• The NuFace Trinity Toning Device has been gaining praise from editors and aestheticians for years.
• The brand claims to deliver an "instant face lift [1]" in as little as five minutes.
• One editor put the microcurrent skin-care device [2] to the test and was impressed with the results.

As I continue to work from home and participate in numerous video calls throughout the day, I have entered 2022 determined to perfect my skin-care routine. In the past, I have primarily relied on products with active ingredients [3] like niacinamide [4] or salicylic acid to do most of the heavy lifting and would simply wash my face, tone, put on a serum, and moisturise. But with this new mindset in place, I've decided that I could use some reinforcements to step it up a notch. Enter: The NuFace Trinity Advanced Facial Toning Device [5] ($339).

Not only has it been an editor and expert-favourite, but I also kept seeing influencers on Instagram use this device and watch it lift their faces in real time. The instant results (my favourite two words) immediately intrigued me. However, seeing that this device used microcurrent technology — which uses low-level electrical currents to target the facial muscles and was something I always believe was to be used strictly by professionals — to achieve said results terrified me. However, in the name of beauty, I persevered and decided to put Nuface to the test.

The device came with a gel primer that is supposed to act as a barrier between my skin and the microcurrent and I lathered a very healthy amount onto my face — I was to feel nothing during this procedure.

The directions broke each section of the face down into three categories: the jawline, the cheeks, and the forehead. Of those three areas, I was to apply the NuFace to the top, middle, and bottom of each section for the best results. Starting with the right side of my face, and after doing a patch test and finding that level one was a bit mild for me, I put the device onto the second highest setting and got to work.

Starting with the jawline, I went over each section three times. Like promised, I noticed the results in minutes. The right side of my face looked much more sculpted than the left, and even my laugh lines were less pronounced. I didn't even realise that there was such a large difference on my forehead until I saw in the below picture that my eyebrows looked like they were sitting on two completely different levels of my face.

While the results were not as dramatic as the transformations I saw on Instagram, I was completely blown away. Because I didn't want to look like a hydraulic lowrider car, I went ahead and did the other side of my face to even everything out. When I was done, my jaw lines looked extremely pronounced and my face just looked refreshed overall.

The brand describes the NuFace as "exercise" for the face, so unsurprisingly, the results didn't hold when I woke up the next morning. Much like actual exercise, it seems it will take longer-term use to see the results that "stick." This device, while initially a bit terrifying, definitely lives up to the hype and I am excited to see the results once I fully implement it into my skin-care routine.

It's worth noting that the Trinity is pricey, but NuFace also offers the Mini [6] ($209) and the Fix [7] ($139), which are smaller versions that contain similar microcurrent technology that make for a solid lower priced option. Whichever one you choose, I highly recommend. This device has easily cemented itself as a staple in my at-home "spa Sundays" routine.

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