My consultation journey for DES + primary rhinoplasty (Wannabe, Cocoline, Dr Jin, etc)

[strawberrytea]

hi everyone, 

 

i thought i’d talk about my consultation journey to help out others thinking about surgery as I found all these threads massively helpful! My goal is to get my surgeries done in Korea in early 2021 as travel doesn’t seem possible this year. Though it’s early to get consultations, I have a long list and lots of time, so I thought — might as well! it’s going to be LONG, sorry. I plan on creating a separate thread once I finally get my surgery done, so this will be a consultation thread only. I will continue to add as I get more consultations and sort out my thoughts and thought it would be interesting and helpful for anyone interested in these clinics.

** update as of 12/28/2020: You'll notice my mind going back and forth a lot, LOL. Better safe than sorry when it comes to something as big as surgery, right? I've edited it as much as I could to improve clarity as well as any glaring grammatical errors. **

BACKGROUND INFO

• Early 20s, East Asian female
• interested in primary DES + primary Rhino
  • highly likely getting: forehead fat graft, masseter botox as well as partial buccal fat removal (as of 12/28/20)
  • DES: incision method + ptosis correction (have monolids with lots of fat on eyelids)
  • Rhino: higher nose bridge, slimmer + less bulbous alars and tip
    • most likely silicone for bridge and septal cartilage for tip

 

My eyes are really weak, one eyebrow is significantly higher than the other because I keep raising them up because of the lack of power my eyes have. It also emphasizes the uneven sizes between my eyes, as the one with more strength is also the one with less fat on my eyelid, making the difference in size really obvious, especially when I smile. This causes a lot of strain on my eyebrows and my forehead, and I find myself constantly forcing myself to relax my eyes because it causes me to get minor headaches. 

 

I was very hesitant on getting DES as I have an acquaintance who did their eyes here in America and ended up with the dreaded sausage eyes. As I have a lot of fat on my eyelids, I knew for sure I would have to go with the incision method, which has a higher rate of getting sausage eyes. However, the problems I mentioned above just led to me to deciding on getting DES. 

 

I will note that I am relatively proficient in Korean. However, I did tell them I was a foreigner (which they probably would’ve known anyways as I’m sure I made some minor grammatical mistakes), so I’m not too sure how much sway I had. 

 

Here are the clinics I consulted/plan on consulting:

• Wannabe
• Dr. Jin Premium Nose Clinic
• Cocoline
• Premier
• Item 
• 1mm
• Luho (Previously known as Yonsei First)
• Marble
• Illumi

 

WANNABE - Kakao Consult (in English)

Like everyone says, Wannabe was very prompt in their replies to me and had perfect English. They recommended me to get the incision method and ptosis correction with an in out line, as I mentioned I wanted a very natural line. Thanks to them, I realized how badly I needed the ptosis correction. They also said I should get short nose correction, hump removal (I didn’t even know I had a hump?! I looked at the photo again, and it’s VERY VERY slight), alarplasty and an increased nose bridge. They recommended silicone, but said using cartilage was possible, but that they would need to see me in person. Initially, I had no intentions of going for silicone, as I noticed they tended to require a revisional rhino after, so hearing that made me reassured.

 

They quoted me around 6 mil won for both rhino and my eyes. However, someone in the Kakao group I’m in noted that those were the exact quotes they had given them, so I assume they just have a baseline price and then adjust it when you actually have a face to face consultation. 

 

DR. JIN - Email Consult (in English)

Dr. Jin was on my list for a while; he has bunch of credentials and I liked how he personally replied to me. He was also speedy in his reply and suggested using septal and rib cartilage for a higher nose bridge, mild alarplasty, and refining my tip with possible fat removal and cartilage reduction. I asked how high my nose bridge could be without being too unnatural, and he said that making it too high wouldn’t be harmonious with my face but that he can make it relatively high with rib. He quoted me 10k USD (yes, USD) which was mind boggling. I also began to read some negative reviews and that made me cross him off the list.

