OK, we all know who they are — the stars who exclaim that they've never had plastic surgery. Or even that they've never had any work done.
That's trickier because it implies everything — no Botox, no fillers, no lasers… although not always in their mind.
You see, this is a very, um, technical area. In that there's usually a code. No 'plastic surgery' usually means no cutting, but doesn't exclude non-invasive procedures. No Botox can mean Dysport instead, or some other filler or procedure. Nothing can often mean nothing lately.
Plus, there are the grocery store mags that put pictures up against each other so who do they think they're kidding. Although those who admit it are often subject to ridicule — who wants that?
I got to thinking about this because of a recent article in the Daily Mail entitled: 'Nip and tuck fibbers: How 72 percent of women keep quiet about Botox'
Because I'm trying to decipher if, in the end, this denial helps us or hurts us. Do we just feel inferior because we think got the dregs of the gene pool, or that gravity is worse where we live. Or would it be a relief to know that the ravages of time do the same thing to everyone.
I've discussed this before, as regards men, and decided you should perhaps keep it to yourself. But maybe I'm wrong.
I, of course, asked our go-to guru, aesthetic consultant Wendy Lewis for some insight:
"Most celebs lie about what they have had done because it would spoil their image in our eyes," she says.
"We expect them to be perfect and put them on a pedestal, as though they are gods. So to hear that Nicole has been Botoxed or Britney has been liposuctioned or Demi has been lasered would make them seem, well, dare I say it — human!"
Haven't we gotten to the point yet where we know they're human?
"I like Madonna's attitude best," says Lewis. "She was quoted saying something like, 'I'm not against plastic surgery, I'm just against talking about it.' I love that response because it neither confirms nor denies anything."
Ah, not dissimilar to my conclusion in Men, Plastic Surgery & You.
But Lewis points out :
In some cases, the work is so obvious that it defies any reasonable logic to lie about it and makes them look silly. For example, Lisa Rinna would be hard pressed to say that those are the lips Mother Nature gave her, and Pamela Anderson couldn't really deny having implants. However, we the public actually like it when celebs come clean at least about some of their interventions.
Lewis remembers an article in Vogue a few summers ago where Linda Evangelista and Ellen Barkin talked about their Botox and Thermage treatments. "Women were talking about that forever," she said, adding,
It seems more acceptable for celebs to open up about soft surgery: injections, lasers, fillers…. When it comes to lipo or breast implants, they tend to keep it quiet. There are a few celebs we know have had tummy tucks and breast lifts post childbirth who look amazing in a bikini when shot by the paparazzi — who can blame them for not talking about it!
Except, does it make us feel bad that we don't 'bounce back' that easily? Or do we hold them to unrealistic expectations, to look good and be perfect all the time?
My best advice is to anyone in the public spotlight is to downsize — admit to something, but never tell them everything — so you sound believable and other women can relate to you in a positive way. Avoid those tired lines from old Hollywood like "Ive been blessed with good genes," or "I only eat a macrobiotic diet," or the ubiquitous, "I've just been on holiday," blah, blah, blah. No one buys that anymore."
Sounds like good advice; I'll buy that. How about you?