While aging is a natural—and privileged—part of getting older, the aesthetic of aging, like grey hairs and fine lines, is not always desirable. Hence the growing popularity of skincare and anti-aging products, particularly those that boast wrinkle-reducing properties. One such product is Frownies Facial Patches, a non-invasive way to reduce fine lines and wrinkles by taping the targeted area overnight with face stickers. Skeptical? So were many other customers who have since cast their opinions to the internet with many before and after photos. Let’s dig into how these products actually work, if they’re worth it, and if they’re genuinely better than Botox.
What are Frownies?
Frownies as a brand has been around since 1889—a century before Botox was even a thing. Their website is pretty transparent about what to expect from the product, how long it takes Frownies to work, and what people are saying.
The consensus is that, while it is a long-term investment with a slow burn on results, Frownies are worth it. At $23.95 for 144 patches, it’s a pretty accessible financial investment. The Frownies website recommends you wear the patches at night, every night, for at least 30 days to start seeing results. They also specify that this is not a short-term solution and you won’t be seeing lasting results overnight.
The facial patches act as a splint to limit facial muscle movement and smooth out wrinkles, thus the consistency and time investment. Peppered with before and after photos and the time between each image, the website points out that it’s normal to see smoothing results first thing in the morning, only for them to fade quickly after. This is because the facial muscles haven’t been retrained yet, as just like with fitness, it takes time to build up muscle strength and retention.
Once your desired smoothness has been achieved, these results won’t stick around without maintenance, which makes Frownies Facial Patches a potentially life-long investment.
How Do Frownies Work?
When applying Frownies Facial Patches, your skin should be clean and dry. After washing your face and applying your skincare, give the products time to absorb into the skin (about 15 minutes), and then stick on your patches. There are no active ingredients in the patches, so you won’t have to worry about it clashing with any of your other topicals.
The patches are long strips of paper that are perforated into triangles. If they happen to be too long for your target area, you can cut them to fit better. The patches have a shiny side and a matte side, and while the website recommends spraying the shiny side of the patches with Frownies Rose Water Hydrator, they also say you can use warm water if you don’t the rose water product.
Note from the editor: I personally really appreciate this note about not having to use the separate rose water product, because so often with these types of skincare tools, the brand pushes customers to buy another product under the pretense that it’ll work better or isn’t compatible with anything else. This type of transparency really boosts my confidence in the Frownies brand.
Let the adhesive side of the patch get tacky before applying it to your skin, gently massaging the area with your fingertips to firmly adhere it. As you continue to apply patches, hold your skin smooth with your fingers (don’t pull the skin), and apply one patch at a time, overlapping the patches as you go.
When removing your patches in the morning, go slowly and use warm water to encourage the release of the adhesive.
The Bottom (Fine) Line
After wearing your patches consistently for 30 and building up that muscle memory, you can reevaluate and see if the nightly routine is enough, or if you only need them every few nights. It’s important to remember that consistency and results will be different for everyone depending on how expressive you are, how deep your lines are, skin type, and age.
Frownies aren’t a quick fix! Frownies Facial Patches as with all skin care products are the long game and long-term users RAVE about their results!
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