as – ‘I want my body to look like this’… When you look at the BBL epidemic, it is in large part impacted because of Kim Kardashian.” In a controversial take on an episode of the ‘Funky Friday Podcast’.
But in classic Kim style – this new SKIMS release has got everyone talking. In a world where it feels like everyone dresses and looks the same, people are seeking to stand out among the crowd – but are hairy undies the answer?
Just under a year ago, Maison Margiela sent models down the runway wearing faux pubes for the brand’s spring 2024 couture show. And, of course, those pubes were couture – made of real human hair, carefully embroidered onto silk tulle, that could then be seen through the sheer skirts of the Victorian-inspired gowns that Maison Margiela sent down the runway.
Gen Z are already ditching the pristine hair removal routines, pubes included, with many not bothering to pluck every single hair follicle as soon as it reaches the surface any more – so maybe Kim is just giving us all a little reassurance and is bringing the taboo subject into the mainstream.
It just leaves me with one question – do you put the hairy pants in the washing machine or do you shampoo them?
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