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Russian Men and Facial Hair
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Posted by: B82

I was wondering if you all have any ideas on why many Russian men don't like facial hair. Most of the men I have seen do not have hair on their faces. My husband doesn't like facial hair. I think it's hot, he thinks it's not. He gets mistaken for a teenager when he shaves because he has a baby-face.

I try to convince him not to shave it when it grows a little bit. In his opinion, Americans think facial hair is sexy. His family and our family friends don't like facial hair either. I can understand it's inconvenience if you work in a place that makes or serves food, but if not, why not? What do you guys think?

Posted by: bingism

I'm not sure B82. Personally I like to leave it to grow a little every now and then. M thinks it's hot after a few days, but after 2 days it brings her out in a rash (if you know what I mean0. My percption is that Russian men are "trying" to be gentlemanly bu it doesn't come naturally just yet. Therefore they get hung up on things like coats, chairs, doors and beards... Tell him how sexy he looks with 4 or 5 days stubble and I'm sure he'll work something out for you...

Posted by: Spakoyna

I had a beard when I met my future wife. I now have a clean face!!!!

A little bit of history. Peter the 1st passed a law that all Russian men had to shave. He did this because he was trying to build relations with Europe.

Almost all the men you see in Russia wearing beards are either Preists,Rabbis, or old men.

I was told by the people I went on my tour with that most Russian women did not like facial hair and I needed to shave. I did not and did not have any problems. But after things became serious...errrrrr......yeap.... I shaved!

Posted by: bobjf

hi spakyna
when i met nat i had mo/chin combo beard which she rather liked.
i did notice while i was in siberia that i was odd man out .
3 years down the track i still have it & nat refuses to let me shave it off
longest i have ever kept a beard lol

Posted by: Spakoyna

Quote:

Originally Posted by bobjf

hi spakyna
when i met nat i had mo/chin combo beard which she rather liked.
i did notice while i was in siberia that i was odd man out .
3 years down the track i still have it & nat refuses to let me shave it off
longest i have ever kept a beard lol

Bob

Everyone is different. My darling started nagging me a few days after our 1st meeting! I had a virgin mustache....never had shaved my upper lip my entire life! She didn't convince me to shave until my 2nd trip. When I finally did....bang...it was over.

I think she then realized I was very serious! I have to tease her now and again with that sandpaper like stubble in the morning! Wasn't my beard alot softer?

Posted by: martin3030

Anyone had their Russian wife?Girlfriend asking them to shave under their arms ?

I told my wife that in the UK only women do this !!!

Posted by: Spakoyna

Quote:

Originally Posted by martin3030

Anyone had their Russian wife?Girlfriend asking them to shave under their arms ?

I told my wife that in the UK only women do this !!!

Martin!

Yeap,I was asked to shave under my arms! Gave the same reply. Do Russian men shave their underarms?

Posted by: martin3030

my wife reckons 65% of men in Russia do...................

Probably after requests to do so from partners !!

Posted by: Ade

I'm quite hairy, and been told in no uncertain terms I must remain so

Facial shaving is good, it stops unnecessary scratches

But elsewhere I've been told to leave alone...and so I will.

Ade

Posted by: Jill

Quote:

Do Russian men shave their underarms?

Strangely (at least I think it's strange), my husband does once in a while. He says it's to sweat less. Whatever

Posted by: martin3030

So he does not sweat every once in a while Jill ??

Posted by: BradIL

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ade

I'm quite hairy, and been told in no uncertain terms I must remain so

Y'know Ade... its a tossup who will be the wit in your new family... you or your wife!

Posted by: BradIL

I've been through phases with this! For starters... I currently wear a goatee. I've worn a beard since I was 19 (a beard with shoulder length hair... my Mom & Dad were appalled... Brad delighted they're appalled!) and last month I trimmed the beard down to a goatee.

The first time in 26 years my cheeks have felt air and sunlight without some cover! I was out of options... the sides of my face were covered with white hair--- the rich chestnut brown was ***GONE***!

I've always trimmed my beard closely to my face... even as it greyed... and when I send photos to Russia it always got a comment.

One of my favorite girls found it novel... she told me she had never corresponded with a bearded man!

So I guess a beard/facial hair is a nice short-term device to attract attention, but its utility for a period of more than a year or two is debatable.

Posted by: searcher

Well, I'm late to this thread by my lady doesn't like facial hair either.

I think its in her blood, if I have so much as a shadow, she will ask if i'm going to shave.

Luckily, she can't see me now. I need to shave

but i've been busy... as for the rest of my body haven't had any request to shave those places yet

Posted by: bobjf

g/day spakoyna.
lol natasha is the same ,she go,s crook if i don,t shave around my beard & it gets a bit prickly he he.
have asked her many times if she would like me to shave it off but she wants it to stay
her mum tried to get me to do it while i was in russia which caused an argument which mum lost lol.