 

COCOLINE - Facebook Consult (ENG)

They were hard to reach. They read my FB messages relatively fast (I couldn’t find their Kakao) but replied HOURS later, but it could be due to the fact that I messaged them in English. They quoted me 5 mil won for my nose, and straight up said I would need to use silicone for my nose only. They recommended surgery for my nose tip and alarplasty as well as my nose bridge. So far, all clinics said the same thing, except Wannabe added both the short nose correction + hump removal. I am hesitant and will probably still visit them after for a face to face consultation as they are famous in Korea for their noses. I was very surprised that they suggested silicone as they are known for their autologous cartilage rhinos, but my nose is VERY flat lol. 

 

NAMU PS - Kakao

Straight up ignored me LMAO. They didn’t read my messages, and honestly I’m not too miffed because I only reached out since other people in the Kakao reached out. 

 

PREMIER - Kakao (KRN)

Another clinic I saw on the app; it seems to be pretty famous for eyes. They are having a summer event where the incision method is only around 890 thousand won (!?!!) which made me realize just how much more they charge for foreigners. They were very speedy in their replies, but I noticed after messaging them that they have an English website and offer consultations through Whatsapp (which I don’t have). I was curious how they would quote me after having a conversation with them in Korean and then telling them I was a foreigner. I asked if it would be possible to get a natural in out line (I mentioned Red Velvet’s Irene LMAO), as when I use double eyelid tape, the line gets very thick and makes me look weird. I asked if the line I get with double eyelid tape is the only line possible with my eyes, or if the line I want is possible. I also asked if I could participate in their events/promotions even though I was a foreigner. They basically said it’s hard for them to answer my questions completely accurately through just photos, and asked if I could come in for an in person consultation. They said I could participate in their promotional events as I hold dual citizenship in Korea (so I guess that’s the criteria), and without any events, typical base price for the incision method would be close to 1 million won but that the price would depend on what the doctor ultimately says as well as the level of difficulty of the surgery. They were very kind and polite and even told me to contact them again when I arrive in Korea, which made them place way higher on my list!

 

ITEM - Kakao (KRN/ENG) 

I'll be honest, I got quite lazy and just copy pasted what I Kakao-ed Premier in Korean but I stated that I'm slightly more comfortable in English, so we had a mostly English conversation but there was some Korean, as an FYI. They said my eyes were big! (A lie. But it made me feel good LMAO) They were very prompt and kind in their replies to me. They recommended the incisional method and said it was too hard to tell right now if I needed ptosis correction. For nose, they said if I wanted a higher nose bridge, I would need to use silicone (T___T) and would reduce my bone base (Osteotomy) as I have a wide base (I have to look up what this means.. LOL). They also said they would use my septum cartilage to make my columella and tip, but stated that if I didn't have enough cartilage, I would need to use donor. They also were concerned about reducing my alars too much, for breathing functions. They said that I wouldn't be able to participate in promotional events unless I could speak Korean, so I guess I'll have to find out if I do a face to face. I'm very hesitant because so far it seems as though silicone is inevitable, and while I did like how specific they were in telling me what specific procedures they suggested, it seems as though all the rhinoplasty inquiries I have asked about have given me different suggestions -- generally a higher nose bridge and a slimmer tip are the consensus, but there are little different things all clinics so far have suggested. 

 

They quoted me 1.85 million won for incisional DES (no ptosis or anything), and rhinoplasty overall would cost 4.6 million won.

 

So far,  I am primarily interested in Premier and Wannabe. I think I'll have to make a face to face consultation with Cocoline before I finalize my thoughts. I also think I might be able to get some leverage with a F2F, since I was able to communicate fine with Premier in all Korean. I am still continuing to decide whether I want to do silicone or rib as they both have their pros and cons, and I might ask if I could do just tip plasty + alar instead. I am not interested in Item as I do not like how they suggested that I may need a donor, when I'm already very hesitant against silicone. 

