The fox-eye trend is mired in controversy. The internet is abounding with reels and snippets of influencers lifting and sculpting their eyes and eyebrows with brushes and eyeshadows to endow their faces with an almond-shaped fox-eye. Supermodels Bella Hadid and Kendall Jenner have inspired an affinity for the aesthetic — it seems. Some are shaving off the tail-end of the brows, and redrawing them to play into the look; others are slicking all of their hair back into a tightly-held ‘do to exaggerate the slant of the eye, and many are drawing their flicks more slanted and straight to nail it.
But this trend has sparked outrage amongst Asians — with many from the community critiquing the trend for how racist it is, and how it ‘colonises’ their eyes. Assertions have been made about the fox-eye appropriating their features (which have been discriminated against historically) — exoticising and eroticising them, and deciding that it’s cool now. Many Asians have attested to the prejudice and hate they were subjected to as children — but, suddenly, it’s all cool. Though the trend wasn’t popularised with the idea of discriminating against any cultural or ethnic group, in particular, it sure is ignorant and inappropriate.
Bottom-line is that the fox eye is regarded as sultry — and that’s why it’s coveted. Now — many are turning to fillers and surgery to maintain the look; but is it even safe to subscribe to the trend via surgery? Because reports of influencers experiencing an absolute distortion and disfiguration of the face post-surgery have surfaced.
I’ve roped in two surgeons, Dr Shilpi Bhadani, Plastic & Aesthetic Surgeon, Founder, SB Aesthetics, Gurugram and Dr Anup Dhir, Senior Consultant, Apollo Hospital and Ex-President, Indian Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons, to talk to me more about fillers and fox-eye surgery, and what it implies.
This Trend Ain’t It. Here’s Why
What is the fox-eye aesthetic?
Both experts explain to me that the fox-eye alters the shape of your eyes and eyebrows — endowing them with a more upturned/slanted look akin to the eyes of a fox — rather than alluding to the appearance of a cat-eye. It has become one of the more requested procedures courtesy of A-list celebrities like Kendall Jenner, Megan Fox, and Bella Hadid sporting the aesthetic. This aesthetic is achievable via makeup too, but many are committing to surgery to alter their look for the long term.
What does the procedure involve, and why is it accused of being risky?
There’s more than one way to achieve the look, and Dr Shilpi runs us through all of them, “The results can either be achieved via minimally-invasive procedures or surgery. The aim is to lift the outer corner of the eyes and eyebrows. In the case of minimally-invasive or ‘non-invasive’ procedures, injections of fillers are employed to lift the eyes and brows — or barbed threads (thread-lift) are used to provide a ‘pull-and-a-lift’ to the eye by dragging your skin upwards. The result is temporary in these procedures.”
“Any surgery which provides such a look is called a blepharoplasty with canthoplasty. There may be an associated drooping of the brows laterally which may require assessment and treatment separately in the form of a brow-lift,” she says. Dr Anup elaborates, “A canthoplasty, also known as a cat-eye, fox-eye, or almond-eye procedure, lifts and repositions the corner of the eye. It can correct drooping of the lower eyelids, or reshape eyes that are more round than almond-shaped.”
How long does the fox-eye lift last? According to Dr Anup, “The brow thread-lift lasts for about 6 months. Unlike thread-lifts elsewhere on the face, which often last up to 18 months, the results from a fox-eye lift tend to last you around 6-9 months.”
Are any of these procedures risky at all?
“The procedure has gained ill-repute as the aesthetics of eyes are very specific — neither is everybody a candidate for the procedure, nor is every doctor skilled enough to achieve results when the changes in millimeters can make a major impact. There are several accounts of people trying to find cheap solutions, and regretting it just to be a part of the trend without doing adequate research, or consulting with trained surgeons,” says Dr. Shilpi.
She talks about how each procedure implies certain side effects and risks, “People fail to understand that the trends are temporary. Apart from asymmetry, there are other risks included like lumps, hypersensitivity, a bluish discolouration of the eyelid skin, and blindness in case of fillers in the hands of an inexperienced injector. Thread-lifts can, on the other hand, leave ugly telltale signs of the procedure like visible threads under the skin, puckering of the skin, or asymmetry. In surgical procedures, in hands of a novice, the proportions of the eyelids, the position of the corners, and the overall safety of the eye may be at stake.”
Helpful at all?
Featured Image: Instagram
