Speculating on whether a star has or has not had plastic surgery has become a staple of celebrity journalism.
This week, the glare centred on multiples TV mom Kate Gosselin's latest refreshed look.
An open fan of Botox and tanning beds, Ms. Gosselin reportedly also had a tummy tuck in 2007 and breast implants in 2009. But a look at her newest publicity photos suggest a facelift, say some gossipers. According to US magazine experts (who are not, of course, her surgeons), her face seems smooth and taut, her eyes bright – all apparent signs of a facelift.
While it may be fun to blow her cover, few observers would argue that Ms. Gosselin looks utterly unattractive.
Unfortunately for some plastic surgery aficionados, causing gasps on the street is the price they pay for their transformations. But, they're not victims of botched surgery; they demand it.
One Russian woman just boasted to the Telegraph that she's been obsessed with injecting her lips with silicone to achieve a, exaggerated Jessica-Rabbit-like pout.
She told the Telegraph: "I think I look fantastic and it makes me happy. Sometimes strangers shout names at me in the street – like big lips – but I don't care.
"I want to go more extreme. I want to look like a cartoon character. I am addicted to it, I love it."
She's also planning to have more surgery, reports the paper.
"When I can afford it I want to enlarge my breasts from a C-cup to a DD, change the shape of my nose and I want to make my ears pointed like an elf. It's good to be different."
Here's hoping any surgeons she consults have a long, hard talk with her.
They may not, though, considering how bizarre the fringes of the plastic surgery world have become. Precedents run the gamut from the famed lion lady to the French performance artist Orlan, who had cheek implants carved into her forehead to make a statement about beauty norms.
So, if plastic surgery was originally a sneaky way to try and look better or tweak nature, what is its purpose now?