Written by Sandra C.
(An estatic Fièra customer)
They say… the face you had in your 20s… genetics gave you. But the face you have in your 40s… you give to yourself.
As I sat there holding that photo, those words felt heavier than they ever did before.
I was looking at an old family portrait from my son’s graduation. I wanted to see how much he’d grown but all I could notice was how much I did!
Now it’s like my upper lip disappeared, and there’s a noticeable flatness to my lower lip. My lips are always dry, pale with a sickly color that has coworkers asking if I’m tired when I go to work with no makeup. They’re always dry and when I try to add lipstick for some colour, the pigment seeps into the cracks and lines making it way worse.
It’s upsetting because I’ve always loved my smile and in some ways I still do. It’s the mosaic of all my life’s joyful experiences reflected on my face.
Next Thursday I’ll have another framed graduation photo with my son. This time, he’s a college grad. I feel guilty that these full circle milestones come with a newfound grief. He’s growing up, I’m getting wiser and my lips are a bigger giveaway than his age.
I decided to look into getting lip filler after seeing it all over YouTube. So I booked a consultation with a med-spa to try and understand why my lips were shrinking and if there was anything I can do about it. I learned almost anything I could and became a bit of a lip connoisseur in the process.
The Science of Aging Lips
Here’s everything I found out about why my mouth’s been looking a bit wise lately:
Smaller: Our lips plumpness and definition largely depend on the amount of collagen and elastin we produce. We lose about 1% of collagen per year starting in our late 20s with starker drops in our 40s. As this happens, our lips tend to shrivel and shrink and we develop vertical lines along their borders.
Hyaluronic acid which gives our lips their hydrated, plump look, is another thing we produce less of as we age. Combined, the loss of collagen, elastin, and hyaluronic acid is like a cushion losing its stuffing. As a result, our lips deflate, becoming thinner and looser.
Paler: Blood flow circulating towards our lips helps keep them pigmented. This means that as we age and this blood flow reduces, so does the rosy colour of our lips. And because our lips already have thinner skin than the skin on the rest of our body, anything happening beneath that skin shows up more clearly. Thinner skin makes for more transparency
Drier: On top of losing hyaluronic acid, our lips, like our eyes, are mucous membranes, which means they struggle to retain moisture. In the winter, things only get worse especially with blasting heaters. As a result, our lips become flakey. Dry lips lead us to instinctively lick them. This quick fix lasts all of ten seconds. So we keep licking...and licking and as it turns out this progressively damages our lips over the years since saliva is a drying agent.
Cracks and Texture: We use our mouth every single day. They are in constant motion with eating, speaking, kissing (hopefully) and even using a straw. Over time, this wrinkles them. Add this to the fact that like the rest of our face, our lips are not immune to the damage of UV rays.
Welcome to the World of Lip Fillers
Since science tells us that aging lips are a natural explainable process, my next question was where to go from there?
This brought me to the world of fillers. In an era of “experts” and injectors trying to sell you an agenda, I put together some grounded factually accurate info on everything you need to know about it:
What is it & how does it work? Lip filler is a gel-like formula of hyaluronic acid that gets injected. The injection uses a needle or cannula in targeted areas of the lips to add definition and volume. Results appear quickly, with minimal downtime (usually just swelling and bruising for the first few days).
How much filler do I get? Knowing how much filler to get is just as much a craft as it is science. Filler is measured by syringe, typically ranging from 0.5 mL to 2 mL, depending on your lips' original size and desired outcome. Injectors will recommend starting off with 1mL. Remember your lips have a very defined anatomy, it’s important to respect its unique shape. Choose your injector wisely!
How long does it last? It’s common to see the effects of lip filler between 6-12 months. However touch-ups are recommended once or twice per year. But many may see the effects longer - keep reading to find out why.
How much does it cost? Medspas typically charge per syringe of filler which is about 1mL and it ranges between $600-$1200. Many places charge for a full syringe even if you use only half, as the remainder can't be reused.
New Research That Changed My Mind
There’s an Australian Radiologist who decided to conduct a study that nobody in the cosmetic industry has ever done before. He took 14 patients who had filler between a range of 2-12 years ago and did an MRI on them - the results lit up like a Christmas tree. The filler showed up on the scans years later, except it was moved around to other areas. Filler doesn’t always dissolve, it migrates…
This introduces a plethora of downsides worth considering:
It's not for everyone: People with really thin lips have a higher risk of getting filler migration asymmetry and lumpiness. Apparently, it’s because thinner lips have less tissue volume and structural support. So, they can’t resist the movement well, making it easier for the filler to go over our vermillion border (lip line).
You can get “filler stache”: You know what I’m referring to, the girls who look like they’ve had their lips stuck in a pool drain. This can happen when the filler migrates away from the vermillion border causing what’s known as a “filler staches". Which makes it look like you’ve had work done.
Loss of color: Colour science teaches us that adding volume to a pigment will dilute it. That’s why filled lips tend to lose some colour. Lip filler stretches out the skin, making your natural colour fade and look lighter. P.S. If lip filler is injected too shallow, it can leave visible white-blue patches and cause the product to clump under the skin.
