The Most Coveted Cosmetic Enhancement in Asia Right Now: Elf Ears

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Jung Da-yun didn’t quite like what she saw in the mirror. Her ears weren’t big enough.She booked a visit to a South Korean clinic offering “elf ear” injections.For about $70, a plastic surgeon injected the ridged cartilage of her ears with a hyaluronic-acid filler that caused her ears to perk up.

For the first time, they became noticeable straight-on, protruding outward and appearing to sit higher on her face. Her face looked slimmer, younger and more proportional.“I was very happy with the results,” said Jung, a 31-year-old influencer, who learned of elf ears when she stumbled across viral videos of others who had the procedure.Elf ears are suddenly a coveted look in beauty-obsessed South Korea, where residents seem to be on a never-ending quest for cosmetic improvements.Larger ears can create the illusion of a smaller face – a prized trait in East Asia where big heads aren’t usually a big plus.Japanese use handheld massage rollers to reduce overnight facial swelling.

Chinese deride people with larger, flatter mugs as having “pancake faces.” Koreans idolize an angular V-shaped jawline.The elf-ear movement swept through those countries in recent years. But they had particular staying power in South Korea.

The country is home to the “Beauty Belt,” a Seoul neighborhood smaller than Central Park that has more plastic-surgery clinics than Los Angeles, Miami and Rio de Janeiro combined.“Pretty ears that match your facial proportions,” reads one elf-ears advertisement. “Beautiful even with your hair tucked back.”Jung Gyu-sik, a plastic surgeon in the South Korean city of Daegu, said he has performed as many as 20 elf-ear injections in a single day.