Nip 'n' tuck

My contribution to a feature in today's Examiner about a website, www.liftmagic.com, that shows you how you'd look after cosmetic surgery. Pic above is before (left) and after.

I’m a huge fan of the Channel 4 makeover show 10 Years Younger, and even though its host Nikki Hambleton-Jones both irritates and terrifies me beyond words, I always find myself fantasising about what I would look life if I threw myself at the mercy of her surgical and beautician team.

For that reason, I was more than willing to submit a picture of myself to the site www.liftmagic.com to see the theoretical surgical results of some nip and tuck.

LiftMagic – which calls itself “the world’s most advanced facelift visualisation studio” – allows you to choose from a list of 14 surgical options, including enhancements for the forehead, tear troughs and cheeks, as well as nose reductions and lip augmentation.

I chose all 14 and availed of the option that sets the scale of all of the individual procedures to their suggested maximum.

I have to admit that I found some of the results pretty impressive, particularly around the eyes. I wasn’t too gone on my nose reduction, but the ‘weight reduction’ option gave me a glimpse of what my face would look like if I would only avail of my gym membership more.

But what do the experts make of my before and after shots?

“Overall, the after shot is a good effect,” says Dr Patrick Treacy, renowned cosmetic surgeon at the Ailesbury Clinic in Dublin.

“You have a young symmetrical face without hardly any wrinkles. The visualisation appears to have taken this into account and not changed any of your proportions.

“It has also retained straight eye brows, which are a notable male feature. In the wrong hands, Botox treatments cause the brows to arch, giving them a female effect.

“It has also lifted inter-brow hair, which male clients normally get treated with a laser. This takes about six sessions in total at a cost of e70 each.”

Dr Treacy was also impressed by the effect the theoretical treatments had on my eyes. “It has cleared your tear troughs, which could be filled with either Restylane or Matridur for e200. This would last for around six months after treatment.”

Finally, aware that my body image and self-esteem could be about to get the trampling of a lifetime, I ask Dr Treacy what procedures he would recommend for me, based on my before shot.

“The treatment has cleared your cheeks and your face of pigment and blemishes, which is helping your skin to glow,” he replies. “You could achieve this with Intense Pulsed Lights (IPL) skin treatment. It would require three sessions of e250 each. Blepharoplasty [reshaping upper or lower lids] costs between e3,500-e5,000.

“You could do most of the selected treatments non-surgically for about e1,500. If you went down a surgical route it could cost you e10,000.”