Look, let’s be real here – a filter can only do so much. Recently turning 35, scrolling through selfies, I started to notice things I hadn’t seen before – a definite double chin was emerging, along with a furrow on my forehead that just never went away.
Unhappy about what was happening right before my eyes, I started researching the best non-invasive tweakments. Nothing major, a power facial or two and eventually, little adjustments that could be made via some micro-dosing on Botox. It worked, for a while. I looked better for sure, but the end result was still not what I was looking for. And if I’m completely honest, I had a few unpleasant after effects from Botox that left me with eyebrows angled bizarrely in a way that left me less Gigi Hadid and more like the Joker in Batman.
So, I had some trepidations about treatments. That is, until I heard about ‘The Edge.’ A friend of mine, who shall remain nameless, is very plugged into the celebrity scene and showed up for a lunch date one day looking like she’d borrowed a time machine. She’d literally gone from Kim to Kylie in one afternoon. I was completely obsessed. When pressed, she told me about this new, revolutionary non-invasive treatment that is sweeping the London beauty scene.
Created by Mr Kambiz Golchin (a facial plastic surgeon who is widely recognised as one of the UK’s best injectables guy), The Edge is a Botox and filler combo – tiny bits of each – applied in a way that Is very different than what other doctors are doing.
He explains: “In my opinion, most practitioners are missing a trick. They are loading up the centre of the face with Botox and filler, giving you big chipmunk cheeks and frozen foreheads, in an effort to improve the appearance of youth. But the truth is, it just makes the face too centre heavy. And it doesn’t make you look younger, it just makes you look ‘done’.”
Golchin adds, “What I’m doing it focusing solely on the periphery of the face, or the edges, using miniscule amounts of Botox and filler to tighten, smooth and fill out, but leaving the middle of the face alone. This makes you look fresh faced and young without looking like you’ve had a treatment. And the added bonus is that it lets you keep your natural expressions, those endearing crinkles around your eyes and smile exactly as they should be, real and left alone.”
Judging by the difference I’d seen in my friend, I went in with high hopes. And I was not disappointed. Here’s what happened. First the doctor’s assistant cleaned my face (some makeup was removed FYI if you are planning to do this on a lunch break) and she applied a numbing cream which sat on there for 10 minutes or so. Then Mr Golchin injected tiny bits of filler in my chin, the sides of my jaw at the back, and the very top of my cheekbones back by my ears. He put Botox only right at the top of my hair line at the edges and under my chin. That was it. It took around 20 minutes in total and it was virtually painless. I mean it’s still a small prick, but the numbing cream made that totally do-able.
I did ask him why I needed filler, I mean my face wasn’t exactly what you’d call skinny – and wasn’t Botox by itself enough? Golchin says no. “When women get to a certain age, treatments become less effective which is why filler is a better value-for-money choice and will have a greater impact. As we age, we start losing volume in our face, skin gets thinner, fat pads get smaller and your skull loses volume. Filler can replace the hollowness and give a long-lasting volume which makes you look younger. Many people associate filler to be more invasive than Botox but it’s not. It lasts around 12 months and leaves a tighter, lasting effect.’
From the moment I checked myself in the mirror I saw a difference – but the real results would come in a week or so after the Botox part settled. My face looked smoother and tighter, but best of all I once again had the heart shaped face I’d had in my 20s. (I was veering close to moon by this stage). My forehead had full movement and I loved the effect of Botox in the neck line.
The truth is, I have long wondered how Hollywood celebrities never, ever have double chins or look jowly on film. I mean even when they are literally lying down in bed, just had a baby in real life and are pushing 40, their chin and jaw lines are always razor sharp. Now I get it. Apparently, there are treatments for this sort of thing, because now I have one too.
As happy as I was with my results, in the weeks that followed I was also really pleased that no one asked me if I’d had some Botox. In the past, my close friends had always been able to tell. This time people just said I looked great -and had I started taking collagen?
The Edge is a one-hour treatment, combining injectables (Botox and filler) with skin tightening techniques that offers instant results. Filler is carefully and precisely injected around cheekbones and sometimes the chin area for a unique lift. Some may require the treatment in two stages. £2,500 with no downtime, you can go straight on with your day. For more info go to kambizgolchin.com
