We’re 5 friends in our 50s who’ve had lipo, boob jobs, veneers & more done – but can you tell who HASN’T had surgery?
COSMETIC “tweakments” are booming in the UK.
Last year’s numbers were double those for 2022 and, according to campaign group Save Face, around 900,000 Botox injections are administered a year.
TV shows like Love Island help to drive the increase but Nora Nugent, head of The British Association of Plastic Surgeons, says: “It is also due to greater affordability and, relatively speaking, a gradual normalisation.”
Today, five friends in their fifties, discuss their procedures.
Four have had work done, while one is tweakment-free.
‘Botox froze my face but plumped-up lips looked fab’
MANDE LOFTMAN is single, a foster carer and mum-of-three from Barkingside, Essex. She says:
“I’ve always been happy with how I look and it wasn’t until age 56 I decided to try Botox.
It was only a small amount, but the effect was quite noticeable and I felt that it froze my face.
I’m a smiley, expressive person and I like to show that side of myself, so I didn’t do it again.
I’m not too wrinkly anyway, fortunately.
I do like to try and look my best though, so I also have individual LED lashes and teeth whitening.
But I’ve never had any work done to my body. I go to the gym and try to look after myself that way.
The only thing I really didn’t like about myself was my lips.
They are very thin and for years I thought about having them plumped up a bit, but I was too nervous to go ahead.
Then, a few years ago, I finally took the plunge and had some filler.
I’ve done it three times now at different clinics and I’m really happy with the results.
I didn’t want big fish lips, I just wanted them to look a bit more defined, but still natural.
The last time I had filler, my lips were black and blue after the injections, but once that had died down, they looked fab and I did look younger.
I don’t want to look like a spring chicken — it’s about looking after myself and making myself feel good.
I’ll be 60 next year, but I only feel about 30. I want how I look to reflect how I feel on the inside.”
‘I’m ageing well and don’t plan on ever having tweakments’
SECURITY worker Lisa Lawler, lives in Chigwell, Essex, with her partner Rob Smith, 52. She says:
“I’m a really confident, bubbly person and I’ve never been embarrassed about how I look.
Overall, I think I’m ageing well.
My skin isn’t wrinkly and I don’t feel like I need any tweakments at the moment.
I know lots of younger girls who do it when they really don’t need it and I don’t want to go down that road.
I think it’s a dangerous game.
Some celebrities go too far and I worry that I’d end up looking worse.
Unless I was really upset or conscious of something, I don’t think it’s worth the risk.
People often say I look young for my age and I certainly don’t feel 57.
But I am in the minority among my friends. Lots of them have had treatments.
One recently told me she even had her bum done. Each to their own, but it’s not for me.
I walk a lot and I do a lot of steps while at work, so I look after myself that way and hopefully that keeps me young.
I don’t have any skin regime either. I’m just lucky. I must be blessed with good genes.
I’ve got to 57 without having any cosmetic treatment and I don’t plan on ever having anything done.
Even if I did, I don’t think it would make me look younger – I’d just look like I’d had work done.
So even though all my friends have done it, I’ll never go under the knife.
It’s also very expensive and I’d rather save the money for something else, like a fancy holiday.”
‘My confidence soared after eyelid surgery. It
took years off’
ROYAL Mail worker Elaine Bailey, a mum of one, in Loughton, Essex. She says:
“When I was 38, I finally plucked up the courage to have blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) on my upper and lower eyelids.
I’d always hated my eyes. I was ridiculed about the shape of my eyes as a child.
I was quite traumatised and for years felt so unhappy about my appearance.
Years later I read a newspaper interview with a top plastic surgeon and began to give it serious thought.
I still debated it for another two years after that as it was such a big decision, but I saved up and went for it, spending around £3,500 on the operation which lifted and changed the shape of my eyes.
Afterwards, my confidence soared.
It took years off my appearance and around the age of 40, I started having Botox.
I liked the fresh look it gave me and I didn’t want to have spent all that money on blepharoplasty to end up with crow’s feet.
I’ve since had Botox around my eyes and in my forehead, to get rid of my angry frown. I’ve also had fillers in my lips.
The lady I go to is excellent and never overdoes anything and will tell me if I don’t need something.
I get lots of compliments on my lips. I also had four dental veneers after falling over and chipping my teeth.
Initially, I used to hide what I’d had done, but I’m happy to talk about it now.
Lisa used to rib me as she has never had surgery.
She oozes confidence and if you are lucky to be that sort of person, then great.
But I’ve got to the age where I care less about what people think and I do what suits me.”
‘I lost 4st but was left with excess skin on tummy’
SCHOOL bus driver Tracy Doubtfire, from Bow, East London, lives with husband Jim Butcher, 67.
She has three children from a previous relationship. She says:
“All my life I’ve struggled with my weight. I had horrible bingo wings, so I always made sure the clothes I picked had sleeves, no matter how hot it was.
I’d never have worn a vest top or anything like that.
Then a few years ago, I lost about four stone.
I should have been happy, but I wasn’t comfortable with my body at all.
I had a lot of excess skin around my tummy and felt like the weight loss had been for nothing.
I started thinking about surgery and so, in 2022, I went to Turkey.
I had a tummy tuck, liposuction, an arm lift, a slight breast reduction and uplift, and monsplasty, which is the removal of excess skin from around your pubic bone.
I went abroad as it was so much cheaper. I spent around £6,500, but it would have cost that for my boobs alone in the UK.
I did my research online and made sure I went to a good surgeon.
I’m incredibly happy with the results.
My confidence has soared and for the first time in decades I can wear the clothes I want to wear.