Edited December 29, 2020 by strawberrytea
more details

[strawberrytea]

Consultations on this post -- all consultations were conducted in Korean, and I asked the same questions I asked Premier.

• 1MM (eyes)
• Luho (Eyes)
• Marble (Eyes + Nose)
• Illumi (Eyes + Nose)

 

1MM 

I saw this on the app Gangnam Unni, and they had very very good results. I was hesitant because the results just seemed too good to be true, but I posted on the community board on the app and people replied that it seemed pretty legit. I posted on their website’s consultation board. I copy pasted what I texted Premier HAHAA as I got lazy.. haha. They replied saying that I could probably get a more detailed consultation if I chose to Kakao them instead, so I did that. Same thing, incision method with ptosis correction. While talking to them, I noticed that they had a monolid ptosis correction, and I was curious and asked them what that was. Basically, you would essentially preserve a general monolid as they would give a slight inner line (속쌍) to give a generally more refreshing? eye look. I’m scared of sausage eyes, so this was appealing to me. They warned me that I would probably be unable to get the in out line that I said I wanted if I chose to do this method. Whether I do that or incision, it would cost total 2.42 million won. They said it would be hard for me to participate in their promotional events as I would need to have visits to their clinic afterwards and also leave a review. 

 

LUHO 

I had to DIG around to find their Kakao, and after Premier’s response in saying no to letting me partake in their promos, I just proceeded to have the conversation in Korean, though on gangnam unni it says that they can do English consultations. I only asked for eyes — they said it’d be hard to tell if the line will or won’t come out super dark, but if I don’t want a high crease (which I don’t want), then it’ll most likely come out very natural. They suggested ptosis correction and incision method, and said foreigners CAN partake in their promotions! So I recommend doing your research and bringing it up when you do consultations. They quoted me 2 million won for ptosis correction and incision method. I am really interested in going here as they have a really high rating on GU, and seem to do a lot of work on puffy monolids with incision method and with good results!

 

MARBLE

EXPENSIVE! LOL. 

I kakaoed their Korean one, not their global. They suggested: incisional method + ptosis, increasing my nose bridge with silicone and tipplasty with ear and septal cartilage, osteotomy, round nose reduction (bulbous?) and alar reduction. They said silicone was necessary if I wanted a higher bridge as they only use rib for nose tips. The price breakdown is as follows: DES (incision + ptosis): 2.75 million won, nose bridge + tipplasty: 2.75 million won, ear cartilage: 550 thousand won, septal cartilage: 880 thousand won, round nose reduction: 550 thousand won and alarplasty: 880 thousand won. This totals to 8.36 million won. 

 

ILLUMI

They didn’t answer my questions as thoroughly as the other clinics, but to be fair, a lot of clinics said my questions (such as if the line will come out thick) are hard to accurately answer only through Kakao. They recommended incision + ptosis and epicanthoplasty, and they are the only clinic so far to recommend epi to me. I have to look more into it, but so far I am mildly intrigued. As for my nose, they just recommended that I use silicone and didn’t go into specific details about other procedures they recommend. For overall price, they said it would be upwards of 1 million won for my eyes (I’m not too sure if this price includes epi) and upwards of 3 million won for my nose. Foreigners cannot participate in promotional events. They said the lower prices are due to the fact that they are all my first surgeries.

 

My thoughts so far:

I think my shortlist at the moment is:

Nose

Wannabe, Cocoline, and I plan on possibly consulting Premier again for noses. 

While I read one bad review of Dr. Jin, I'm still on the fence of completely striking him out. However, it seems more likely that I will go to Wannabe even though their prices are on the higher end for quotes so far, they seem to have natural results that I personally prefer.

 

Eyes

I'll have to go to 1mm in person before I fully decide, but so far I've become hesitant since they mentioned promotional events require a review. So far, Luho and Wannabe stands out the most to me. I think I’m going to strike out Premier for eyes, they seem to mostly do natural adhesion, and it looks great! But with my eyelids, natural adhesion isn’t recommended and I can’t seem to find lots of reviews with incision and from people with similar eyes.