Posted by: bobjf

lol might have something to do with smelly armpits.

Posted by: andrei

Facial hair sucks, period.

In my environment people only have beards if they have a small chin because of bad genetics. They look more manly with beards. In fact, of ALL men I shake hands with only one has a beard.

I could never imagine anyone of my friends with a beard. We are no gorillas here. Not a single girl would like to struggle through bushes to kiss someone's lips.

Posted by: Tatsy

"Do Russian men shave their underarms?"

Yes the majority of Russian men shave their underarms. Why not? I consider it is aesthetic and hygienical. Isn't it?

As to beards and moustache, our men have them in the same quantity, as western people. Simply it should correspond to style and lifestyle of the person. For example my uncle (militarian) has a moustache. But personally I do not like a moustache.

By the way, I see often bearded Soviet (Russian) military men in the American movies.

It is nonsense. The beards are forbidden in the Army! Though the small moustache is allowed.

Posted by: bobjf

well andrei your intitled to your oppinion, many men in the west have beards I for 1 have a square chin but i am built like a gorila lol
natasha loves my beard & kissing me
if you refuse a friend because of a beard then you need to take a good look at yourself, looks mean absolutly nothing.
it,s what is on the inside that counts

Posted by: andrei

Quote:

Originally Posted by bobjf

well andrei your intitled to your oppinion, many men in the west have beards I for 1 have a square chin but i am built like a gorila lol
natasha loves my beard & kissing me
if you refuse a friend because of a beard then you need to take a good look at yourself, looks mean absolutly nothing.
it,s what is on the inside that counts

Oh come on, I didnt say I'd REFUSE a friend because of that, dont flip the words. I meant that among the people I know, no one would grow facial hair longer than 3 mm. It's just not our style. Older people do it, but as time goes by beards grow shorter.

Posted by: bobjf

Quote:

Originally Posted by andrei

i,m not flipping words .re read your post
you come accross, stateing beards suck & people who have them are trying to hide a possible genetic fault.
if your meaning is different then think about how you word something k

Posted by: andrei

a'ight forget it

Posted by: BradIL

Quote:

Originally Posted by andrei

That's good news andrei!!! I am REAL PROUD of my goatee. Yeah... its got the white hairs here and there (ok-ok all over)... but I'm HIP dude! Its good to know there are not so many goatees in Omsk... nice to know I would stand out a little (for something other than butchering the beautiful Russian language every time I open my mouth

)

Posted by: Raspberry

Never thought about the facial hair issue until you brought it up. On my trip to Belarus, I had just a moustache. Now I have the goatee, which is a "required uniform part for living in Seattle", along with a coffee cup in hand.

Should be interesting to see if it makes a difference this time......

Posted by: novotul

I had a beard for close to 30 years. It disappeared 2 years ago.

I got choice comments from my fiance (she wasn't yet a fiance, then) like Andrei's. No gorillas (she said chimpanzees) in Siberia. It got me laughing.

Then, she told me that I looked Chechen with the beard, and other friends of mine over there agreed. I remembered a story my former boss told about a western businessman he was travelling with in Kiev. At the train station, my former boss went into a shop, leaving the luggage with the bearded American. Police burned up, thinking he was Chechen. As my ex-boss tells the story, the beard figures prominently in the misidentification of this American, together with typical Russian/Ukranian militia suspiciousness. Thought the US Passport was a forgery and that the guy was only pretending he couldn't speak Russian. Fortunately, my friend turned up just in time to keep the police from hauling this American away. It got me thinking.

I shaved. She's happy. I'm happy. Wind on the face can be nice. And I still haven't had an encounter with the militia, after many trips and many months in Russia.

Posted by: lester

Definitely no problems in any of the places in Ukraine that I've visited.
Never had a negative reaction to my looks at all. But then I am one of the older people!!

Posted by: RBS

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tats

"Do Russian men shave their underarms?"

Yes the majority of Russian men shave their underarms. Why not? I consider it is aesthetic and hygienical. Isn't it?

By the way, I see often bearded Soviet (Russian) military men in the American movies.

It is nonsense. The beards are forbidden in the Army! Though the small moustache is allowed.

What about the value of being natural? Body hair is a gift of God. Why suppres it?

Gib

Posted by: andrei

Quote:

Originally Posted by RBS

What about the value of being natural? Body hair is a gift of God. Why suppres it?

Gib

now thats bullsh-t

Armpit smell and fart gas are God's gifts too, then. Why wash?

