How Korean women change their appearance

A new trend that is confusing.

All countries have their own standards of beauty, but, perhaps, it is in Asia that the desire for the ideal is the strongest. Korean women have been lining up to see plastic surgeons for several years in pursuit of a doll-like face with delicate features, but they have found a cheaper way to become more beautiful.

Now you can turn into the ideal anime heroine with big eyes and the “right” face with the help of makeup. The effect, of course, is temporary, but it is not as expensive as surgery. But you can't do it with contact lenses and false eyelashes alone.

Contouring and prosthetics are going into battle. It sounds scary, but in reality, girls simply sculpt the desired face out of clay.

A Twitter user under the nickname Cielito Lindo published a selection of videos of Korean girls with doll-like appearance taking off their makeup and the very clay they sculpt on their nose, cheeks and chin. The “before” and “after” results are not only impressive, but downright shocking.

Internet users were divided into two camps: some thought that this was too obvious a deception of others and a very tedious procedure in general, but others had nothing against such transformations.

South Korea has its own ideas about beauty - Dr. Lee Se-hwan adopted them

According to statistics from the International Society of Plastic Surgery (ISAPS), South Korea leads in the number of plastic surgeries per capita: every fifth resident of the country has gone under the knife to change her appearance. For local men, visiting a surgeon’s desk has also become quite common, like a visit to the dentist. Parents pay for Europeanization of their eyelids for their teenage children, and this is considered a traditional school graduation gift.

While the “boom” for plastic surgery in the Land of Morning Freshness is gaining momentum, ELLE spoke with the plastic surgeon of the Seoul Grand Clinic, Lee Se Hwan, and asked our editors to model photo portraits taking into account the South Korean canons of beauty.

Lee Se-hwan, chief physician of the Grand Clinic

ELLE: I wonder what beauty standards exist in a country where it’s so easy to buy a new look?

Dr. Lee Se Hwan: The canons of ideal appearance change from time to time everywhere. Previously, a European face was considered a model of beauty in the East: with a high bridge of the nose and a deep fold on the eyelids. But recently, another trend has emerged - this is the most natural, youthful, fresh face with subtle Asian features and without visible signs of surgical intervention. Pronounced cheekbones and a voluminous forehead are considered beautiful. In this case, the reference chin should have a V-shape.

For an ideal appearance, it is necessary to have a crease in the upper eyelid and pretty bags under the eyes, the so-called “aegyosal”. A small round and slightly upturned tip of the nose is also an invariable attribute of ideal appearance. But at the same time, the back of the nose should not be too high or have a hump. And finally, the final touch to the portrait is voluminous, plump lips with raised corners; they also visually make the face look younger.

It is important to maintain harmony and balance. The ratio of the upper part of the face (from the forehead to the bridge of the nose), the middle part (from the bridge of the nose to the tip of the nose) and the lower part (from the tip of the nose to the tip of the chin) is calculated in the “golden” proportions of 1: 1: 0.8.

Ko Joon-hee, Kim Seol-hyun and Bae Soo-ji

ELLE: Which of the South Korean stars are considered your recognized beauties?

Dr. Lee Se-hwan: Among the young stars, I can name Bae Su-Ji (21-year-old model, actress and lead singer of the girl group Miss A, better known under the pseudonym Suzy), Ko Joon-hee (29-year-old actress, star of Korean drama series) and Kim Seol-Hyun (20-year-old actress and member of K-pop group AOA). More mature stars are 34-year-old Song Hye-Kyu, her peer Jun Ji-hyun and 36-year-old Kim Tae-Hee. These are six universally recognized beauties, many want to be like them.

Kim Tae Hee, Jun Ji Hyun and Song Hye Kyu

ELLE: Do Koreans think Western celebrities like Kim Kardashian or Olivia Wilde are beautiful?

Dr. Lee Se Hwan: Everyone has their own beauty. Some of my compatriots will find them attractive, but others will not. But Olivia Wilde's facial contours (especially her square jaw) don't come close to meeting the Korean beauty standard.