[ChubbyBun]

wow, your consultations and posts have been SO thorough, thanks for sharing! 

[strawberrytea]

Thanks @ChubbyBun! Your review and the google site you put up was massively helpful. Would it be possible to Kakao you for questions?

[ChubbyBun]

13 hours ago, strawberrytea said:

Thanks @ChubbyBun! Your review and the google site you put up was massively helpful. Would it be possible to Kakao you for questions?

yeah definitely, I only check KKT every few days so my response might be delayed, but I'll do my best to get back to any questions

https://open.kakao.com/o/sCHi1WSb

[strawberrytea]

Consultations on this list:

• DA Plastic Surgery (Eyes + Nose)

++) Updates from Luho, Marble

DA PS (DREAM AESTHETICS) (Eng)

I will start off by saying they took a long time to get back to me (2 days), and I think this could be because I contacted them when it was the weekend. However, they were VERY thorough. They drew on my photo and gave me two options with the drawings of roughly how high I could augment my nose: either super high or pretty natural. It would be an open rhinoplasty with silicone for the nose bridge and they gave me options: rib/ear+septal for the tip, with rib resulting in a very high nose and ear being in between the natural + high option. However,  I had to ask them what they thought about my eyes for them to answer again, and they recommended ptosis + lateral canthoplasty + incision method. They said if I weren’t doing my nose, they would’ve also recommended epicanthoplasty, but said that the higher nose bridge would help with my eyes being more further apart for my face. I also asked in the chances that I plan on doing my nose and eyes separately, what surgery I should do first (ie different clinics), and they recommended me to do my nose first, wait 2 weeks, then do my eyes. They said they’ll have to do an in person consultation to see if osteotomy is needed. For nose, they suggested: nose bridge + tip augmentation, alar reduction, nose extension and said it would be around 2-3 million won, and if I use rib, it would be 5-6 million won. Eyes would be around 2 million won. However, other clinics as well as people that I've asked all suggested doing my eyes first. I think they told me I should do my nose first because I implied that I may be considering doing my eyes elsewhere. This made me take them off.

 

LUHO UPDATE 

Guys, I really like this place LOL. Of course, ultimately it will lead to an in person consultation for me to finalize my decision, but I feel pretty confident that I will go here for my eyes. They told me to do my eyes first, wait 3 weeks, then to do my nose. They also said laser deswelling treatment, etc, are free and included. 

 

MARBLE UPDATE

Their global Kakao responded later than the Korean one, but I felt bad if I ignored them, so we still talked. They suggested incisional DES, but did not mention anything about ptosis correction. They also suggested bridge augmentation + tip plasty (silicone + ear/septal cartilage) and osteotomy. However, they also said they were interested in having me model and were kind of pushy about it -- suggesting that I agree now (before I even fly out!! i told them id be interested in going to Korea December or early next year), and that the final discount for being their model would range from 30-100% off, which is so large and honestly ridiculous. They also said that the total price would be 12 million won, which is INSANE considering that their Korean team quoted me 8 million. I mentioned this to them, and they said that the discrepancy in price is due to the fact that they would include translating service, pick up (depending on which surgery you're doing), and deswelling treatment. Even so, I think the price difference is crazy and honestly I'm not too sure if I would really need a translating service, though if I do, I feel like it would be better to just hire one myself. They did not break down the price for me.

 

OVERALL THOUGHTS

I will like to mention some facts I picked up along the way -- I tried to watch smaller Youtubers who have a lower chance of getting sponsored for their surgery. Two of them went to Premier, and I only knew this because I managed to catch the surgeon's name on an award she received in the background LMAO. Premier seems very famous for their eyes, and Korean people recommend Premier if you want a more dolly look and you can do natural adhesion -- Dr. Jang is quite famous for this. Unfortunately, those are both not things I want, so I had to cross them off the list LOL.

Every blog, post, video, I've watched so far seem to all mention how kind Luho is overall, especially Dr. Park, who is known for their eyes. He seems to be quite skilled in the incisional method, and I liked how they allow foreigners to participate in events. 

