Why I Love My New Face Taping Habit

and you might too.

A few months ago I was scrolling on Instagram and found a positively elvin-looking 58-year-old who was sticking what looked like band-aids all over her face.

I was intrigued. She said taping her face regularly at night had reduced her forehead wrinkles so that she looked EVEN BETTER at 58 than she did at 35. She then showed a sallow-faced photo of herself (which she claimed was taken 20 years ago) next to her current glowing face. She looked awesome but also Instagram filters so maybe not?

To be clear, I’m not afraid of ageing. I have laugh lines around my eyes that I call my joy receipts. I have no desire to have a snappy, tight emotionless face as I get older. I’d rather people say I made them laugh than have them say ‘she’s ageing well’, how boring.

I am, however, mildly concerned about my Angry 11s. The two lines in between my eyes make me look like I will cut you if you talk to me. They’re very annoying and give me a permanent resting serial killer face. I cannot afford Botox nor do I want to sacrifice the movement of my eyebrows - I enjoy appearing shocked when I’m shocked - so I jumped on Amazon and bought the approved Japanese Face Tape.

Here’s why I love it.

1. It’s temporary - it’s a quick fix, nothing permanent. I gently peel it off in the morning and I’m good to go.

2. There are no needles - I’m not against Botox but it’s not for me right now. Some low-commitment tape is what I’m emotionally available for.

3. It’s cheap - I’ve never been one to drop a lot (or any) money on beauty treatments so this tape is speaking my language. Most of my appearance budget goes to my hair. It’s a curly gal thing.

I do my full skincare routine early in the evening, tuck my hair into my silk bonnet (I’ll do an updated hair care blog post soon! You curly gals have been on me about it) then tape my 11’s and put a strip of tape across my forehead. Here’s a terrible photo of how I do it. Note - I did some micro-needling so that’s why my skin is red in some spots.

This is going to sound bananas but I sleep better. The tape stops me from furrowing my brow which is my favourite pastime. Without the physical action of furrowing, I’m less stressed before bed so I sleep better.

In the morning my forehead is smooth and relaxed.

And yeah I have to do it every night but who cares? It takes 30 seconds and makes me dead set fresh for the day.

I’ve read a few articles by dermatologists who are like yeah it works but not for long and I’m cool with that.

I just realised I’ve been doing this for a few months and hadn’t even had the decency to share.

Give it a go if you’re interested and see if it does anything for you. Please only use the Japanese facial tape though. Other tapes are too harsh and might damage your skin or not have enough stretch or might have too much stretch.

Let me know if you want more info - happy to do a deep dive!

Reading 

The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out The Window and Disappeared. It’s lovely, quite charming. Also sad and a bit hectic. I read it for one of my book clubs and I reckon it’s going to be a real conversation starter.

Watching 

Netflix doco Lover, Stalker, Killer. I picked the ending in the first 5 mins, I’m not kidding. So please watch it (it’s unhinged) and then come back and congratulate me on my finely tuned instincts.

Wearing 

A very old jumpsuit from Birdsnest that I’ve probably had for close to 8 years. It’s stretch and wrap and just keeps on keeping on. Love it.  

Listening

Why Do You Hate Me? It’s kind of about cancel culture but it has very specific stories like a young woman who thought she was Madeline McCann and went public with this info and another guy who survived the Las Vegas massacre but then started believing conspiracy theories about it. Interesting stuff.

Eating 

Not my favourite lunch of a Hart & Soul bowl and 2 fried eggs. It was the last thing I ate before I got sick last week and I’m devastated. I don't know when I’ll be able to eat them again but it’s not this week.

Doing 

Ducking away for the weekend for a few little celebrations. Looking forward to it!

What's New

I wrote about Valentine’s Day nails and I had a few thoughts on nail privilege. I wish I could disengage from the culture of having presentable hands but it’s kind of my job for my hands to not look like trash. It’s a real conundrum. What are your thoughts?

Very Excellent Links

20 books by black authors you have to read.

Veronika Maine has this new fabric called ‘memory taffeta’ and I am here for it. I’m so sick of my clothes not holding their shape and looking sloppy at the end of the day. Is this the answer to my prayers? I also love this skirt. I’d wear it with a clog. Naturally.

Adore this. Wear it with an obnoxiously large sunhat in Greece AND with platform boots and a giant knit cardigan in winter.

No matter how many magazines fold I will still love the entire industry.

I have been wanting a high-quality faux fur jacket FURever and I reckon this is the one. Just something cute to pop on when you’re going out for dinner or to the theatre. I just want something for winter that’s not a puffer.

How to stop assuming the worst. It was like it was written directly for me.

This Boden dress would be so versatile for Autumn/Winter. Comes in heaps of colours but this emerald is smoking.

I saw a house made from bottles in Nevada years ago and I’ve been obsessed with them ever since.

Very Excellent Tip of The Week

I read a statistic this week that said you can improve your output by 15% if you sit next to a high performer. Many studies prove the opposite is true too. If you sit next to an under-performer, your output will drop by 15%.

I don’t want to start pushing hustle culture on you but I do believe if you can get the most amount of work done, in the shortest amount of time, everyone wins.

And you may adore your underperforming work bestie, in which case it’s best to hang with them at lunch or after work. Buddy up with the high flyers during work hours. It sounds like it will be worth it.

Oh, and I asked you to tap the heart button on this email and 63 of you did it.

I’m so chuffed, thank you. Can we beat it this week? Tap that heart and find out!

I hope you’ve had a rad week.

Carly

x

P.S Don’t forget to tap the heart - everything is an algorithm game and the more people who tap that heart, the more Substack will feature my work.

P.P.S This post contains affiliate links but I only recommend things I really love. If you buy something through one of these links I may get a lil’ commission. Thanks for your support.