ELLE: We sent you photographs of three ELLE.ru editors. As a specialist, what types of plastic surgery would you recommend to them?

Dr. Lee Se-hwan: I did computer modeling of faces, but please note that it is difficult to give comprehensive recommendations in absentia, based on photos.

Valeria Klimenko, beauty editor of ELLE.ru

To create a more attractive look, I would suggest that Valeria slightly correct her too high and clear upper eyelid crease line. In this case, it is advisable to perform an operation to eliminate eyelid ptosis - this will help get rid of the sleepy look and make the girl’s eyes more expressive. She has a short nose, and the tip is raised more than necessary. By lowering the tip, we will adjust the angle of the nose and sculpt the perfect line. Contour plastic surgery is recommended for Valeria to create smoother cheekbones, eliminate a square jaw and form a new chin.

The girl's cheeks are characterized by excessive swelling. Using an akyu scalp, you can remove excess fat from her cheeks, which will make her face more chiseled. To reduce a wide forehead, I would advise Valeria to have a hair transplant.

Full plan of recommended operations:

1. plastic surgery of the upper eyelid fold + correction of ptosis;

2. plastic surgery of the back and tip of the nose + correction of a short nose;

3. correction of cheekbones + square jaw + tip of the chin;

4. acu-scalp (in the cheek area);

5. hair transplantation.

Elena Bolshakova, editor of the "Stars" section of ELLE.ru

Elena's eyelids look dense and wide, but their fold line is not very clear. With blepharoplasty, fat could be transferred to the sunken area, which would change the shape of the eyes.

The girl developed a hernia under her eyes due to uneven distribution of fatty tissue. Hence the dark circles that make your editor look tired. If you redistribute the fat and fill the sunken eye sulcus with it, Elena will look younger and fresher.

As for the nose, based on Korean ideas of beauty, I would without a doubt remove the hump. Also, after the osteotomy, I would bring the nasal cartilages closer together, which would correct the height and line of the nose.

Elena has a beautiful, delicate oval face, but it lacks a little expressiveness. If you add a little volume to the cheekbones and nasolabial triangle, your face shape will become ideal. Akyu-scalp will help tighten slightly sagging cheeks and make the jawline clear. This procedure will also bring the lower part of the face closer to our ideal V-shape. Hair transplantation can also be performed, which will visually reduce a wide forehead.

Full plan of recommended operations:

1. plastic surgery of the upper eyelid fold;

2. plastic surgery of the back and tip of the nose + removal of the hump;

3. transconjunctival blepharoplasty;

4. hair transplantation;

5. lipofilling (nasolabial folds, front part of the cheekbones, sunken area of ​​the upper eyelid);

6. acu-scalp (in the area of ​​the cheeks and chin).

Olga Zhilina, editor of ELLE.ru

Let's start with the most popular type of plastic surgery in South Korea and give Olga the fold in her upper eyelid that is missing. Then, using medial and literal canthoplasty, we will create a clearer eye contour. The girl also needs ptosis correction.

If the previous model we reduced the bridge of the nose, then Olga, on the contrary, needs to increase it. Also, I would change her wide and flat nose wings. The contour of a girl’s face will become more harmonious if the front and side surfaces of her cheekbones are reduced. V-shape surgery will make a short chin appear longer, narrower, and sharper. Olga’s forehead, nasolabial triangle area and temporal region are slightly sunken. Transplanting your own fat tissue will restore their volume and give your face a more youthful appearance. Finally, hair transplantation will correct uneven hairline, which will ultimately bring harmony to the entire look.

Full plan of recommended operations:

1. creation of a fold of the upper eyelid + correction of ptosis + medial canthoplasty + lateral canthoplasty;

2. V-shaped face plastic surgery + cheekbone reduction + short chin correction;

3. hair transplantation;

4. lipofilling (forehead, nasolabial folds, temporal areas);

5. plastic surgery of the back and tip of the nose.

