By Chrissy Thomas, RN, Anti-Aging Specialist, Master Cosmetic Injector
Weddings are a time when every mom wants to look her best. I once had a conversation with a mother of the bride who said something I constantly remember: “I want to be the second most beautiful woman in the room.”
I am often asked what our most popular procedure is at About Face Skin Care. After nearly 17 years of service, we have a variety of very popular services to meet the needs of our clients.
One complaint that I often hear from women when they are getting ready for a big event is the creases around the mouth area. “I have never smoked, and I have these lines around my lips.” If there were a magic fairy that granted me a wish every time I hear this sentence, we would certainly have world peace. Those nasty “barcode” lines across the upper, and sometimes lower, border of the lip have driven many women to my chair.
Understanding the aging process in this area helps to understand how to treat this issue. The mouth is a sphincter muscle. This circle muscle is in constant motion—enjoying eating, smiling, kissing, and loving life. This constant action will cause creasing in the muscle and create pleated lines around the mouth. This unavoidable creasing is more noticeable with the natural loss of lip volume that begins in the late 30s. The volume in the pink part of the lip, or vermillion, is the support system of the outer lip. When the lips become smaller, they disappear into the mouth and the barcode lines become even more obvious.
Restoring the lost volume in the lip is the best way to correct this issue. The most common way to do this is by using an injectable filler called Juvederm. Juvederm is a hyaluronic acid filler that will create shape, but only as much fullness as the client wants. For lip restoration clients, a small amount is added to the vermillion to give slight definition. This does not mean creating over-stuffed, “bee-stung,” shapeless and motionless lips. This merely means adding the volume that has been lost back to the lips to provide structure to the mouth. Besides restoring the shape of the lip, this treatment will also address sagging mouth corners that look angry or sad. The product will also create more hydration in the lips themselves and make the tissue look healthier.
Clients are thrilled that lips look refreshed and no longer drawn, creased and dry. Additional filler may be added in a couple of weeks if more volume is desired. Typically, results last up to about nine months.
To all of the moms who are getting ready for weddings this year, we would love to meet you and help you look your best for your big day as the second most beautiful woman in the room.
Owner Chrissy Thomas, RN, BSN, has worked in the field of skin care since 1996. A graduate of Georgia Baptist College of Nursing in Atlanta, she has held positions as charge nurse of plastic surgery for Egleston Children’s Hospital (now Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta) AA & director of adult plastic surgery and director of skin care services for Plastic Surgery Consultants in Atlanta. Chrissy has owned and operated About Face Skin Care since March 2002, and opened About Mind and Body, a fitness boutique located within About Face, in 2012. Chrissy is well known in the cosmetic community where she is a respected Master Level Cosmetic Injector & Senior Laser Specialist.