Overall, people seem pretty satisfied with ITEM as well, and I think I'll check out Dr. Kim's B/As more to see -- I do like that it's popular amongst both Koreans and foreigners.

Lastly, I plan on reaching out to Naturalism for a Kakao consultation. Their nose doctor is quite famous, and I think most people here have heard of them,  but I don't think I've read many reviews of getting a consultation or even doing the surgery, so I'll definitely update.

I've come to the conclusion that silicone is basically inevitable. I am young, and chances of reabsorption and warping is higher if you are younger and you use rib, so I think if I go to a doctor who is specialized in noses, I think I can minimize dissatisfaction with silicone as I think most people are dissatisfied due to it being lower than they expected. However, I am not ruling out rib entirely and of course, my final opinion will come down to what the doctors all say.

 

CLINICS I PLAN ON CONSULTING F2F 

- Wannabe 

- ITEM 

- Naturalism

- Luho

- Cocoline

 

Overall, if Naturalism's consultation goes well, I think I might end up choosing Luho and Naturalism for my eyes and nose respectively!

 

 

Edited June 15, 2021 by strawberrytea

[Curiousbbops]

When do you think you’ll go in 2021? I’m interested in going in 2021 too. 

[strawberrytea]

On 8/21/2020 at 8:06 AM, Curiousbbops said:

When do you think you’ll go in 2021? I’m interested in going in 2021 too. 

Hi! I originally wanted to go in February, but I'm no longer sure if that's viable. 

[strawberrytea]

Consultations on this update: 

• Nana Hospital (ENG)
• Mind Clinic (ENG

 

NANA (Eng)

I reached out because I saw some girl get her surgery and it looked super natural. I reached out to the channel to ask where she got it done, and they privately messaged me and told me it was Nana. I reached out in English and there were some delays, but it was fine. They recommended ptosis correction and epicanthoplasty, and for my rhinoplasty, suggested full open rhinoplasty + alar base reduction. Other clinics told me that that they thought I wouldn’t need epi or that the rhino would help with my eyes looking “closed” off, but when I asked Nana, they told me epi seems necessary for me. When I voiced my concern with sausage lids, they recommended natural adhesion method. Honestly, this made me cross them off in my list. There is no way for natural adhesion to work on me just because I have a lot of fat and thick skin — it would unravel so quickly. It would cost 1-2.5 mil KRW depending on whether I decide to do incisional or natural adhesion. They also said if I could write in Korean and leave reviews, they could lower is 0.8-1.5 mil KRW. For nose, it would be 3.5 mil KRW and around 2.5 mil KRW if I chose to write a review. So cheap! But I feel iffy LOL.

 

Mind Clinic (ENG)

I liked this place since it seemed medium size, and the rhinoplasty reviews seem really good. They have more natural adhesion reviews, but some of the incisional methods I’ve seen look decent. For my nose, they suggested bulbous nose correction, alar reduction, and septum extension, with silicone + septal/ear cartilage as the materials. Donor rib would also be a possibility if I don’t have enough cartilage. If I agreed to being used as a promotional model (eyes blurred out, only nose shown), it would be roughly 4.5 mil KRW. If not, then it would be 6.5 mil KRW with an additional 1 mil KRW if I end up using rib. They said ptosis correction doesn’t seem necessary, but the price of incisional + ptosis would be 2.5 mil KRW. 

 

So far, I’m interested in Mind, Naturalism, and Premier for my nose. I didn’t consult with Premier about my nose (lazy lmao) but I definitely want to go to an in person consultation as I like their nose results. Naturalism is the first on my list, but I’m not putting my hopes high as they’re super booked and I don’t think they would accommodate to my limited schedule as they’re popular enough with foreigners. I really want to find somewhere that does nose and eyes well, but Premier’s incisional methods seem very hit or miss, so I think I’m going to end up going to Luho for eyes, and one of the three for my nose. 

