14 DAY TRIAL // A short while ago, as Madonna was gearing up for another series of promo campaigns for several huge US brands, the world was astonished to see that she seemed to have regained her youthful appearance over a very short period of time. Since plastic surgery was not the case, it could very well be that she had fillers injected into her skin to get what is known as the “pillow face,” the hottest beauty obsession with celebrities, as the Daily Mail puts it.
Plastic surgery has become an inconvenient method to turn back time and eradicate all its signs. Aside from its cost (which is of no consequence to stars), it also takes too much time to recover from it, while leaving tell-tale signs that will undoubtedly not escape a good camera and an even better paparazzo, who knows what to look for after a prolonged absence, it is being said. Consequently, stars seem to have opted for natural fillers to eliminate wrinkles – and the result is the so-called pillow face, which, in some cases, can look just as unnatural as too much plastic surgery.
“In their quest for eternal youth, middle-aged celebrities are suddenly sporting eerily identical puffy, plump, pillowy faces with prominent chubby cheeks, spookily smooth under-eye areas, and foreheads that are not just Botox-smooth, but curved and padded, too.” The Mail says in a recent piece. The upside to this new procedure that is taking over Hollywood is, as experts explain, that it’s only temporary and can be overturned if the patient is not happy with the results, by having the fat inserted melted away almost instantly.
“The ideal proportion of the female youthful face is an upside down triangle, narrow chin and wide cheek region, culminating in a heart-shaped face. As we age, this goes into reverse. We lose our cheeks and gain volume around the jaw and neck. A pretty youthful face has fullness in the cheeks, like Disney’s Pocahontas. An older plain face has it in the jaw, like Shrek. Loss of volume occurs as early as our mid-20s, depending on lifestyle. From 30 onwards, hollowing of the cheeks can start to be visible, especially in people who diet or exercise a lot, like celebrities do.” Dr. Michael Prager, who specializes in this type of injectable treatments, says for the British publication.
Therefore, adding volume to the upper part of the face by injecting fat right onto the bone not only eliminates wrinkles (especially the nose-to-mouth lines), but also gives an instant facelift. Add to that the fact that the procedure only leaves some bruising and swelling that goes away in a couple of days, and we understand why stars are so crazy about it in the first place. As a matter of fact, they are so ecstatic about it that they often forget when to stop, thus, end up with almost unrecognizable faces, much in the manner of too much plastic surgery.
Celebrities prefer to have their own fat, taken from other areas of their body, injected into the face – and this is precisely where they go down the wrong path, experts believe. “Fat is unpredictable. The body uses up a lot of what is implanted – up to 70 per cent is lost so doctors tend to over-correct to make up for this. But if your body doesn’t use up the fat, you can be left with an artificially full face which can look chipmunky.” British consultant plastic surgeon Rajiv Grover says for the Mail. This, in turn, explains why some stars not only do not have a heart-shaped face but also look as if they’re caricatured renderings of their former selves – because injecting fillers has to be done correctly, and patients must learn when to say “no,” it is further being said.