I’d recommend it to anyone and wish I’d done it years ago.
Jim was happy with how I looked before surgery but he was very supportive and encouraged me to do whatever I wanted to feel happy with myself.
I’ve had Botox, but not for a while. I do have wrinkles, like many women my age, but they don’t bother me so much.
I’m pretty happy with how I look and I’m healthy, too, which is the most important thing.”
‘I went from an A to a C cup and I’m so happy with them’
MUM-OF-TWO Sarah Jane Fancourt is a full-time carer from Braintree, Essex. She says:
“I had my breasts enlarged when I was 30.
I’d never been big-chested but after having two children my boobs virtually disappeared.
There were teenage girls with bigger boobs than mine and I just didn’t feel complete.
I was a tiny 32A and, after surgery, I went up to a C cup.
I didn’t want to be huge, I just wanted a natural look.
I’m so happy with them.
It’s the best thing I ever did and it gave me so much confidence about my appearance.
That was all I did for a long time, but then I started having Botox in my early forties.
I hated the lines between my eyes and just felt my face always looked exhausted.
It was on and off at first, mainly around special occasions such as a birthday or Christmas.
But as I’ve grown older, I have started having it more regularly, around every three months.
I didn’t necessarily want to look younger than my age, I just wanted to look good for my 53 years and the injections have given me a fresher look.
I have the jabs in three areas, my forehead, the so-called “eleven lines” in between my brows and around my crows’ feet.
It’s quite subtle. I didn’t want the frozen look.
I did try lip filler once but that wasn’t for me, so I wouldn’t do it again.
People do notice when I’ve had Botox and often comment that I look young for my age.
There are so many treatment options available nowadays, so if you can do something that makes you look better and feel happier, why not?”
The ‘must dos’ before taking a tweak
NORA NUGENT, president of BAAPS, says: “Before proceeding with any cosmetic treatment, surgical or non-surgical, it is key to think about why you are really doing it.
“While the benefits are well known, expecting other areas of our lives or relationships to be transformed as a result of surgery is often a reason for disappointment.
“As with other decisions, they need to be taken by you, without pressure from others or without expecting transformation in other areas of life.
Research thoroughly before having any treatment. “Ensure you see a qualified practitioner.
“For many of these treatments, this means a doctor. For cosmetic surgery, this means a plastic surgeon, or for a rhinoplasty, an ENT surgeon, or a plastic surgeon.”
In the UK, plastic surgeons are registered with the General Medical Council on the specialist register in plastic surgery.
You can also check in the ‘find a surgeon’ section of our website, baaps.org.uk, for suitably qualified surgeons.
Once you have found a potential surgeon who performs the procedure you are interested in, see them for a consultation.
Nora says: “Take some time after the consultation to read through all the information provided and to consider your discussion with the surgeon before going ahead with treatment.
“Going abroad for treatment can be safe but only if planned properly with additional safeguards.”
Be aware that going abroad for surgery can make it harder to check your doctor and clinic has the proper credentials, and how to check them varies from country to country.
Nora says: “You also need to consider after care — when will you meet your surgeon?
“Will there be a language barrier? How long will you stay in the country and how will you access routine follow-ups?
“What happens if a problem or complication arises, either before you return home or after you are at home?”
PRODUCTS THAT TURN BACK TIME WITHOUT SURGERY
THE number of beauty salons offering surgical treatments is increasing but there are alternatives.
Nikki Watkins picks the products beauty fans are choosing as an alternative to surgically turning back the years.
Boop facial lifting roller, £3.29, boopbeauty.co.uk
THIS lifting roller helps to sculpt your face when slid along the jawline and cheekbones after applying your chosen serum or facial oil.
Facial rollers are thought to have a variety of benefits to the skin, with the number one advantage being a more taut look to the face.
This version looks great on your beauty table and is purse-friendly too.
Frownies forehead & between eyes (144 wrinkle patches), £28.95, frownies.co.uk
THESE wrinkle-smoothing patches are worn while you sleep to hold muscles in place, and allegedly “retrain them to relax into their original smooth flat position”.
The patches have been around for ages and have a faithful customer base who use the paper product as an alternative to invasive procedures like Botox.
StylPro Spec-tacular EMS & red LED under-eye glasses, £39.99, Boots
EYE-BAG removal is an expensive and invasive procedure, and the makers of the Spec-tacular believe their technology can remove the need for this.
These under-eye glasses utilise red LED light therapy to help reduce dark circles and puffiness around the peepers.
The lightweight design makes them easy to wear while you go about your day.
Neutrogena retinol boost eye cream, £13.99, feelunique.com
THIS cult product has a growing number of fans.
It is said to be so effective that 100 per cent of testers achieved noticeable results when it hit the market.
It has a reasonable price point and it is packed with pure retinol which has been proven to increase collagen production, reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.
AXIS-Y PHA resurfacing glow peel, £16.90, Superdrug
A SKIN peel is a chemical solution that is applied to the face to remove dead skin cells and to stimulate the growth of new ones.
But before you fork out for this procedure, try this beauty aficionado favourite that works in a similar way.
This gel-water peel gently exfoliates the skin and clears the pores, claiming to showcase a refreshed face.
Too Faced lip injection maximum plump lip plumper, £19.50, lookfantastic.com
INJECTING fillers into the lips is costly and uncomfortable, but people are raving about this lip gloss that gives the same results without the pain.
This tube is filled with a gloss “plumper” you apply over lippie or on bare lips that 96 per cent of customers found left their mouth appearing fuller and more pouty from the very first application.