Hirst Shkulev Publishing

Moscow, st. Shabolovka, building 31b, 6th entrance (entrance from Konny Lane)

Recently, a viral video appeared on the Internet in which Chinese bloggers remove their makeup on camera, turning from doll beauties into ordinary girls. This metamorphosis is almost frightening: wigs, contact lenses, even false noses and chins! In our material we tell you what means bloggers used for their transformation, and most importantly, why.

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Asian women are not big fans of natural beauty. From the point of view of Asian women, their own standard appearance is not nearly as attractive as the appearance of European women. Parents of girls from Korea and China persuade their daughters to undergo blepharoplasty as soon as they turn 12 years old, so that with the help of a surgeon their eyes will become larger.

The International Society of Aesthetic Surgery in South Korea reported that approximately 52,000 eye reshaping surgeries were performed in 2009. Over the years, the number of such operations is only growing.

Porcelain skin

In China, you can’t find a girl who would voluntarily go to a solarium or apply self-tanning. Because in the minds of Asian women, only snow-white skin can be beautiful. The fashion for skin whitening came to China, India and Japan in ancient times. Back then, fair skin was associated with wealth and opportunity. Dark-skinned people were ordinary peasants who worked under the sun's rays.

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By 2018, the market for skin whitening products is approximately $19.8 billion. Whitening creams, lasers and special preparations are used.

Beauty specialist Andrew McDougal says that white skin in Asia is not just a trend, but almost a fetish. “Everyone is fighting for white skin,” he says. “Every skin product should have a whitening effect, people try to stay in the shade.”

False nose

In the struggle for the perfect face shape - V-shaped, which the Chinese call the “melon seed shape” - some people use the so-called “false makeup”. To model the shape of the nose and chin in the video above, the girls used special wax, which is first melted like clay, and then the nose is given the desired shape.

As you can see in the video, this makeup is easy to remove. It is very sensitive to high temperatures and requires constant updating.

Round lenses

The video clearly shows that each girl takes out the lenses from her eyes, which made her irises huge. The fashion for big eyes is also an attempt to make one’s appearance more “European.” Remember the anime characters - they all have huge eyes that cover half their face.

Chinese women use special cosmetic round lenses, which in China are called “meitong”. These are very large lenses that make eyes the size of saucers. Usually bright, unnatural colors are used. A pair of such lenses costs from $5 to $100, and, accordingly, their quality also varies. Doctors warn that poor quality lenses can damage the eyes and even leave the girl blind.

Eyes: crease on the eyelid

Mono-eyelid is considered ugly among Asian women; they like European eyes much more, with a crease in the upper eyelid. In order to achieve it, they use many different means - from sticker strips to operations, which mothers often present to their daughters as a gift.

Cindy, a Korean-American, says, “My mom used to tell me when I was little, ‘You need to get surgery to reshape your eyes to make them look bigger.' That is, this was constantly repeated to me by the person who was actually supposed to tell me how beautiful I am.”

Gloria, a Chinese American, confirms: “The Chinese, like many Asians, do not like monolids. I have rather round eyes, so I often heard people say: “I wish I had eyes like yours!” But there is another side to the coin. My mother told me that my eyes are not big enough. I once used tape to make my eyes appear bigger, and then I said to myself, “Hey, that's your face, that's what you look like.” I think it all has to do with the idea of ​​white supremacy."

Eyebrows and eyelashes

Another makeup detail that makes the eyes appear visually larger is emphatically wide eyebrows and false eyelashes.

Japanese makeup artist Jerzy Tanji says: “The emphasis is on the eyebrows; on Asian women they are not always well defined, so girls try to make them stand out more on the face. In Japanese tradition, eyebrows play a very important role: for example, if a geisha could not get the shape of her eyebrows perfect, she would remove all her makeup and start over.”

Lips: gradient color

Perhaps the most “innocent” Asian beauty trend is gradient lips. This is the kind of makeup where the color is concentrated towards the middle of the lips and shaded along the edges. This makes the girls’ appearance more “doll-like” and their lips visually thinner.