These women prepare for summer by spending hundreds on Botox and lip fillers
MOST of us try harder with our appearance in summer as pressure to bare our body or go make-up free looms. Research shows we spend around 33 hours and seven minutes getting beach body ready and a third of our holiday budget – £200 – goes on beauty prep.
But these four women go further. They tell Claire Dunwell why they get treatments such as Botox and lip fillers for their hols . . .
Hannah has £200 of lip fillers for hols
Single Hannah Bues first had lip fillers three years ago and has them redone every summer. Human resources student Hannay, 22, from Wakefield, West Yorks, has spent £400 so far.
She says: “My lips were very thin before the fillers and every time I smiled I ended up with lipstick all over my teeth. My top lip curled under and disappeared. I looked like I didn’t have one.
“I wore braces in my last year at school, which made me self-conscious. When they came off, I had these perfect white teeth, but hated smiling because I was paranoid about my lips.
“When I went to university, lip fillers were popular, with reality stars like Kylie Jenner getting hers done.
“So I gave it a go. It was coming up to summer, with lots of barbecues and, and I wanted to look my best.
“I went to Lemon Hair and Nail Spa in Leeds and it cost £200. I was amazed how easy it was having them done, and though my lips felt numb for a few hours, I wasn’t bruised or swollen.
“Twelve months later, I booked in again and now I get them done in May or June every year.
“It’s so quick, with amazing results. I plan to go abroad in September and don’t want to wear lip liner and lipstick in 30C heat, and my new lips will give me the confidence to go bare-faced.”
Sophie treats herself to £400 of fat-freezing
SOPHIE Jones, 28, had four fat-freezing sessions to feel confident in her bikini for a girls’ holiday to Marbella this summer.
Single Sophie, a beauty-business owner, from Leeds, paid £400 for the treatment, which uses cooling paddles to suction the skin and crystallise fat cells to tone up stomach and thighs.
She says: “There’s pressure to look good in Marbella and the jiggly bits around my tummy and thighs wouldn’t shift just by working hard in the gym.
“I didn’t want to feel uncomfortable in my bikini.
“I wanted to look and feel my best, especially in photos.
“I had the fat-freeze sessions a few weeks apart and loved the results. It has got rid of the wobbly bits and toned me up. Now I have an incentive to carry on working out and watching my diet.
“It’s a fantastic alternative to surgery, which is expensive and risky. I go a bit crazy on beauty treatments for the summer.
“I spent £1,500 before Marbella on Botox, fillers, lash and hair extensions, and my summer wardrobe, as well as the fat-freezing.
“It’s all worth it, although it’s probably a good thing I don’t have a boyfriend because I’m not sure he would be able to cope with me.”
Michelle has £160 of Botox for summer
MICHELLE Masella had her fourth round of Botox last month, three weeks before going on holiday to Greece.
The support worker, 48, from Barnsley, books a treatment before every holiday. Michelle is married to factory worker Mario, 43, and has three children and one grand-daughter.
She says: “If I had Botox in winter it would be a waste. It’s cold and dark so I rarely go out.
“But in summer I socialise more and, if it’s hot, I don’t want to hide my face under my hair.
“In my mid-forties I started noticing wrinkles which made me look tired and feel older. I wanted to do something about it and had my first lot of Botox, costing £160 at a local aesthetics practitioner, three years ago just before a holiday to Mexico.
“It kicked in properly on the second day we were there, and I was amazed. My forehead was smoother and I looked younger and healthier.
“Since then I’ve booked in before every vacation.
“I have more photos of myself taken on holiday than when I’m at home and I want to look my best.
“I’ve also started exercising, and I went to Greece in June and felt fresh-faced and confident.
“I don’t want the frozen look and, while nobody can stop ageing, Botox helps slow it down"
Nicola has £280 of Botox and fillers
NICOLA Bulley used to grow a fringe to hide her frown lines and felt so self-conscious she shied away from holiday photos, until she began having treatments.
Marketing boss Nicola, 36 – who lives in Pontefract, West Yorks, with husband Michael, 41, a remotely-operated vehicle pilot, and children Oliver, six, and Emily, four – has spent £500 on fillers and Botox.
She says: “Every time I looked in the mirror I saw a scowl. It made me unhappy and I tried to avoid having my photo taken when we were on holiday.
“There was no point trying to cover up with make-up because it was too noticeable.
"It didn’t bother me as much in winter because I covered it up with my fringe. But in summer, I like wearing my hair back.
“Michael paid for the filler – which cost £160 at a salon in Doncaster – because he could see how miserable I was. It will need redoing next summer but I have Botox in that area every six months to keep on top of it.
“We went on holiday to France a few weeks ago and I booked in for Botox before we went. I instantly feel happier and more confident.
“Now, when on holiday, I like being in lots of photos.
“But I dislike the Barbie look so I am careful not to have too much Botox.”