Happy Face!

One of the things I love about not scheduling posts and just posting as and when things happen is that you get the full blast of enthusiasm (or fury!) while it’s still fresh in my head. This time, it’s absolute joy! 

I’m a big fan of facial fillers; I believe they stave off the effects of time better than any skin cream I know and there is not yet a serum or potion on the market that can match what they can do. So, when I don’t work in beauty any more I am definitely having a ‘face fund’ and it will be spent primarily on fillers with the right people. Stylage HydraMAX isn’t a filler as such, it is an infusion of hyaluronic acid under the skin to plump out creases and give the appearance of volume. Stylage HydraMAX is not new, but it is new to the UK – and actually, I’m quite pleased its been thoroughly tested elsewhere.

Hyaluronic acid occurs naturally in the body – about 12g while you’re in your teens and about 6g once you are older. That is all the body needs of this miracle compound because it is such a powerful hydrator but obviously you are always going to look a bit better with the 12g rather than the paltry six we are left with once we get past a certain age. The hyaluronic molecule has to be changed a bit for procedures otherwise it would be reabsorbed too quickly and the effects on the face wouldn’t last more than 24 hours. So Stylage HydraMAX uses the least amount of chemical in order to ensure the effect stays a while and at the same time adds sorbitol, an artificial sugar molecule and major antioxidant that reduces swelling and preserves the hyaluronic. The effects should last at least three months.


So, now to Dr Elizabeth Dancey. Obviously, I’ve heard of her because she is a beauty journalist favourite and she won’t mind me saying that she too is a filler geek! There is nothing she doesn’t know about fillers and dermal treatments. So, while I’ve had like treatments before, usually involving multiple facial injections, Dr Dancey uses a cannula method. If you’re squeamish, look away now. 


Dr Dancey broke my skin with a needle and then inserted a very fine cannula (a cannula has a blunt end with a flexible shaft with the liquid delivery coming out of a tiny side pocket and is different from a sharp ended, hard needle) under my skin. Manoervering it around from the one entry point she deposited Stylage HydraMAX across one side of my face in equal distribution. Now, obviously, the needle making the access point does hurt, there’s no getting away from that, but once the cannula is inserted you don’t feel pain. What you do feel, however, is the strangest sensation of something lightly rummaging inside your face. It is hard to describe but it is a very, very odd sensation. I ended up with four access points to achieve the look we both wanted (very natural and just fresh looking rather than any pillow face nonsense). Dr Dancey decided she wanted to put some painkiller into one area, which I didn’t think I needed, but as she pointed out, I was holding my breath for too long (oops!) so I went for it. The painkiller jab hurt far more than the actual needle and cannula arrangement so I didn’t have any more and just tried to breath more reassuringly! 


The greatest thing about this treatment is that the results are instantaneous. As soon as I stood up and had a look in the mirror I fell a little bit in love with Dr Dancey. Genuinely natural looking, just plumper, firmer and let’s be honest, younger. 


I could not be more thrilled with this. So, the details:


Dr Dancey at her own salon, The Bijoux-Medispa (and it is very bijoux), is HERE
and the price for one syringe of HydraMAX at Dr Dancey’s is £220 (I needed two, so it would be £440 – clearly I was very deflated). As far as I’m concerned it was worth every damn penny. 


I’ve put pics of a cannula below, so don’t look if you don’t like needles, but wanted to show how it is different from a straight forward needle. 

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Finally, although I’m pro Botox, fillers and non-surgicals, I am absolutely pro going to the right people. It’s crazy that people with inappropriate qualifications can practice any of these treatments. A new campaign is starting that aims to bust the rogue Botoxers out of the water by compiling a register of safe practitioners. Find it HERE

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