Five Golden Rules to Creating Youthful, Natural Looking Lips
January 18, 2010 – PRWeb – Fuller lips can make a woman look not just sexier but younger, according to new findings. The key to a perfect pout is to enhance five little known characteristics of the lip in a natural and subtle way.
The Sloane Clinic identifies five golden rules to creating youthful, natural looking lips.
Across most cultures since the beginning of recorded history, full lips have been associated with female youth, beauty and voluptuousness.
While the eyes and nose defines our upper face, the lips are the central feature of our lower face. The perfect lip must portray youth, health, attractiveness and sexuality.
“While the eyes and nose defines our upper face, the lips are the central feature of our lower face. The perfect lip must portray youth, health, attractiveness and sexuality,” says Dr Chua Han Boon, medical consultant from The Sloane Clinic, a medical aesthetic institution specializing in both invasive and non-invasive aesthetic medicine.
In a recent study by Unilever scientist David Gunn, it was shown that ladies with fuller lips tend to look younger than their actual age. The study conducted at seven universities included 102 pairs of Dutch female twins ages 59 to 81 years and 162 individual British white women ages 45 to 75 years.
“When we identified people who looked young for their age, we were struck by the difference in their lips,” said researcher David Gunn.
The volume of lips in both men and women reach full thickness in the 20s and start shrinking between 30 and 40 years of age. Because this age is also the time when wrinkles and gray hairs appear, it makes the woman look older than she actually is, Gunn said.* The study adds to evidence that women prefer full and pouting lips like that of Hollywood actresses Angelina Jolie and Scarlett Johansson not just because they look beautiful, but also because it enhances one’s youth.
However, the properties of the lips change with age, resulting in thinning of the upper lip and the upper lip vermillion (border) gradually losing volume and becoming less pouty. Genetics, intrinsic aging, sun exposure, smoking, and repetitive pursing of the lips produce “lipstick bleed lines”. Gravity and bone loss due to age and further soft tissue volume loss at the edges of the mouth cause the lip edges to turn downward in a “perpetual frown”, which are commonly called “marionette lines”. In addition to the volume loss in lips, the lip margin itself may become blunted and look less defined. The Cupid’s bow which forms the centre of the top of the upper lip will also lose its iconic (and sexy) projection and flatten out.
At The Sloane Clinic, the doctors have identified the five golden rules to creating youthful yet natural looking lips:
(1) Enhancement of the edges of the lips to prevent “lipstick bleeding” into the vertical lines of the lip.
(2) Correction of the vertical rhytides or lip lines. Some people may also term these tell-tale signs of ageing “smoker’s lines”
(3) Restoring the natural volume of the body of the lip. This helps to recreate the natural contours of the lips.
(4) Elevation of the lateral edges of the lips so they have a nice “upturned” appearance, rather than a sad or angry “downturned” look.
(5) Enhancement of the philtrum columns of the upper lip as well as the Cupid’s bow. Chinese face readers that a prominent Cupid’s bow at the top of the lip signifies creativity and innovation in the individual.
In addition to this, the proportion of the upper to lower lips is also very important when trying to create the ideal lips. The concept of divine Fibonnaci proportion is not new. Even the great artist Leonardo Da Vinci over 500 years ago illustrated it. This Fibonacci principle applies to lips themselves too. In youth for example, the ideal ratio of the upper to lower lip is 1:1.6. By restoring the proportions of the lips so that the lower lips are 1.6 times fuller than the upper lips, we can create the ideal lip shape.
“The perfect lip is plump and pillowy, with well defined lip borders, and upturned lip corners. The ratio of the height of the upper lip to the lower lip should be about 1:4 to 1:6. The 2 vertical lines which run down from the nose to the upper lip (the philtrum) should be well defined and visible. The lower lip contour should be symmetrical on both sides with slightly less volume in the midline. Finally, the skin on the perfect lip is smooth and well hydrated.” summarizes Dr Siew Tuck Wah, also from The Sloane Clinic.
At The Sloane Clinic ™, doctors have just introduced the ” Sloane Lip enhancement protocol” which combines the usage of natural hyaluronic acid fillers such as Juvederm® and Restylane® to restore and rejuvenate the appearance of the lips as well as minute traces of mesobotox around the lip edges to help relax the overworked muscles of the lips so that the lips look smoother, less wrinkled and have a more sensual pouty appearance.
“Dermal fillers are by far the best way to enhance the lips. With the proper technique, all the characteristics of the perfect lip described above can be achieved with dermal fillers. Hyaluronic Acid fillers are the most commonly used as they produce excellent and natural results. Hyaluronic fillers also smoothen the lip contour and improve hydration, to make them look luscious and youthful.” adds Dr Siew, who has had years of experience in enhancing lips for his patients.
“Mesobotox, on the other hand, can be used to treat fine lines around the lips. Mesobotox uses minute amounts of botox solution to relax the muscles surrounding the lips and even out lip lines. For down-turned lips, Botox can also be used to relax the muscles pulling the corner of the lips down. This is usually combined with fillers to give an excellent result.” says Dr Chua.
The combination of the above two techniques results in the most natural looking and rejuvenated lips. Sloane Lip enhancement starts from SGD$1200 (prices are before 7% GST) at The Sloane Clinic.
*The details of the study appear in the journal PLoS One.
