The Blurb:
I was recommended Dr Mica on the advice of a savvy beauty PR. Incidentally the PR in question represents a rival dermatologist, but told me, friend-to-friend, that Dr Mica does the best lips in town.
Dr Mica practices at Waterhouse Young, the esteemed Harley Street clinic co-founded by the surgeon father of supermodel Suki Waterhouse. I have it on good authority that Suki frequents the clinic, which is reassuring, even if she pops in for nothing more than facials and general skincare.
With lip fillers, the final result depends largely on the skill of the practitioner. Proportion is paramount – both in terms of upper to lower lip ratio, and also how the new proportions read in the context of the rest of your face.
Dr Mica used Juvederm VOLBELLA – a hyaluronic acid filler marketed especially for the lip area. Having had fillers with rival product Restylane Lip one year previously, Dr Mica’s Juvederm product felt softer and more natural, even immediately following treatment.
The Process:
Dr Mica began by photographing the deep layers of my skin with the clinic’s Visia Skin Analysis machine. This looks at the general state of your skin and assesses several barometers of wear and tear such as line depth, pigmentation and pore size.
We discussed the shape I’d had previously, and the result I wanted. Subtle, slightly fuller in the middle, indiscernible to the uninitiated.
It took three visits, tweaking my lips in minimal increments before I decided they were perfect. The end result is subtle, proportioned, and slightly fuller all over.
Dr Mica has rules. She won’t enlarge above a certain amount, or deviate from specific upper to lower lip-size ratios. Understandably. No sane doctor would. Jeopardising your reputation at the whim of a patient is career suicide. This also means however mad the patient’s requests, they can’t come out looking bad, or worse, odd.
The needles used for fillers are miniscule, and it goes without saying, opened fresh in front of you. The lidocaine anaesthetic smothered on 25 minutes before the treatment is hugely effective, and in my experience, the longer you leave it, the better. I have a low pain threshold but the pain was minimal, and the staff here endlessly reassuring. Another needlephobe’s tip—take a silk scarf to wear as an eye mask—several treatments in, I still have no idea what a needle approaching the face looks like.
The Result:
Lovely. Full, subtle and juicy.
