rid

Photographs by SllANNON GREER

LOOK GOOD*

PENELOPE:

I've erased my forehead

lines

January 2013 GOOD HOU SEKEEP ING 49

*LOOK GOOD

Penelope Kulko

THE PROBLEM ''My crow'sfeet,forehead lines, and the lip lines that ruin my lipstick ove1· the cou1·se of the day," said Kulko. '?it 50, I began en­joying life more than ever, and I embmced my white shock of hair. But I notice my wrinkles more now, and others probably do, too! I've used serums, but I've never really sensed that any of them were doing much."

• THE FIX Fractional laser, specifically Fraxel Dual, for three sessions (about $1,000 each). The laser heats skin deep down in a pixelated pattern, stimu­lating collagen synthesis. Side effects are minimal: a sunburn-like redness for a few days, and flaking for up to a week. • HER EXPERIENCE

New York City dermatolo­gist Anne Chapas, M.D., treated Kulka's skin. After numbing the area with a lidocaine gel, Dr. Chapas ran the handheld laser device all over Kulka's face, targeting spots and lines. Kulka's skin was a bit red afterward, but not

WRINKLES SPOTS

bad enough to prevent her from attending her daughter's trumpet recital that night. Dark spots flaked off within a few days (building up colla­gen to minimize wrinkles takes at least four weeks). A month after Kulka's second treatment, many of her spots had returned, though she diligently used sunscreen and wore a hat. "She came to the office for her third treat­ment, and she was tan!" says Dr. Chapas. "The sun's a no-no. I decided to postpone her last treatment till after sum­mer was over." • TESTING TIME 16 weeks

PORES ROUGHNESS

A LOOK AT LINES The Visia Skin Analyzer marks wrinkles with green lines. Kulko's "after" shows improvement after 16 weeks.

50 GOOD 1-lOU SEKEEP ING January2013

l;flf1i!Uj "My crow's feet disappeared," says Kulko. "Frankly, I saw a dramatic difference after just the first treatment, but after three, the change is won­derful: My skin is smooth­er and more even in tone. It's softer and firmer to the touch. I am thrilled, in large part because Fraxel is based on the skin doing the repair work itself, with­out surgery or injections:'

• PRO'S TAKE "Kulko had the most dramatic improvements;' says Mary Clarke, senior product analyst at the Good Housekeeping Research Institute. "Her forehead lines are practically gone."

Sun Smarts The testers who tried all-over face treatments used an Aveeno daily moisturizer with SPF 30 ($15, drugstores) daily, and a few even upped coverage to a La Roche-Posay Anthelios SPF so sunscreen ($33, CVS). Some still got more spots, showing the power of incidental sun exposure during the summer (our testing period). Renova and Fraxel were the most successful at reversing spots and evening skin tone.

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Maria Morningstar

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THE PROBLEM "My .furrow. I'm a very happy person, but it makes me look angry," said MoTningstaT. 'T can be smiling.from eaT to eaT, and people will ask me if I'm upset. The only thing upsetting me is this .furmw!"

• THE FIX Botulinum toxin A, or Botox (about $400) is injected into muscles to block nerve impulses and impede con­tractions. Results typically last three to four months. • HER EXPERIENCE Dr. Chapas treated the "elevens" between Morn­ingstar's eyebrows with five injections. "They felt like small pinches;' says

Morningstar. Bruising is possible, but she had none. Botox takes a week to kick in, with a one- to two-week follow-up to check results. At Morn­ingstar's second appoint­ment, Dr. Chapas injected Morningstar's forehead twice to soften those lines as well-an extra youth­restoring boost. • TESTING TIME One week

LOOK GOOD*

MARIA:

Botox, yes. Frozen face,

nope!

l;!fjl!§lti "llike the sub­tlety," says Morningstar. "I even fooled my 15-year­old daughter's dermatolo­gist, who treats her acne. My daughter told the doc she suspected I'd had Botox. The doc studied me and said, 'Your mom has too much facial expression to have had Botox."'

THE PRO'S TAKE When Morningstar's face is at rest, the furrow is gone, but she can still frown if she wants to. "I think this is the ultimate Botox­not that frozen Hollywood look;' says Dr. Chapas.

January 2013 GOOD HOU SEKEEP ING 53

*LOOK GOOD

Natalie Neusch

THE PROBLEM '1 grew up in South Florida and was a sun baby," said Neusch. "The damage I did in my youth is now making its gmnd appeamnce, especially in the crow'sfeet around my eyes."

