The blurb
Dr Sister’s reputation precedes him. Based at the Westbourne Grove Lazeo Clinic (formerly BeautyWorksWest), he attends to the great and the glamorous of Notting Hill. World-renowned as an anti-ageing & hormone specialist, he mainly specialises in hormone treatments and minimally invasive procedures.
I was here to try hyaluronic acid lip fillers. As we age, the amount of hyaluronic acid in our skin, which is responsible for keeping it hydrated, decreases. The skin dries out, loosens and wrinkles appear. Today, filling products based on hyaluronic acid are an effective choice to treat the aging of facial skin. They are 100% absorbable and well-tolerated by the body.
The process
Dr Sister uses the only totally organic hyaluronic acid filler on the market, making allergies highly unlikely. Hyaluronic acid is naturally produced throughout the body and is naturally metabolised over a period of months—lips gradually return to their original state between four to nine months after each treatment.
There’s an option to apply an anaesthetic cream for 10 or 20 minutes beforehand, an option I was fully on board with. From experience, I find the longer the cream is left on for, the better. Lips can be plumped with just a few jabs, most of which are not painful, but the odd one can sting a little.
I’m also not a fan of seeing needles heading for my face, but this is nothing a pair of laser goggles can’t fix.
I opted for a whole syringe of filler; in the scheme of things not a huge amount, but more than the super subtle Dr Sister would have liked. There was quite a bit of visible bruising for a couple of days after the treatment, but in my experience this is more to do with chance than the skill of the practitioner. All depends on whether the needle hits a blood vessel from what I understand—and ice after can make a world of difference.
Despite a slightly ominous joke about having the best job in the world because women pay him to hurt them, and thank him for the privilege, Dr Sister is great at putting you at ease. A lovely, airy, light consulting room helps, and the whole clinic including the reception staff are absolutely lovely.
The results
A week later all sign of bruising had gone and I absolutely loved the results. Unlike lip fillers I’d had previously, there were no lumps and bumps to be felt, which is really unusual. Normally, if you know what you’re feeling for, you can detect harder spheres, like a solid ball-bearing where the filler was injected.
The result is actually very subtle, the balance and shape of my lips super flattering, and even without lip gloss my lips are plump and full.
