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London Sun

We had cosmetic ops for Christmas

THOUSANDS of women are treating themselves to a new look this Christmas — with plastic surgery.

They are paying for cosmetic ops — in some cases costing thousands of pounds — as feelgood presents to themselves.

The big demand is for boob jobs, Botox and tummy tucks for those who want sexier figures or faces when the festive party season gets into full swing.

Collagen lip injections alone have soared by 300 per cent in November and December as women prepare their pouts to look kissable under the mistletoe.

Here Sun Woman’s JANE BARNES talks to three women who had cosmetic ops for Christmas.

LIP BOOST - Pauline Burel, 35

PAULINE treats herself to an early Christmas present every year by plumping up her pout with the cosmetic filler Restylane.

The secretary now loves her new look. She likes to keep her lips kissable for the festive party season — and not to have to worry about reapplying make-up when she’s under the mistletoe.

She says of her old look: “My top lip was always much thinner than my bottom so it made my face look out of balance.

“I was really unhappy so I first decided to get my lips done done for a Christmas party in the year 2000.

"I got my top lip filled up with a plumping substance called Restylane. It’s like collagen but is man-made.

“I found that the operation gave me a whole lot more confidence — and I looked kissable for the first time.

“It also meant that I didn’t have to fiddle for ages about with make-up, trying to get my lipstick right.

“Ever since the first operation, I have had the same work done each November by Alex Karidis in St John’s Wood, London — always in time for the party season.

“The results are so good that I have never looked back and now it’s my annual Christmas present to myself.

Pauline, from Carshalton, Surrey, adds: “This year I am going for a Christmas holiday to the Caribbean and I want to look my very best while on the beach.

“I don’t want to be worrying about applying lip gloss or lip liner when I could be lounging back and sipping cocktails.

“The operation only costs £300 and I am in and out of there in just half-an-hour.

“It is painful for a couple of seconds but I don’t mind too much because the results last for at least six months. The results are also really natural — the jabs just helps to fill out my natural lip line and balance out my face.

“Before I tried the filler jabs I was always very self-conscious and reapplied my make-up every few minutes.

“Now I am really happy with the results because they look so natural — and it’s always one less thing to think about for Christmas.

“When my friends found out I was getting my lips done they were very worried, especially with all the bad publicity around stars and their ‘trout pouts’ — in particular Leslie Ash.

“But after my friends saw the fantastic results that I had enjoyed, two of them immediately booked in to get the work done in time for Christmas.

“Now I think it’s great that my friends have copied my look — but it means I’ll have a bit more competition under the mistletoe!"

TUMMY TUCK - Jackie Goody, 43

AFTER a serious stomach operation and two Caesarean sections, mum-of-two Jackie’s muscles were so torn up that she had a saggy pouch of skin instead of the toned tummy she craved.

The special-needs teacher was so embarrassed by her figure that she hid it away from the world for more than 20 years.

She underwent a tummy tuck at Christmas 2001 to get back her figure and her confidence.

Jackie says: “It’s the best thing I’ve done and beats any other Christmas gift.

“I wasted 20 years of my life hiding at home in baggy clothes when I could have cured my flabby figure years ago under the surgeon’s knife. I first had an operation when I was 19 for a cyst on my stomach.

“The surgeons sliced my stomach muscles and I was told then that I would never be able to get pregnant or carry a baby.

“I defied them to get pregnant twice but both births were by Caesarean to make sure my stomach was okay. This weakened my muscles and I was left with a huge flap of skin hanging where my tummy should have been.

“I tried to laugh about it — calling it my kangaroo pouch — but I was really unhappy.

“I tried diets and exercise but nothing would shift the flab because I didn’t have muscle tone to build up. I was so miserable that I stopped going out.”

Jackie, of Grays, Essex, adds: “I had thought about getting a tummy tuck for six years but never plucked up the courage.”

“Then two years ago my husband Steven asked me what I wanted for Christmas and I jokingly said a tight tummy. He thought it was a great idea and encouraged me to go for it.

“I booked myself in for the op at the Pountney Clinic, near Heathrow Airport, in November 2001, so I could have my new body for Christmas.

“It cost £4,200, lasted several hours and was very painful. But the results were worth it — I dropped from a size 20 to a size 12 overnight.

“The surgeon told me to rest because it was a big op. But I was so happy with my new look that, just six days later, I was jumping over furniture at home. The bruising lasted two months but I didn’t care.

“I also couldn’t wait to rush out and buy a new wardrobe of tight tops and sexy dresses.

“And I got my old personality back. I had always been bubbly and used to work as a barmaid. After piling on weight I became a shrinking violet. But after my tummy op, my husband and I were out nightly — and his mates even thought I was his mistress because they had never seen us out together.

“Now I want my boobs done. I wasted 20 years hiding when I could have gone under the knife.”

BOOB JOB - Joanne Stagg, 33

JOANNE bought herself a boob job last Christmas — and went from a flat 34A to a curvy 34D.

Her sexy new look has impressed her pals so much that they are having the same op this Christmas.

Joanne, an administrator, says: “I was flat-chested and dreamed of a boob job. I wanted to look good in bikinis and low-cut clothes — so when I finished with my boyfriend last year, I decided to have the op.

“I always felt self-conscious at parties as girls flashed their cleavage. Now I was determined to do the same.

“I had a consultation at the Transform clinic in Newcastle and less than a week later I was on the operating table. It cost me £3,500 but I put it all on my credit card.

“It’s expensive but a girl can spend that in two years on clothes and shoes — then chuck them. So why not spend it on a fantastic new body?

“The operation was painful. But as soon as I came around I couldn’t resist a peek at my boobs.

"The nurse warned me not to look but I sneaked into the loo, lifted the bandages — and was delighted.”

Joanne, of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, adds: “I didn’t decide to go too big, so the implants looked natural. My confidence has soared and you can’t put a price on that.

“I hit the shops, buying boob tubes and bustier tops. I even went out in mid-winter to buy a bikini, just because I could finally wear one.

“When I showed off my boobs at a Christmas party my auntie was amazed.

"She didn’t know I’d had the op and asked: ‘Where did they come from?’ I said Santa brought them.

“Now two of my mates are getting the same op. So we’ll all hit the town together to celebrate our sexy new looks.

“If you are thinking of surgery for Christmas, go for it. It will make you feel great and is a Christmas gift that will last forever.”



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