• THE FIX A prescrip­tion retinoid- Renova .02% (by prescription, up to $300; generic, in varying concentrations, costs less than $100). It's the gold standard of topical wrinkle fighters, a vitamin A derivative proven to build collagen. It reduces spots, too. Daily sun protection is required ; retinoids increase skin's sun sensitivity. • HER EXPERIENCE

It's customary to begin by using this potentially irritating treatment every other night, which acclimates the skin to it. Neusch used the lotion nightly and had no red­ness or flaking. Applying a moisturizer on top of

WRINKLES SPOTS

the retinoid helped with the dryness she felt now and then. She used sun­screen every morning. • TESTING TIME 12 weeks

i;j@IIUj "My crow's feet look less notice­able," says Neusch. "I hadn't realized how many sun spots I had until they started fading, and then the change was obvious. I got a number of compliments out of the blue, including one from my mom-she said my skin looked great and asked what I was using!"

• PRO'S TAKE The wrinkles around Neusch's eyes, which the Visia marked with green lines below, have softened.

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54 G 0 0 D 1-l 0 USE KEEPING J anuary 2013

Dolores Hennessy

THE PROBLEM '1 have deep-set lines around my mouth that make my cheeks look like they are sagging/' said Hennessy. ''My hus­band calls them laugh lines from 23 years of blissful marriage-sweet, but not so funny!"

• THE FIX Inject able fillers made from hyal­uronic acid. They fill out fine lines and add back volume to areas like lips. Results last six to nine months, depending on the filler (typically $500 to $700 per syringe). • HER EXPERIENCE

Cheek sagging does con­tribute to those nose-to­mouth creases, explains New York City derma­tologist Fredric

Hennessy's upper cheeks with Restylane-L. "I call this the trifecta: It lifts the lower eyelid, boosts the jawline, and flattens the nasolabial fold:' Since Hennessy's left one was deeper, Dr. Brandt injected it directly with Belotero, a softer filler. Hennessy was sore for about 36 hours. • TESTING TIME

One visit; immediate.

l;)ilfiiiUj "I thought the lines around my mouth would be entirely gone;' says Hennessy. "The treatment's not a magic wand."

• PRO'S TAKE "The area is plumped up;' says Clarke. "Her eyes also look significantly young-er; the fine lines under-neath are smoother."

Brandt, M.D., who injected

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Sherry Terrell

THE PROBLEM 'T'd like to work on my craw's feet," said Terrell, who began the test with significant wrinkling-she ranked in the bottom 20%joT heT age group.

WRINKLES SPOTS PORES ROUGHNESS

• THE FIX SkinMedica medicinal;' says Terrell. 1NS Essential Serum "It didn't bother me, but ($260 , skinmedica.com my husband didn't like it. for physicians' offices After 12 weeks, my skin and spas). It contains looks better and more growth factors, proteins youthful, and my craw's taken from cell cultures feet have improved. My that induce collagen sister-in-law, who knew I production. The was trying a new prod-formula also relies on uct, observed that my peptides and protective skin was smoother." antioxidants to target skin renewal. • PRO'S TAKE "The lines • HER EXPERIENCE around her eyes are less Terrell applied the prominent;' says Clarke. treatment twice a day, The Visia shows this with morning and evening. In fewer- and shorter-the A.M., she followed up green lines (representing with an SPF 30 sun- wrinkles) in the "after" screen. In the P.M., she image. In addition, ''her applied a plain moistur- skin's texture has become izer over the serum. more even. Her spots and • TESTING TIME 12 weeks visible pores worsened,

though, the spots likely l;jif"JIIUi "The smell from summertime sun;' of the serum is a bit Clarke adds.

LOOK GOOD*

Karen Gershenhorn

THE PROBLEM 'Tn ordeT of importance: lip lines, cmw s feet and the fine lines under my eyes, the lines between my eyes, and the lines acmss my forehead," said Gershenhorn.

• THE FIX A retinol se­rum: Peter Thomas Roth Retinol Fusion PM ($65, Sephora). Unlike most of its competitors, this one specifies the concentra­tion of its main anti-ager, retinol (1.5%). It's milder than the Rx, but it, too, revs up collagen produc­tion, reduces spots-and makes skin more sensi­tive to the sun. • HER EXPERIENCE In the evening, Gershen­horn applied a few drops all over her face, followed by a moisturizer. In the morning, she put on a moisturizer with SPF 30. • TESTING TIME 12 weeks

l;jif111Ui "I tend to get redness, so I was a bit wary of using retinol for this length of time, but I didn't have any prob­lems;' says Gershenhorn. "The serum felt comfort­able, not too oily, and my skin absorbed it easily. My skin looks brighter and fresher-dare

WRINKLES SPOTS

I say younger? A new acquaintance said, 'No, you are not 54!'" More than one friend told me I looked well-rested, and the verdict from my group of girlfriends was that I certainly did not need the chemical peel they all planned on getting."

• PRO'S TAKE "Ger­shenhorn really had a reduction in the fine lines under her eyes; the area looks smoother. And her forehead lines are fainter;' says Clarke. GH

PORES ROUGHNESS

January 2013 GOOD HOU SEKEEPING 57