The Nose Knows

I had a nose job right after my graduation from college. After years of playing the dating scene, I'm starting to get serious with a great guy. We recently had our first talk about moving in together and he's even mentioned marriage. We're very open and honest but so far I have not told him about my rhinoplasty. I only ask because I know he wants to be a dad and I wouldn't want him to be disappointed down the road if our children wind up with honkers as big as mine used to be. When does someone who's had a little cosmetic work have to let someone she's dating in on the news?

Michelle, Upper East Side

Gothamist would challenge the idea that a nose job is merely "a little cosmetic work." A skin peel or Botox is a little cosmetic work. Any procedure that involves anesthesia, scalpels and bandages is surgery.

But let's not quibble over definitions and instead quibble over the truth. Gothamist's idea of an "open and honest" relationship that's headed towards marriage includes the occasional figurative trip down memory lane. (Not to mention the literal trip to the parents' house.) While forgetting to mention that you had work done might not by itself be questionable, actively taking steps to avoid such a conversation by hiding old photographs or by avoiding people who knew your in the years BGS (Before Giant Schnoz) is problematic.

With reality TV offering extreme makeovers and everyone from Fox News pundits to suburban parents getting the occasional nip and tuck, plastic surgery no longer carries the stigma it once did. So, employing a theory Gothamist likes to call "the sooner the better," we recommend telling your beau at the next available opportunity. If he's smitten enough to be talking about marriage, your surgically shaped nose shouldn't be enough to turn him off. And hopefully the man who wants to be the father of your children likes you for more than just your looks.