))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))

Posted by: deccie

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tatsy

"Do Russian men shave their underarms?"

Yes the majority of Russian men shave their underarms. Why not? I consider it is aesthetic and hygienical. Isn't it?

Tats, I got hit with this request while I was over there.. While defintely not the norm here in aus I have no problems with it.

Posted by: GoingToRussia

I have a beard and moustache, my GF likes it. I asked her if I should shave it off and she said no. She says I look like a hedge hog so she calls me that sometimes. I use a conditioner on it so it's rather soft. No I don't shave anything else and have never been asked.

GTR

Posted by: antoshka

in vladivostok, i hardly saw any beards, except for old men. my girl has a very strong opinnion that if a man dosen't shave; he's lazy and does not care about himself, is this how all russian women think?
as for me , in australia i'd shave every other day.
not because i'm lazy, but because i have sensitive skin.......but while i was in russia, she made me shave every day and it was agony!!
if i didn't shave every day she refused to sleep in the same bed!

she doesn't like beards or the "sandpaper feeling".
mmmm what to do.........will she come around to the idea, of shaving every other day??
the things we do for love!

Posted by: GoingToRussia

Hey I know about the sensitive skin, that's why I grew a beard. I doubt if she will come around unless you break out in a rash like I use to. That should pull at her heart strings. You might check to see if there is a hair removal cream/jell on the market for men. What ever you do, don't get it waxed off!!!

GTR

Posted by: antoshka

Quote:

Originally Posted by GoingToRussia

Hey I know about the sensitive skin, that's why I grew a beard. I doubt if she will come around unless you break out in a rash like I use to. That should pull at her heart strings. You might check to see if there is a hair removal cream/jell on the market for men. What ever you do, don't get it waxed off!!!

GTR

nah, i can't grow a beard, tried that it drove me crazy......always scratching i was!
ha ha ha
i'd like to see that, a man waxing his face, that would exceed the pain threshold of any man.! lol
i think i'll passs on that, and try the rash scenario first.

Posted by: OzGuyLooking

I admit it when it comes to shaving I am lazy, I hate it with a passion, much like soccer/european football really, but I am also fortunate that it takes me 6 weeks to get a 3 day growth. I shave through necessity and that is the only reason, my skin is also sensitve and after 6 weeks the itch is horrendous but shaving everyday simply rips layers of skin off and leaves me all red and blotchy. Somewhat between a rock and a hard place really. This is for the girls to think about, I wonder if you really love your partner why ask them to change their habits they had when you first met? now for the guys, if you really love your partner wouldn't you do it to please them anyway? I wonder !!!!!!!!!

Posted by: antoshka

Quote:

Originally Posted by OzGuyLooking

I admit it when it comes to shaving I am lazy, I hate it with a passion, much like soccer/european football really, but I am also fortunate that it takes me 6 weeks to get a 3 day growth. I shave through necessity and that is the only reason, my skin is also sensitve and after 6 weeks the itch is horrendous but shaving everyday simply rips layers of skin off and leaves me all red and blotchy. Somewhat between a rock and a hard place really. This is for the girls to think about, I wonder if you really love your partner why ask them to change their habits they had when you first met? now for the guys, if you really love your partner wouldn't you do it to please them anyway? I wonder !!!!!!!!!

nah,i havn't got problem shaving everyday, but do ya think after a while of shaving everyday, that she'll want to kiss me with a red and blotcht face?, will SHE change her opinnions?? time will tell oz, time will tell!

oh yeah, down my way we used to call soccer, wogball, but thats not allowed any more.

times have changed.....

Posted by: Raspberry

I actually shaved off the goatee while I was in Munich, and it seemed to make a difference with both of the ladies. Neither liked facial hair. I, in fact showed them a photo with it, and they didn't like it.

Other than this one Rabbi I saw walking down Karl Marx St. in Dnepropetrovsk, I did not see any facial hair on anyone while in Ukraine.

I do draw the line on mustache. Gotta have one other my nose looks incredibly long without it. But everything else went off.

Posted by: GoingToRussia

Quote:

Originally Posted by antoshka

The itching only lasts a week or two. It's better then a rash, actually it is razor burn and is a constant pain. Your face looks like raw meat.

Posted by: elfga

I used to think all Russian men had huge beards and wore fur hats. What was until four years ago. :-D

Posted by: Traveler

Interesting thread. I presumed that Moscow and St. Petersburg would be full of teenagers with piercings and tattoos and "statement" hair like many western major cities in the world. No so?

I also presumed that western TV shows and movies would be seen in FSU and help shape trends for appearance. Many star athletes and celebrities in the west have goatees and soul patches and long sideburns. All of these things are very common for men where I live. Nobody has really long hair, but some pretty "hip" people have short facial hair.

