Let’s be honest: whether it’s peach fuzz on your cheeks or those stubborn upper lip hairs, facial hair has always had... a moment. And while modern ads would have you believe it all started with razors and Instagram filters, the truth is much hairier (and way more interesting).

From ancient queens sugaring their faces to TikTok beauty hacks, facial hair removal is a story of culture, identity, technology—and the universal human desire to smooth things over (literally). Ready for a ride through 5,000 years of beauty history? Let’s pluck our way through it.

Ancient Egypt: The Birthplace of Beauty Routines (c. 3000 BCE)

In ancient Egypt, hairlessness was more than aesthetic—it was spiritual. Both men and women removed facial and body hair as a sign of purity and cleanliness.

• Tools & Techniques:

  • Tweezers made of bronze or copper

  • Early forms of sugaring—made from honey and lemon juice

  • Pumice stones for exfoliation

• Why it Mattered:
  Hair was associated with animalism. Priests and nobility aimed for total smoothness to signal status and divine alignment. Cleopatra was said to have used sugar wax for facial hair removal.

Greece & Rome: Smooth Skin = Civilization (c. 500 BCE – 500 CE)

Facial hair removal was a public declaration of refinement. In both Greece and Rome, smooth, hair-free skin signified sophistication and self-discipline.

• Popular Methods:

  • Scraping with strigils (curved metal tools)

  • Plucking with forceps

  • Using depilatory creams—some containing dangerous chemicals like arsenic

• Cultural Beliefs:
  Roman women were expected to remove visible facial hair, especially for social appearances. Some historians note that even unibrows were plucked or painted over.

Ancient India & Persia: Threading as a Cultural Rite

Threading, now seen as a modern salon service, has ancient roots in India, Persia, and the Middle East.

• How It Worked:
  A cotton thread was twisted and rolled across the skin to pluck hair at the follicle level—no heat, no chemicals, just precision.

• Symbolism:
  Threading was part of bridal preparation—seen as both beautification and a rite of passage into womanhood. It was also tied to modesty and grooming in Islamic tradition.

Imperial China: Beauty, Class, and Facial Hair (Han Dynasty onward)

In Chinese culture, facial hair removal among women signified refinement and self-discipline.

• Practices Included:

  • Threading (known as "lian mian")

  • Use of jade rollers and powders to maintain smooth skin post-removal

  • Emphasis on a clean upper lip and refined brow line

• Class Implications:
  Hair removal was often practiced by noblewomen and courtesans. For commoners, it was less of a daily ritual and more ceremonial.

Medieval Europe: When Hair Became Holy—or Sinful (500–1500 CE)

Hair removal declined during much of the Middle Ages, partly due to religious shifts.

• The Church’s Influence:
  Removing body or facial hair could be seen as an act of vanity and was discouraged.
  Some women still plucked their foreheads and brows for aesthetic reasons—high foreheads were trendy.

• Contradictions:
  Despite restrictions, upper-class women quietly maintained grooming habits using tweezers and waxes made from natural resins.

The Renaissance & Enlightenment: A Return to Aesthetic Obsession

During the Renaissance, beauty standards shifted again, especially in aristocratic courts.

• Women Plucked Hairlines:
  To mimic classical ideals, many women removed hair from their eyebrows and foreheads to elongate the face.

• Depilatory Recipes from the Era:

  • Mixtures using quicklime, vinegar, or even animal fat

  • Instructions found in beauty books aimed at noblewomen

The 18th & 19th Centuries: Wax, Razors, and Western Beauty Ideals

As Western standards of hygiene evolved, so did the tools.

• New Tools Emerged:

  • Steel razors adapted for female use

  • Waxing strips became a salon trend in urban areas

  • Tweezers became common in upper- and middle-class vanity kits

• Victorian Contradictions:
  Publicly, women were expected to be “naturally” beautiful—but facial hair was quietly managed behind closed doors, especially among upper classes.

Every Era Has Its (Hair) Issues

The history of facial hair removal isn’t just about grooming—it’s a mirror of how societies define femininity, class, and self-control. Whether it was Cleopatra sugaring her cheeks, a Persian bride threading her brows, or a Roman woman mixing up a toxic depilatory paste, the act of facial hair removal has always been about more than aesthetics.

Today, we have lasers and dermaplaning, but the questions remain: What does smooth skin say about us? Who decides what’s beautiful—what matters most is feeling confident and comfortable in your own skin!