Kim Kardashian knows how to ignite a controversy, and her latest SKIMS product — a mask that claims to snatch your jawline in your sleep — is no exception. Everyone from medical professionals to Reddit users to Sir Anthony Hopkins himself has weighed in on the controversial new offering, so let’s get into it.
ICYMI, the reality TV star launched the product on her website this week, promising to sculpt and contour wearer’s faces while they sleep with “collagen yarns for ultra-soft jaw support”, according to the SKIMS announcement post.
“The innovation never ends,” the caption alongside the face wrap — listed at $88 AUD and already sold out in both colours — reads, while another touts its “signature sculpting” and “velcro closures at the top and nape of the neck allow for easy, everyday wear”.
Elaborating on her own Instagram Stories (per Daily Mail), Kardashian explained the purpose of the face wrap beyond terrifying your partner when they come home from work.
“It’s just this amazing jaw support … It just snatches your little chinny chin chin,” she said.
While the promotion mentions vague words like sculpting, snatching and contouring, it’s not exactly clear what on earth these face wraps are for, with doctors advising skepticism around products like mouth tape and chin straps.
Naturally, since Kardashian is just as good at igniting controversy as she is at losing a pair of diamond earrings in the ocean, the business move has stirred up a whole heap of commentary, with many netizens accusing the star of continuing to promote unattainable beauty standards.
“She’s always at the forefront of identifying new things for women to be insecure about and profiting off them,” one user wrote on Reddit, with another asking “why the hell does everything about a woman need to be ‘fixed’ holy hell”.
Elsewhere, Instagram users described the face wrap as “too much” because it “raises beauty standards,” or said the product only works to “make women feel insecure”.
Kardashian’s entire career has been littered with similar moments — from promoting appetite suppressant lollipops to backlash over her whole-body foundation and continually Photoshopping images, including to promote SKIMS.
But it isn’t just social media sleuths who’ve called foul on this latest business venture.
Doctors raised questions over the benefits of the face wrap
Since the face wrap is modelled on the compression bandages patients wear after facelifts and seems like an attempt for wearers to enjoy a little surgical cosplay, it wasn’t long before doctors chimed in to the hullabaloo.
“In terms of function, I really can’t see any skin benefits from collagen yarns sitting on top of the skin,” cosmetic practitioner Dr. Naomi McCullum told Elle.
“You can’t get a slimmer jawline with simple compression.”
McCullum said that while face wraps work to reduce post-surgery facial swelling, they “don’t have any effect on superficial puffiness,” meaning they have “no effect” on actually sculpting, slimming or countering the face, despite being marketed otherwise.
Hannibal Lecter has entered the chat
As the old saying goes, it isn’t really a controversy until Anthony Hopkins weighs in. OK, that’s not really a saying, but the actor did respond to Kardashian’s new product by comparing it to the famous mask he wore while portraying Hannibal Lecter in Silence of the Lambs.
“Thank you, Kim. Don’t be afraid to come over for dinner,” the actor wrote while sharing an Instagram clip of himself adorned in a face wrap. “I’m already feeling ten years younger. Goodbye.”
Kardashian later re-shared Hopkins’ video with the caption “I’m screaming”, though it’s not yet known whether that’s because she was scared or excited.
Now that Hopkins has spoken, the decision is on you as to whether you’re willing to fork out 88 bucks for a product whose benefits are dubious at best and insecurity-inducing at worst.
Better yet, maybe just add it to your Halloween cart with some fake blood and a Jodie Foster wig for the ultimate couples costume.
Lead images: Instagram