In general I'm a smart, professional, successful, likeable, well-tailored man. I Just happen to have a litte facial hair and a tattoo - both very common here.

I wear a small soul patch with the hair trimmed short. Some women (not many) have hinted that they would like it gone in front of their girlfriends. Wearing it or not isn't a big deal to me, but when it doesn't go away after the hint I'm told I've gained some new respect from the girls. And I'm one of those guys who shaves "almost everywhere".

I've worn the soul patch for years, but its totally not a big deal for me to shave it off. I'll be visiting Moscow and St. Petersburg in a few weeks. From this thread is sounds like I should lose it before I go. No biggie, I can always grow it back later. For those who have been before me, or any RW here - what do you think? Smooth face good - facial hair (even if "hip" by western standards) bad?

And what about my (barbed wire around the bicep) tatoo? The only comment I get from WW about that is they think it would look better on a bigger arm

Can't do much about that. Will I have some 'splainin to do if I take my shirt off?

TIA

Posted by: GoingToRussia

Don't worry about it traveler, if a RW likes you, you'll know it and she will accept your facial hair and tatoo. My fiancee accepted my beard but she likes it very short, which is the way I cut it.

Posted by: metaforest

Before I went to Chelyabinsk I'd been following this thread... I had long since given up the beard/soul-patch/goatee/combo/ whatever...

Followed Andrei's advice and trimmed the other areas. Didn't shave --- no way am I gonna put a razor to those areas!!

It was a good thing I did. The ambient temps were in the mid-30's the whole time I was there!! My date seemed pleased.

On the flip side, She did see an old piccy of me with waist-length hair and a full beard... and gave me a disgusted look. Is not good that you looked this way!!! Was what she said...

=B-)

PS: Andrei ... You win mate: Chelyabinsk is SW of Siberia. GoogleEarth Vb4 kinda resolved that little issue for me!

Posted by: bleushkva

They have facial hair. Plus they have facial piercings.

Posted by: JamesB

I agree bing,liuda likes it when i leave the shaving for a couple of days but no longer.

Posted by: Pietrr

I shave all my unwanted facial hair.Many women recommended it to me and i really hate the scratching part of having a beard or a moustache.

Posted by: ira156

Hey guys and gals, a few things ...i believe it was that after the communists took over the whole beard thing went and it changed to the stalin mo. Funny i saw a porgrame and it was the same here in OZ after federation at the turn of the century.

On my visist to see Nat i had a tickler ( long before shannon ) and i got so many looks over there...i shaved it off after a few days.

I had a good mo for years from when i was about 20 and i never forget my daughter at the age of aout 3 when i shaved it off saying...thats not my daddy.

Nat just called it prickles...

Posted by: GentleGiant

I must admit that during my 2 weeks in Russia I dont think I saw a single beard except for a couple of days stubble on a drunken militiaman.

Antoshka
I too have very sensitive skin; add a very tough, dark beard and you realise I have a problem; I best solution I have come up with is to use Dove soap and lather up with a bristle brush rather than use shaving gel or foam; I have not found any make or type of shaving product that causes less irritation than I experience using the Dove soap.

I still use shaving gel at times as it is quicker than working away with the brush, but even then I will wash first with dove and leave it on my face when adding the gel.

While thinking about shaving; who else predicted the arrival of a 5 blade razor from Gillette ?? and who wants to bet when Wilkinson Sword will bring out their 7 blade rival ???

Posted by: ira156

Quote:

Originally Posted by GentleGiant

I must admit that during my 2 weeks in Russia I dont think I saw a single beard except for a couple of days stubble on a drunken militiaman.

Antoshka
I too have very sensitive skin; add a very tough, dark beard and you realise I have a problem; I best solution I have come up with is to use Dove soap and lather up with a bristle brush rather than use shaving gel or foam; I have not found any make or type of shaving product that causes less irritation than I experience using the Dove soap.

I still use shaving gel at times as it is quicker than working away with the brush, but even then I will wash first with dove and leave it on my face when adding the gel.

While thinking about shaving; who else predicted the arrival of a 5 blade razor from Gillette ?? and who wants to bet when Wilkinson Sword will bring out their 7 blade rival ???

He He, Funny how they say that the blades are the greatest thing technology has to offer, yet it now takes 4 of them instead of 1.

Posted by: stuckmojo

how it would go down asking a girl to colour her hair as "we dont like blondes here"......

or "cut it shorter as you look like cousin it"....

not well I'd imagine.

although, I must admit from reading earlier posts, I was moderately entertained by russia's version of "Ali G"..

"Aiiiiiiight"....yeah whatever.