[Claritydoll]

Hi thank you for posting this! It was extremely helpful, I am planning on going around the same time as you if covid restrictions ease up and we no longer have to do the 2 week quarantine. My top choice right now is wannabe, would you be interested in staying in touch through kakao? Im trying to make as many friends as possible in this community. 

[stciv]

This is really helpful! I'm also interested in going for DES and rhino primarily and have been having a hard time deciding whether silicone IS inevitable or if rib grafts are okay. I follow Dr. Yoo occasionally and he says with the right doctor, the changes (warping) is predictable. Not really sure what that means..but every day I stray further and further from doing a rib graft and just giving into silicone LOL. I love the list that you have made and kind of wanted to compare notes. Wannabe is also very high up on my list, but I also want to make sure to consult at Item and Mate. What was the deciding factor for not going with Item? and what have you heard about Mate? 

[strawberrytea]

Hey @stciv,

 

Sorry for the late reply! Actually, after reading more ITEM posts, I think I want to try going to ITEM for an in person consultation and seeing how I feel. I haven't read too many English reviews about Mate at the moment, but I saw bunch of reviews on Gangnam Unni and I did like the reviews so far.

 

Edited December 29, 2020 by strawberrytea

[strawberrytea]

Hi everyone! 2020 was crazy and it seems as though my surgery may be slated for late winter next year, seeing as how things are getting worse. Please stay safe!

Here are some thoughts I've had while away lol. I've become more interested in buccal fat removal. At first I was worried as a lot of people say my chubby cheeks are part of my charm, but my entire family has chubby cheeks so I know it's something that won't go away with age, and I'm not sure if I want to live looking like a full moon for the rest of my life lol. However, I did get masseter botox very recently for the first time (I have huge masseters + a clenching problem), and if I find that my face shape is nice without the buccal fat removal, we'll see how I feel this time next year! 

I do plan on consulting more clinics including reconsulting the ones I liked from this post so that I can leverage with them since I'll be getting more surgeries.

So far I'm interested in a partial buccal fat removal and a slight forehead fat graft. My forehead is really flat and I think it'll become more noticeable since I'll go from having a super flat nose to hopefully a decently high nose with my rhinoplasty! After doing more research, I'm interested in:

• ITEM clinic (rhinoplasty, fat graft, buccal fat removal, masseter botox)
• Luho (double eyelids)

I plan on consulting in person (if possible, since I'll be going during peak season most likely):

• Naturalism (DES, rhino, fat graft + buccal fat removal)
• Premier (rhino, fat graft + buccal fat removal)
• Mind (rhino, possibly DES and other surgeries)

These 4 clinics left the best impressions on me. I was originally interested in Wannabe, but after reading couple negative reviews I'm no longer too sure if I'd like to go there.

 

I did re-consult with Item regarding their prices for buccal fat removal (1.3 mil KRW), forehead fat graft (1 mil KRW), and masseter botox (480,000 KRW). I already know their masseter botox price is a bit higher than average, especially since that's around the price I would pay here, and I live in a huge city that's very beauty focused. I also heard their buccal fat removal is a bit higher than average as well, but they also mentioned it would be more than possible to negotiate in person. In addition, they mentioned if I can converse fluently enough in Korean with them in person, I could possibly qualify for their Korean promotions/prices, so I do think the total can easily be lowered. 

Edited December 29, 2020 by strawberrytea

[Curiousbbops]

What were the negative reviews you saw regarding wannabe? Just wondering cause I would to go forward with them or not.

[strawberrytea]

12 minutes ago, Curiousbbops said:

What were the negative reviews you saw regarding wannabe? Just wondering cause I would to go forward with them or not.

A reviewer said that she was partially awake during her rhinoplasty and could feel the knife and cuts. She also disclosed that they pushed her very much to write a review, and so warned that many others may have also been encouraged to write a review, questioning the validity of the reviews. Of course, it doesn't change the actual picture results I've seen (which have been fairly good), so it is up to your own discretion.