Your own tissue, restoring your own volume.
Facial fat transfer (fat grafting) uses fat harvested from your own body — most often the abdomen — to restore volume in areas of the face that have hollowed with age: the cheeks, temples, under-eyes, and jawline. Unlike synthetic fillers, the results use living tissue that becomes a natural part of your face. This time-proven technique has been refined by generations of surgeons since it was first described in 1893.
Facial aging isn't only about sagging skin — it's also a loss of the soft, round fullness that gives a youthful face its shape.
The underlying facial bones gradually lose density and volume with age, reducing the structural support beneath the skin and soft tissue.
The deep and superficial fat compartments of the face — and the muscles beneath them — shrink over time, most noticeably in the cheeks, temples, and under-eyes.
As support structures weaken, soft tissue gradually droops and migrates downward — facial "droop" that compounds the hollowed, tired appearance of volume loss.
The procedure begins with traditional liposuction — typically from the abdomen, through a small incision near the belly button — to harvest donor fat. The harvested fat is then carefully processed to prepare it for transfer, removing excess fluid and isolating healthy fat cells.
Dr. Kim then reinjects the processed fat using a micro-cannula, in small layered increments rather than large deposits. This layered, deep-plane technique matters: injecting fat in small aliquots maximizes contact with the surrounding blood supply, which is essential for graft survival, and avoids the palpable lumps or nodules that can result from injecting too much fat in one place.
Not all transferred fat survives permanently — a portion is naturally reabsorbed by the body in the first few months as the graft establishes a new blood supply, a process sometimes called "take" or graft survival. Because of this, Dr. Kim intentionally overcorrects at the time of surgery, anticipating that some volume will resorb during healing. The fat that does survive behaves like natural facial tissue from then on — it stays put, and ages along with the rest of your face. In some cases, a smaller touch-up session is planned once the initial healing and resorption has stabilized, usually a few months after the first procedure.
Both approaches restore facial volume, but they work differently. Hyaluronic acid fillers, Radiesse, and Sculptra are synthetic or biosynthetic materials injected in-office with no downtime, but they're temporary — typically lasting 6 months to a few years depending on the product — and cost scales directly with volume, since each additional cc adds to the price.
Fat transfer uses living tissue that is truly your own — most patients have ample donor fat around the abdomen to spare, one treatment session can restore a substantial volume (commonly 20cc or more) across multiple facial areas, and because it's your own tissue integrated into the face, there's no risk of an allergic or foreign-body reaction. Fat grafts also contain adipose-derived stem cells, which are understood to support graft survival and may contribute to some improvement in the quality of the surrounding skin, though this benefit should be discussed with realistic expectations rather than as a guaranteed outcome.
Facial fat transfer is frequently combined with a facelift or blepharoplasty in the same surgery, sharing a single recovery period, since restoring lost volume alongside lifting and tightening tends to produce a more complete, natural rejuvenation than either approach alone. Dr. Kim will discuss whether fat transfer as a stand-alone treatment, or as part of a broader surgical plan, best fits your goals and anatomy at consultation.
Recovery involves two sites — where fat was harvested, and where it was injected. There's an on-call physician during off-hours, and every surgical patient has direct access to the surgeon's personal cell phone for surgery-related questions.
Swelling at the injection sites is normal and expected — much of it comes from the numbing medication and saline solution used during transfer, which the body absorbs quickly. Bruising can occur at both the donor (harvest) site and the facial injection sites.
Most patients can resume normal daily routines within a few days, avoiding strenuous activity initially. It's normal for the face to look fuller than your final result during this window — this is swelling, not your actual outcome.
As the initial swelling fully resolves, you may notice the added volume seems to be "settling" or reducing — this is the graft establishing its new blood supply, not a sign of failure. The final, more modest but stable result becomes clear over the following months.
Facial fat transfer restores volume using your own living tissue, which integrates with surrounding structures and carries no risk of allergic reaction. Dermal fillers use synthetic materials that are temporary, requiring ongoing maintenance visits. Fat transfer can offer more permanent results that age naturally along with the rest of your face.
Some of the transferred fat is naturally reabsorbed by the body, but a significant portion establishes a blood supply and remains long-term. Results typically stabilize within a few months. In some cases, a second, smaller session is planned to achieve the desired level of volume once initial healing has settled.
Most patients experience swelling and mild bruising at both the donor site and the face for one to two weeks. Strenuous activity should be avoided initially, though normal daily routines can usually resume within a few days. Because fat is injected in a deep plane in small increments, the risk of visible lumps is minimized.
Yes — fat transfer is frequently performed alongside a facelift, neck lift, or eyelid surgery in the same operation, sharing a single recovery period for a more comprehensive rejuvenation.
Shown with patient consent. Individual results vary by anatomy, technique, and healing.
"I've had two surgeries with him. The 1st was a body fat transfer to my cheeks, after having weight loss surgery I felt I needed some volume in my cheeks — I was very happy with the way that turned out."
"Dr. Kim's staff is nothing short of AMAZING! They absolutely go above and beyond for their patients; they are so caring. Dr. Kim is truly at the top of his field in Facial Plastic Surgery."
"Absolutely love Natural Face Clinics — Dr. Kim is amazing. He is professional, knowledgeable and the staff are fabulous! I would never go anywhere else."