Do You Love or Hate Your Nose?

By Alison Caporimo, Allure magazine

As a member of the broken nose club (twice broken actually: once from a bad horseback riding accident and again from an overly clean-aka invisible-glass door run-in on my 18th birthday), I know what it feels like to avoid pictures taken of your profile and consider the appeal of rhinoplasty. The love/hate with my nose, which has a slight bend and bump to it, went on for most of my childhood.

Related: Do You Love Your Nose

My mother told me that it made me look unique, that it was beautiful-but pictures of button-nosed Britney Spears and Mandy Moore told a different tale. I considered getting a nose job in college (I knew of friends who had gotten them and were very pleased with their results), but the thought of surgery and the unknown outcome made me think twice. I guess I felt that my nose told a story-even if it was one that involved a crazy horse and my first strong martini-that was more interesting than the prologue: "So I went to a plastic surgeon and..."

Related: How Honest Should Women Be About Plastic Surgery?

But when I stumbled on a rhinoplasty simulation website, I was able to fulfill my curiosity without the permanence of an actual nose job or the potential pressure of a consultation. After uploading a close-up picture of my face (which the Internet software turned black and white), I was able to choose from 12 different female noses to mix and match on my face-like an upgraded Mrs. Potato Head. The results are interesting (a tiny nose makes my eyes look more exotic and a straight, stronger nose adds symmetry to my face). I stuck on a button Britney Spears nose (above, right) for the heck of it and looked really cutesy. Regardless, I think I'll stick with the SJP's and Barbra Streisand's of the world.

How about you-do you like your nose? Or would you change it if you had the time/money?

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