According to the South China Morning Post (SCMP) on the 10th (local time), a recent trend among Chinese women is the use of ‘belly button stickers’ placed a few centimeters above their actual belly buttons.
Similar to tattoo stickers, these belly button stickers are applied, and when the real belly button is covered with clothing, a visual illusion is created, making the legs appear longer. These ‘fake belly buttons’ fulfill the fantasy of longer legs for many women, gaining significant popularity in various shopping malls.
On one of China’s online shopping platforms, Pinduoduo, a merchant selling sets of belly button stickers (2 sheets, 32 stickers per sheet) for 4 yuan (approximately 730 won or $0.73) each, recently received orders for 4,400 sets, indicating the tremendous craze.
The popularity of the fake belly button trend can also be observed on Xiao Hong Shu, the Chinese version of Instagram.
A user of Xiao Hong Shu mentioned, “Every summer, I always have many concerns. I want to wear stylish and sexy clothes, but they don’t fit my body shape well, which affects my confidence.” They added, “However, these stickers don’t come off easily, don’t reflect light, and are even waterproof.”
They further stated, “I want to call it this year’s most successful invention.”
Another TikTok user explained, “It’s a deceptive tool to bid farewell to the 1:1 ratio of upper and lower body, the ‘2nd leg body’ ratio.”
In addition to fake belly button stickers, beauty enhancing devices such as fake breasts, shoulders and clavicles, noses, and buttocks are also popular in China. Fake buttocks emphasize body curves, and attaching fake shoulders creates the ‘right angle shoulder’ trend currently popular in fashion and beauty industries.
A prominent Weibo influencer with over 2 million followers, ‘Nan,’ said, “Many women have gained confidence through these products,” highlighting a positive aspect.
However, some are concerned that this phenomenon could contribute to standardized body ideals and distorted perceptions of beauty.
Chinese women who are wary of appearance-related products expressed their concerns, wondering if they can face their real bodies even after removing these supportive tools.