A nip and a shot: Quick celebrity beauty fixes

Faster fixes
While some stars will plan major nips and tucks such as liposuction months in advance, most go for easy touch-ups like injections of fillers, which can give the skin a full, younger appearance, and which don't cause a lot of telltale swelling or bruising.

"In general, the non-invasive or [minimally] invasive procedure market has expanded rapidly," says Dr. Roxanne Guy, president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. "It started with the Botox boom, and it's just built upon that."

Today, Botox, which costs about $250 per treatment area, isn't used just for zapping deep forehead wrinkles, according to Nikolov. It also works to prevent stains around the underarms by stopping the glands from producing sweat. About eight to 10 injections of Botox in the area can do the trick.

"When you're on the red carpet," he says, "you look great, and maybe you're a little nervous--no matter what, the last thing you want is to get perspiration on your gown."

To prepare for their close-ups, some stars turn to cosmetic dentists for power bleaching, says Miami-based cosmetic dentist Jorge Blanco. Patients pay $500 to $1,000 for the procedure, which is done two and a half weeks in advance of an event. Blanco applies whitening gel to the teeth, then sits the patient in front of a light that promotes absorption for about an hour. Sensitivity may be a problem for a day afterward. Some dentists send people home with teeth-whitening trays and solution so they can control color all the way up to an event.

On the mend

INTERACTIVE Buying beauty Cosmetic surgery in the United States

For stars trying to speed their skin's recovery after a chemical peel or microdermabrasion, there's Dermacia MD's Lycogel, a triple silica gel treatment that heals while acting as a concealer. It sells for $78 per half ounce and is available at plastic surgeons' and dermatologists' offices. Product developer Barry Knapp says the key to Lycogel is its ability to increase the skin's oxygen intake, unlike most makeup.

"If you have a chemical peel, you're basically electing to have a second-degree burn," says Knapp, president of Dermacia MD. "You need something to heal it; you need the cells to repopulate very quickly. Patients are not interested in having two months out of their life taken."

The product also benefits skin that's healthy, according to Knapp, who says Lycogel is used on the sets of "Desperate Housewives" and "American Idol."

Of course, the desire to look good in front of all those cameras isn't singular to actors and actresses. Calabria says he's also had producers, directors, public relations people and even journalists come to him in recent weeks seeking a refreshed look.

After all, who doesn't want to look camera-ready?

"The main thing people look for is something that will make them look spectacular, but at the same time not stand out too much," says Blanco. "It has to be subtle."

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