Lip-filler blindness: Your brain automatically normalises what it’s used to seeing. So, when your brain gets used to the altered appearance of lip filler, this is called “filler blindness”. It’s a slippery slope of upkeep and maintenance, once you start it's hard to stop.
Stuck Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Choosing between filler or my progressively thinning lips felt like I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. I needed to remind myself that filler is just one option, when we’re desperate we try and make it the solution.
I wanted something that can plump my lips that didn’t involve needles and numbing creams. That’s when I was introduced to the world of plumpers.
How to Plump Your Lips Without the Cost, Risk or Commitment
Lip plumpers generally come in the form of a gloss made to temporarily give your lips a fuller appearance. They have ingredients that stimulate blood flow which causes tingling leading to a plumper look.
So, I went to the local makeup shop at the mall to scope out their plumpers. They had a display with about 4 or 5 options from various brands. I ended up picking the one that the beauty advisor suggested for me.
After the first application, it looked and felt like I ate a bag of flaming hot CHEETOS®
My lips were burning, it was a sticky mess that my hair would get caught in, and on top of that they would crust off and bleed a little.
The second attempt was the same, my lips looked even drier. I knew they relied too much on spicy ingredients to inflame and swell the lips and thought nothing about hydration. (or something like this - it sounds like these would only NOT work for those with sensitive skin, but that's not necessarily the case - they burn on everyone. )
There’s an app to check the overall health of products which I use to scan anything I consume. So I grabbed the gloss and scanned the barcode on it, eager to understand how it’d be rated.
Between a spectrum of poor being the lowest to excellent being the highest the ingredients the results unsurprisingly came back poor…
From reading the analysis and breakdown I came to understand that this was mainly because almost no lip plumper on the market had any real benefitting ingredients. They all prioritize plumping lips through irritating over actually nourishing them.
I dove into the option of lip plumpers because I wanted to find something that could actually help heal the causes of aging while also plumping my lips.
After scanning a few more lip plumpers, I realized most only worsened the signs of aging with their irritating and dry ingredients.
That's when my favourite beauty brand launched a new lip plumper... and I was lucky enough to be one of the first to try it. 
Finally, a Solution Without a Catch
It was a product that’s very name said it all. Fulluptuous™ Lip Plumper + Hydrator.
It’s made by Fièra, one of the only cosmetic brands that formulates products for women over 40, where mature skin isn't just an afterthought. Their makeup products are designed with a "skincare-first" approach, rooted in science for actual aging concerns.
The first swipe of Fulluptuous™ glided over my lips like butter and had the most smooth luscious feel. It wasn't sticky or irritating, but gave an enjoyable, subtle tingling sensation that made my lips genuinely feel rejuvenated.
Within minutes, it added noticeable volume to my lips, for the sexy pout I’ve been longing for. My lines were magically covered and it had this smoothing effect.
The most impressive thing about this product was the natural flush of pigment it gives my skin, I didn’t have to layer a lipstick beneath it.
I’ve gotten so many compliments that my lips look amazing lately and it’s the only thing I’ve changed. One of my friends accused me of getting work done! So overall, I feel like it's a great bang for your buck.
I even double-checked the ingredients. Because I wanted to make sure I wasn’t putting anything harmful on my lips. Turns out… Fulluptuous™ is made with ingredients that both nourish and plump the lips. Which makes me feel good knowing my lips are getting healthier over time.
Here’s some information that I found during my research that you might find fascinating (I sure did!):
Volumizing technology expands moisture up to 16x its size.
Konjac plant root extract:
✅ Smoothes and fills in lines
✅ Plump lips
✅ Hydrates all day without feeling sticky
Boost blood flow and stimulate lips naturally
Ginger root oil, cayenne pepper extract and methyl nicotinate provide:
✅ Poutier lips
✅ Refreshing warmth that won't irritate
✅ Natural pink hue to your lips for effortless look
✅ Defines pout for a youthful look
Enhance natural color
pH-Skin Syncing Tint Technology
✅ Creates a personalised rosy tone by reacting to your pH
✅ Enhances your lips without need for layered pigment
✅ Compliments your natural skin tone
✅ Perfect for no makeup look
Nourish, protect & moisturize
Raspberry, jojoba, omega 3, 6, & 9 oils & vitamin E
✅ Reduce signs of aging with anti-inflammatory benefits of antioxidants
✅ Deep lip quenching hydration for smoother lips
✅ Shields lips from environmental stressors with a protective barrier
✅ Nourishes your lips into marshmallowy softness
Sounds impressive right? A solution that doesn’t only fill your lips but has ingredients that fight back against the root causes of aging.
If you’re a woman who's started noticing signs of aging in her lips, Fièra’s Fulluptuous™ Plumper + Hydrator is really worth a shot.
Final Thoughts
It’s hard to find balanced options in a culture that only knows extremes. We're caught between a society obsessed with staying young but is repulsed by desperation. A society that tells us that age is just a number but treats us differently.
I wanna remind you that life after 40 doesn’t have to feel like a battle against the laws of gravity.
There are answers that bring both balance and peace.
As you look in the mirror and find a slightly greyer reflection staring back, remember this is a version of you that you’ve worked so hard to become.
“Anti-aging” teaches us to fight against age, but brands like Fièra are made to help us work with it. Embrace the changes by finding products that enhance and celebrate your natural features rather than try to change them!