When I was younger, I had a rounder face and growing up in Asia, this was not considered attractive. I found ways to make my face look slimmer be it makeup, hairstyles, accessories, doing facial exercises or sucking in my cheeks as I go about my day.
I like my face in my 40s now as it’s more an oval shape. To me, I look more woman-ly and more attractive. I put it down to a mix of exercise, diet and aesthetic treatments I’ve had the last decade.
Being an aesthetic doctor for the last 15 years assessing women’s faces, there are common features that make a woman appear more youthful and more attractive. Of course, there are nuances to these based on cultural differences, trends and age.
In my practice, I see many types of face shape and these are the common request when I ask patients, “What would you like to achieve?”
“I want my face to look slimmer” when they have a rounder face.
“I want my face to look more feminine” when they have a squarer or boxy face.
“I want my face to look less sad or angry” when they have a triangle shaped or bottom heavy face.
“I want my face to have more curves” when they have a longer face.
“I want to have a stronger chin and more defined jawline” when they have smaller lower 1/3 of the face.
In this blog, I will share a list of aesthetic treatments that can improve the balance and profile of each face shape. I will also include treatments that you should avoid if you have certain face shape.
FACE SHAPE: ROUND
Treatment options that are recommended:-
- Cheek definition with dermal fillers (to give definition like how contouring does with makeup)
- Lengthening the chin, giving it a sharper shape with dermal fillers
- Slimming the jawline with muscle relaxing injections (if masseter muscle is bulky)
- Reducing pocket of fat under the chin with fat-dissolving injection or PDO threads
- PDO lifting threads to give a more upside down triangle appearance (this will be a gradual effect)
Treatments to avoid:-
- Dermal filler to the front or apple of the cheek
- Dermal filler to the jawline which can make it look heavy
- Dermal filler to the temples which can accentuate the roundness
FACE SHAPE: SQUARE or RECTANGLE
Treatment options that are recommended:-
- Slimming the jawline with muscle relaxing injections (if masseter muscle is bulky)
- Shaping the chin, making it narrower with dermal fillers
- Dermal filler to the front or apple of the cheek to give it more curves
- PDO lifting threads to give a more upside down triangle appearance (this will be a gradual effect)
Treatments to avoid:-
- Cheek definition with dermal fillers
- Dermal filler to the jawline which accentuates the “boxy-ness”
FACE SHAPE: OBLONG
Treatment options that are recommended:-
- Cheek definition with dermal fillers (to give definition like how contouring does with makeup)
- Jawline definition with dermal filler
Treatments to avoid:-
- Dermal filler to the chin which can further elongate the face
- Dermal filler to the bridge of the nose which can give a flatter, longer appearance
FACE SHAPE: TOP HEAVY
The upside down triangle is often called the beauty triangle or tringle of youth. Ideally, all sides of the triangle is equal. It becomes less favourable when the bottom is too small, out of proportion to the top, typically if you have a small chin. Some patients describe it as having a “weak chin”.
Treatment options that are recommended:-
- Jawline definition with dermal filler
- Dermal filler to the chin to widen it
Treatments to avoid:-
- Cheek definition with dermal filler
- Chin narrowing
- Dermal filler to the temples
- Slimming the jawline with muscle relaxing injections
FACE SHAPE: BOTTOM HEAVY
This is more typical as we age where we can develop jowls, loss of separation between our neck and jawline, bulking of the masseter (from teeth grinding) and flattening our chin. There is also loss of volume in our cheeks and temples, resulting in gravitational descent of tissues leading to more prominent nasolabial folds and marionette lines. This gives a triangle appearance and the aim of aesthetic treaments would be to invert the triangle and give a more youthful appearance.
Treatment options that are recommended:-
- Dermal filler to the temples to reduce hollowing
- Dermal filler to the cheek to improve fullness, lift and definition
- Dermal filler to treat nasolabial fold and marionette lines
- Lengthening the chin, giving it a sharper shape with dermal fillers
- Reducing pocket of fat under the chin or jowls with fat-dissolving injection or PDO threads
- Slimming the jawline with muscle relaxing injections (if masseter muscle is bulky)
- Dermal to jawline to reduce jowls and create more definition
- PDO lifting threads to give a more upside down triangle appearance (this will be a gradual effect)
Treatments to avoid:-
There’s little to avoid in this face shape but sequence is important. It’s best to treat from top to bottom. If there is a lot of heaviness in the jaw area, it’s best to reduce it with fat dissolving injection or PDO threads first before giving more definition with dermal fillers.
Lastly we can fine tune with treatments to the under eyes, nose and lips to suit the face shape.
I hope you found this blog useful. To finish off, I would highlight that all face shapes are beautiful and the treatments listed are there to give you insights of what is possible depending on your concerns and goals.
If you like my approach to aesthetics and would like to discuss your specific aesthetic needs, I invite you to schedule a consultation with me by emailing [email protected] or complete the online form.
I currently offer aesthetic treatments in London, Ashford, Northfleet and Chelmsford. I look forward to meeting you.
To your best self,
Dr Terry