As hard as it might be for some of you to believe, men once regularly went for manicures, pedicures, and facials. These were all art of the regular routine on barbershop visits. In the antebellum period of the 19th century American men began shaving their facial hair and being primped and preened every bit as much as contemporary women visiting a beauty salon.
These ‘extras’ were gradually eliminated from the barbershop experience in the 20th century right up until the emergence of the Beatles, and long hair for men, threatened the very existence of barbershops. Interestingly, the rise of the metro-sexual male has reinvigorated the idea of men having manicures and pedicures. But realizing that this experience might compromise the masculinity of potential customers, the new salons are fitted out to look like…sports bars!
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