[REAL STORY] Kim Eun-jin

There is a game called tangram. It involves dividing a square into seven pieces and combining them into various shapes. The pieces consist of six triangles of different sizes and one parallelogram. Although there are only a few pieces and the rules are simple, it is said that there are more than 10,000 possible shapes you can make.

Let us imagine tangram as life: building life from large pieces that form the framework, and refining personal taste with the smaller pieces. The large pieces that make up the framework become deeper and stronger in their rightful place. From there, weight is added, and only then does a person begin to give off an aura that fits them.

Ms. Eun-jin is a person who gives off a warm aura. One cold winter day, while preparing for a shoot at a studio in Seocho, Eun-jin greeted everyone loudly and started talking to people. The silent studio soon turned into a place for small conversations. Swept up in that atmosphere, we carried on with the shoot and then conducted the interview, asking what kind of daily life she has been living these days and what kind of beauty she is pursuing.

Q. Hello. Please introduce yourself.

Hello. I’m Kim Eun-jin, an ambassador for Eton Plastic Surgery.

Q. It has been a little while since your surgery, right? I’m curious about how you have been doing lately.

I’ve been spending these days very happily. It’s winter, but I’ve been going to hot springs and spas, living peacefully, and I’ve been staying busy because I’ve started taking lots of photos.

Q. When you say photos, what kind of photos do you mean?

Before, if I were taking pictures, I would just shoot from far away… but these days, I’ve gained confidence in my body shape, so I’m wearing a lot of turtlenecks that show my silhouette, or fitted clothes, and taking photos in them.

Q. Are you working as a model?

No! That’s not it. My life has changed a bit. Before, I only took selfies, but these days I’ve gained confidence, and because of that I signed with a company and am active on the company’s beauty channel. I also do YouTube on my own.

Q. I see! Was there a particular reason you decided to have breast surgery?

A few years ago, I had a nose surgery at another hospital. After the nose surgery, I found myself taking a lot of selfies, and I felt that I was satisfied with how I looked. Then, because I’m a woman, I thought a woman’s pride might be in her breasts, so I decided to have the surgery. In fact, it was a difficult decision. I chose it while carrying fear.

Q. What were you afraid of? And even with those fears, I’m curious why you decided to go through with the surgery.

I was afraid something might go wrong, and I was also afraid of pain—those two things. It wasn’t just the pain; I was deeply worried about what would happen if something went wrong. If something were to go wrong, it would be emotionally very hard. Still, the reason I decided to have the surgery was that I felt I would be satisfied with the result. Also, through my previous surgery, I learned that when I’m satisfied, I naturally take better care of myself in order to maintain that satisfaction. I thought that if I were very satisfied after breast surgery, I would love and care for myself even more, so I decided to go ahead.

Q. Then, since there are many different plastic surgery clinics, I’m also curious why you chose Eton.

After deciding to have surgery, I received consultations at several hospitals. Director Jo Jeong-mok’s consultation was very detailed. I became even more trusting because he spoke candidly about things like postoperative side effects that I couldn’t hear about at other hospitals. That’s why I had the surgery at Eton Plastic Surgery, and I’m very satisfied with the results.

Q. I’m glad the surgery went well! You said you were worried about pain, and I think readers who are considering breast surgery may have similar concerns. Could you honestly share your experience with the recovery process?

On the first day after surgery, I drank a lot of water. I also moved around a lot to reduce swelling. Because of the compression after surgery, it was a little uncomfortable to breathe. In particular, not being able to wash my hair could be difficult, so at times like that, I recommend just going to a salon to have your hair washed. I made sure to eat three meals a day, and I consistently walked for about 15 to 20 minutes for light cardio. After a week had passed, I went to the hospital to check whether the implants had settled well and whether the capsule around the muscle was forming properly. After that, I visited once a week for breast moisturizing massage to help prevent stretch marks. After about three months of going like that, I think I visited once a month to check on my progress.

To summarize, in terms of pain, for about three days after surgery, it was hard to lift heavy things and I felt a little uncomfortable when breathing, but after that, it didn’t hurt anymore. Instead, I focused on recovery by talking things through with the director and keeping an eye on my progress.

Q. Then I’m curious whether your daily life has become more satisfying after the surgery. Are you satisfied yourself, and how do people around you react?

As I mentioned earlier, I take a lot of photos. Before, I only took selfies and I didn’t really like clothes that much. But after the surgery, I started liking clothes, and when I meet friends, I often go out wearing outfits that show my figure or are stylish. The reactions from people around me have been really good too. They respond so positively that they say things like, “That really suits you,” or “You should dress like that more often.” (laughs) And after the surgery, I gained confidence, and because I wanted to become even prettier, I started exercising more diligently.

Above all, the satisfaction I feel as a woman is so great that the moment I feel it most is when I’m showering alone. When I’m by myself, there’s that feeling of just being absorbed in yourself, right? (laughs) At times like that, I… can’t even put it into words—it feels that good.

Q. This may be a similar question, but have there also been changes internally and externally?

Externally, my styling has changed. I used to have a bob, but as I’ve grown my hair out, I’ve also bravely tried styles I had never attempted before. Internally, I’ve gained a lot of confidence, and I’ve developed a desire to maintain this beauty. I’ve been trying to take care of my inner self by taking vitamins, exercising in a balanced way rather than too intensely, and doing yoga or Pilates.

Q. So to sum it up, after the surgery, you’re not just satisfied with the result itself—you’re making a lot of effort in daily life to maintain and further refine that beauty.

That’s right. Before, I would just think, “I should diet and lose weight…” But now I want to manage my body in a healthy and attractive way. And for that, exercise is essential.

Q. That’s a great change. Then what kind of beauty do you pursue, Eun-jin?

Isn’t beauty the image a person wants to have? For me, that image is confidence—strong words like courage, confidence, and challenge. After the surgery, I also became more confident and gained courage, so I ended up doing more challenging things. I’ve only ever taken selfies in my life; I hardly ever went to a studio to take passport photos. But recently, I paid several hundred thousand won to get a profile photo taken. I’ve started wanting to keep leaving behind images of myself consistently. Kim Eun-jin in her 30s was like this, and next year I’ll be like that… I want to keep cherishing my refined self over time.

Q. That’s such a wonderful statement! Confidence! Then let me ask my final question. Many people need courage and their own resolve in order to gain beauty. But before surgery, worries naturally come first. If you could say one thing to those people, what would you say?

If you want to do it, you absolutely should. My goal this year was surgery, so I had it right away on January 3. If you have the desire to do it, I hope you go through with it. The satisfaction is greater than the worries!

After talking with the two of them, I discovered one common point. Because surgery gave them external beauty, they also came to want to cultivate their inner beauty. In other words, they gained a stronger desire to live their daily lives in a healthier way. It was an unexpected discovery.

Let me briefly tell you a story about a traveler. Traveler A supposedly had only a little money left, and with that money bought the suit he had wanted. After that, he worried about what money he would have left to continue his trip. But contrary to his worries, many people saw him in the suit and gave him various opportunities, and through that he continued traveling in his own way and with his own experiences. I remember feeling my heart flutter at this fictional-sounding story.

As the saying goes, “Clothes make the man,” once you come to enjoy external beauty, you can see how that beauty makes you want to care for it in a healthier way. And as that happens, life gives us opportunities in a healthier way. Can that really be called coincidence?