“DON’T GO UNDER the knife, go to Italy where men appreciate older women“, offers my friend Pam as we step into the convention hotel lobby in search for a much deserved glass of wine. These are words of wisdom shared by one of her female friends who recently returned from an obviously ‘lucky’ trip to Europe.
Pam’s ‘go to Italy’ advice definitely has me thinking… I’ve lived on both sides of the pond and come to think of it, I don’t have one single friend or relative in Europe who’s had much of anything ‘done’ that I can see. And they all look just fine.
Apparently the plastic surgery philosophy is more discreet in Europe, I remember my horrified Paris born and bred mom pleading “But pussycat, those aren’t the breasts I gave you, why would you do that?” when I told her I had gotten breast implants in my twenties. I think she felt she had somehow failed me and yes, I felt just a tad guilty.
It didn’t last, as you know from my last post ‘Damn The Torpedoes’, I had my own reasons for bolstering my bust. Which didn’t last either…
Things do seem to have gotten quite of hand in North American though. Parents are actually giving breast augmentations for their teenage daughters’ sweet sixteen!
Just recently Dr. Michael Niccole, a Newport Beach plastic surgeon stated in an ABC 20/20 interview with Barbara Walters that he inserted breast implants into his eighteen year old daughter himself. Oh, and a touch of Botox as well.
All-righty then… plastic surgery really is a 10 billion dollar industry over here in the New World.
It seems in Europe people are more apt to play the hand they’re dealt in the looks department, getting less conspicuous rejuvenating treatments. Something to be said for centuries of culture and appreciation of things old.
But what to do if you totally slept in the day the wrinkle-free skin and cleavage cards were handed out?
Pam and I are now comfortably bellied up to the bar and diligently practicing the French Paradox diet – lots of red wine, French bread, cheese and salad to keep that cholesterol down. After successfully flirting with the bartender to get an overpour of cabernet, we discuss a biography I recently saw about a famous, departed octegonarian actor.
Some of the female actors and friends interviewed for his biography were European and some American. The disparity in plastic surgery between the two
groups was Botox-defyingly eyebrow raising.
While the American gals’s over-tightened faces appeared to be clinging onto youth for dear life, lips pumped up Hollywood style and brows fully immobilized (you know what I’m talking about), the European ladies were elegantly moving forward in life.
Not to say they didn’t get a little extra help from the scalpel, hell, a girl’s got to be able to look in the mirror with the lights on, BUT… It is clear to me how the North American obsession with looking twenty-five, ok eighteen, can drive a woman to extreme and unfortunate measures.
I’m all for plastic surgery if that’s your next pit stop, personal maintenance is always a good thing and sometimes it’s just more extensive when you get older. But don’t you agree the bar for beauty has been unrealistically set in this continent when eighteen year olds are getting Botox?
Am I being old-fashioned here or can we find a happier, more self-accepting medium (or large) somewhere in our souls?
If you do decide to get some surgical assistance for your appearance, you go, girl! But please take a lesson from our European counterparts, be elegant, not obvious.
It’s your face, not a fashion.
Heres’ some food for thought from Henri Cartier-Bresson “At a certain point, one gets the face one deserves.”
So smile, pardner, or move to Italy where laugh lines are sexy.
Esmée SJ
Love the Red Wine diet – think I am gonna give that one a try …..
Can’t believe that a father would agree to operate on his own daughter(s) – thereby confirming their assessment of themselves as not being ‘good enough’ without enhancements. This just compounds the problem.
AND why should women of 50 (something) want to strive to look 18. There is much to be said about the look and maturity of a women in this phase of her life. Let’s embrace it!!!
Yeah, Baby, yeah!!!!
I love your healthy and wise philosophy on life and looks, Louise, thank you for your very valuable input and thank you for reading my blog. Welcome, bienvenue, wilkommen, welkom and all that sort of thing.
I swear by the Red Wine diet, have been on it forevah…
My very good friend had a nose job when she was 22 and now she is 36 It looks great! She has told me it is the worst pain that she has ever been thugorh in her life, that she would never ever do it again if she had the chance to go back and change things. I think that they did such a wonderful job. I would have never known she had one done if she hadn’t of told me. Although she just had it done in Chicago. Although if there were complications are you prepared to find a dr. in your hometown or close by when you get home you can’t stay in Thailand forever. I know they say that surgeries are cheaper there, but I would definitely do some checking into things before I went rushing into anything. Hope everything works out for you. ♥J
I’m going to Italy…..
I’m coming with you. We could start in Rome, even the police occifers there look like fashion models… the male ones, that is. Come to think of, I don’t recall seeing any female ones, hmmm… God, I’m already mentally shopping and smiling. Got to work those smile lines
Welcome back, Catherine and thank you for commenting. Just think of all then shoes we could buy with the money saved, I simply love the smell of leather.
Hi Esmée! I grew up reading British magazines passed on to me by my mum. The television and movie stars featured never had any ‘work’ done on them and I could connect and identify with them so much more than their American counterparts. They just seemed so much more real.
I look like my mum and when I look at her I see a fast forward of my life – and I like it!! I think my mum is just beautiful even in her eighties and I’m glad I have a natural looking person as a role model than someone who has been tweaked to represent someone else’s idea of beauty.
Love your tweets!! They always make me smile AND think!
What a wonderful point you make, Adèle. It is so important for our young ones to have ‘real’ older women to identify with, we are their role models and mentors. Big Blahniks to fill!
Nothing wrong with a little maintenance tweaking kept in perspective, looking good helps us feel good… There is so much can we show our younger life students by simply BEING the example of what we want for them.
For example, my mom is a great role model by being independent, fit, eating healthy and having a killer sense of humor.
I really appreciate your Transatlantic input, Adèle, thank you for reading and commenting!
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