Everyone loves the festive season. After all, it’s the time of year when you dress to the nines to meet all your family and friends (or frenemies) and then spend hours eating, drinking, and dancing the night away. What’s not to like?
Plus, the festive period will technically be extra long this time around, since the Lunar New Year is coming earlier than usual, beginning on 25th January 2020. But even if you and your family don’t celebrate the Lunar New Year, we figure that you’d still want to look your very best for meeting all the important people in your life. And of course, looking your best includes maintaining a good complexion.
If you really want that luxuriously plump, luminous complexion, then you’ll probably want to start working on it now. For an idea of how to go about it, here is SW1’s 8-week path to glowing, lifted, party-perfect skin.
8 Weeks Out: Thermage FLX
Thermage is considered one of the gold-standard non-invasive facial treatments, used to tighten sagging skin and smooth out deep wrinkles. It uses radiofrequency to heat the deep, collagen-rich layers of the skin, which causes the collagen fibres to contract and stimulates their growth.
SW1 Clinic uses the new version of Thermage, called Comfort Pulsed Technology (CPT), which delivers increased comfort and even greater skin tightening effects.
The entire treatment takes 60 to 90 minutes, and there is almost no downtime (although patients may see some temporary redness and swelling). But because growing new collagen takes time, it is best to do Thermage at least a few months before you want to see maximal effects. Improvements will continue up to 6 months after the treatment, so you’ll look even better at the end of the long festive season than at the beginning.
7 weeks Out: Botox
Botox needs no real introduction — it is a brand of botulinum toxin, a substance that paralyses muscles in treated areas. When used cosmetically, it can be used to smooth out expression lines (at least, the ones caused by the movement of facial muscles) and slim the profile of the jawline.
This facial contouring effect is achieved by relaxing the overactive muscles in the jaw that result from chewing tough foods or grinding one’s teeth. However, while the muscles are almost instantly paralysed, it will still take some time for the size of the muscle to shrink, so it’s best to get this procedure done earlier. The effects of Botox typically last for three to six months.
6 weeks Out: Filler Hydrolift
Filler Hydrolift is sometimes known as skin booster injections, or shui guang zhen in Mandarin, and is used to plump up fine lines and wrinkles, or even to gently lift and contour the face.
Tiny injections of hyaluronic acid are deposited under the skin all over the face to rejuvenate tired skin and restore skin moisture to youthful levels, resulting in a radiant, luminous complexion. Plus, studies have shown that these fillers also stimulate the production of collagen, resulting in a subtle lift of the facial contours over the next two to three weeks.
5 weeks Out: Revitalift Undereye
The Revitalift Undereye is the perfect remedy for every sleep-deprived urban dweller, who may be plagued with crepey dry eyes and dark circles. Similar to Filler Hydrolift, pure hyaluronic acid is injected into the skin, but using a different technique for more concentrated skin improvement. The added hydration under the eye helps to diminish fine lines, and the natural collagen stimulation has the added benefit of a more lifted eye area.
Since the festive season likely includes quite a few late-night parties, perhaps a little prophylactic dark-circle prevention could be in order.
4 Weeks Out: BB Aquatouch
This treatment is SW1 Clinic’s signature laser facial. It uses a 1927nm Thulium laser, whose unique wavelength makes it extremely effective at treating all types of pigmentation, from freckles and acne scars to melasma and age spots. The laser is also effective at improving skin elasticity, reducing large pores, and fine wrinkles. According to SW1, a few sessions of BB Aquatouch can result in an instant Photoshop makeover effect.
Visible results can be seen within two weeks of treatment, but the skin should continue to improve even after that as it continues to renew itself. There is no downtime, but don’t forget to moisturise and apply sunscreen after any laser treatment!
3 weeks Out: Revage 670
This laser treatment isn’t like any other — rather than being an ablative treament for your face, it’s a rejuvenating remedy for thinning hair. Revage 670 uses Rotational PhotoTherapy (RPT) diodes that emit painless, cool laser energy to stimulate blood flow to hair follicles beneath the scalp. This enhanced blood flow awakens dormant hair follicles and nudges them back into the active growth phase, and simultaneously encourages cellular regeneration for thicker and healthier hair shafts — which means less breakage and hair fall.
According to SW1, Revage 670 can increase hair density by up to 40 percent, and has an 85 percent success rate of halting hair loss entirely. It only takes 30 minutes per treatment, and there is no downtime. And yes, it works for both men and women.
2 weeks Out: 24K Uplift Facial
This multi-tasking facial is perfect for smoothing out fine lines and wrinkles, as well as rejuvenate tired, dull-looking skin. It begins with skin-exfoliating aqua-dermabrasion to gently get rid of dead skin cells that may be clogging your pores or causing dullness. Ultrasound Sygmalift technology and cold lasers are then used to lift and tone the skin to instantaneously give it a more plump and youthful appearance.
A vitamin skin infusion is then used to nourish and hydrate the skin, so you can leave looking glowy and luminous.
The Week Before: Glamour Peel
The week before your big parties is the final chance to give your skin that final boost and glow, and this 6-in-1 Glamour Peel is the ultimate treatment for looking red carpet ready. The facial imparts six key benefits: skin brightening, spot fading, line smoothing, pore reduction, sebum balance, and hydration boost.
In order to achieve this, the Glamour Peel uses a series of professional peels, oxygenating masks, and regenerating serum concentrates to give you a brilliantly luminous complexion, so you can glow just as brilliantly as your diamond jewellery under the party lights.
To find out more, visit the SW1 website. Alternatively, visit them at #13-03 Paragon [Tel: 6817 8888] or #02-19/20 OUE Downtown Gallery Tower 2 [Tel: 6817 8882].