Optifold vs. LIDS BY DESIGN (Contour Rx) — A Fair Comparison
The goal: to clarify why one method is better for consistent, reliable performance, while the other is designed for a temporary cosmetic appearance.
Abstract
Consumers often assume that all “eyelid tapes” do the same thing. They do not. This article compares LIDS BY DESIGN (Contour Rx), a slender eyelid strip intended for immediate, temporary wear, with Optifold, a patented medical-device eyelid bandage system designed to train how the eyelid forms a crease across full days and, with adherence, over many weeks. We review device intent, the mechanical pathway by which each product interacts with skin, and the coaching protocol that accompanies Optifold. The purpose is to explain why one approach is optimized for a short-term cosmetic look, while the other is optimized for stable, repeatable behavior.
Quick comparison (at a glance)
| Category | LIDS BY DESIGN (Contour Rx) | Optifold |
|---|---|---|
| Primary intent | Immediate, temporary crease appearance during wear | Training-based crease behavior across full days and, with adherence, across weeks |
| Contact geometry | Slender strip, low-profile feel | Wider contact base (F-tape) plus targeted compression architecture (N-tape) |
| Core mechanism | Cosmetic shaping while worn | One route rehearsed + boundary set + centered pinch point + staged removal + exercises |
| Removal philosophy | Peel off a narrow adhesive footprint | Staged removal designed to keep forces aligned and reduce competing skin-tension routes |
| Guidance | General user instructions | Technician review + personalized sizing/placement + cadence that tapers with progress |
One placement principle appears in many cosmetic-strip instructions: lift the brow to smooth the eyelid surface before placing a strip. That idea makes sense for cosmetic placement. Optifold uses a more structured “extended platform” concept and then builds on it with a two-tape architecture designed for repeatability.
What LIDS BY DESIGN is designed to do
LIDS BY DESIGN is built to give a neat-looking crease soon after application. The strip is intentionally thin and low-profile so that it feels minimal during wear and often looks discreet. Because contact is narrow and designed to be barely felt, the eyelid receives little training stimulus while the strip is on. Most of the force is experienced at removal, where concentrated peel can tug a thin band of skin. The result can be an attractive mirror check after placement, but it typically does not build the kind of repeatable, day-long behavior that accumulates across weeks without an accompanying training protocol.
What Optifold is designed to do
Optifold is not a single strip. It is a medical-device system that aims to train the eyelid’s crease behavior so that crease position and contour persist throughout the day and, with adherence, from week to week. The system coordinates F-tape and N-tape with a structured removal sequence, post-removal eyelid crease exercises, and expert guidance. The design rehearses a single skin-tension route, applies a brief, centered compression at that route, protects the skin during removal, and uses technician feedback to keep the routine accurate as the eyelid adapts.
Optifold: Create double eyelids. Fix Uneven or hooded eyelids, while you sleep.
The Optifold routine — mechanics and flow
Extended platform before taping
Before any tape is applied, the client places eyelid skin in an extended state using a tabletop-mirror posture. The brow is raised, and the gaze is directed below eye level toward the tabletop mirror. When the brow is raised, upper eyelid skin is drawn upward and the surface becomes smoother and less wrinkled. When the gaze is down at the tabletop mirror, pretarsal skin tends to sit flatter and more stretched out instead of bunching. Together, brow-up and gaze-down create an extended platform that makes the intended skin-tension path easier to see, easier to select, and easier to repeat.
Tabletop-mirror posture: chin up, brow raised, gaze down, eyelid skin extended
F-tape application (contact and boundary)
The client applies the F-tape so that the Tension Base, which is deliberately wider than cosmetic strips, conforms to the selected path. The Fold Lock surface (upper margin) is the area over which the eyelid is guided to form; the Interface Band (lower margin) remains exposed. Once the eyelid has been guided to form over the Fold Lock surface, the crease boundary is set on that upper margin.
The larger surface area is intentional. During wear, broader contact delivers a uniform, perceptible stimulus along the intended path, whereas thin cosmetic strips are designed to be barely felt and therefore provide little training while they are on. During removal, force is dispersed over a wider area so neighboring skin-tension paths are less likely to be accidentally provoked. By distributing load in this way, Optifold keeps stimulation targeted to the path being taught while keeping skin comfortable.
N-tape placement (targeted compression)
After the boundary is set with the F-tape, the N-tape is placed so that the Lid Compression Plate straddles the boundary. The upper contact adheres to eyelid skin that has formed over the Fold Lock surface, while the lower contact adheres to the F-tape Interface Band. This straddle creates a precise pinch point, a visible inflection where opposing forces meet. Skin from above collapses downward and pressure from below stabilizes the crease, which teaches the path the eyelid is meant to prefer.
The Tension Bridge of the N-tape is non-adhesive over the lash margin, so lashes and blink mechanics remain free while compression is conducted downward. When alignment is correct, the crease appears midway across the Lid Compression Plate, which becomes an easy visual check for the user.
Wear, removal sequence, and post-removal eyelid crease exercises
The two-tape assembly is worn for the prescribed interval. Removal is deliberate and supported so force stays controlled and competing paths remain quiet.
Removal begins with the N-tape. The N-tape is peeled off starting from the inner corner of the eye because when the N-tape is engaged with the Interface Band of the F-tape, it is usually at the inner corner where there is less surface area of the F-tape Interface Band available to engage with the N-tape. With less surface area engaged, the initial release is easier and cleaner at that location. During removal, the user uses a supporting hand to keep the underlying F-tape stationary on the eyelid while peeling away the N-tape, which helps prevent the F-tape from shifting and helps keep forces aligned with the crease direction as compression is disengaged.
N-tape removal: Close-up showing peel start at inner corner with a support hand holding F-tape steady.
After the N-tape is removed, the F-tape is intentionally left on for about one to two hours. This short support window matters because morning eyelid skin is often exceptionally puffy, and that puffiness can destabilize crease behavior. During that period, the F-tape acts as scaffolding support while the eyelid settles.
After the one to two hour support window, removal of the F-tape begins. F-tape removal is not treated like a simple peel. First, the user releases upper eyelid skin that is attached to the F-tape Fold Lock surface. This is done with gentle finger manipulation of eyelid skin to disengage skin from adhesive contact, so the skin is no longer locked onto the Fold Lock surface. Once that upper skin is no longer engaged, the user peels the F-tape off starting from the tail end of the crease, because that side of the tape typically provides more gripping surface for a firmer purchase and more controlled removal.
F-tape removal > release Fold Lock engagement: Finger manipulation disengaging upper skin from Fold Lock surface.
F-tape removal > peel from tail end: Peel direction starting at tail end where grip is better.
Once the tapes are fully off, the client transitions into eyelid crease exercises. The most basic rule in this post-removal window is to keep behavior calm and supportive. The client should keep looking above eye level rather than repeatedly staring down into a mirror and repeatedly checking the crease. The client should not rub the eyes, should not squint, and should not flex the eyelids in a way that tests stability, because those behaviors introduce competing tension patterns at exactly the wrong time.
After removal, a small amount of lotion can be applied to create gentle slip and keep skin comfortable. With that support in place, the client performs Tracing-the-Line for about 20 to 30 repetitions, rehearsing the intended crease behavior with controlled, consistent motion. Once the crease has some support from Tracing-the-Line, the client uses a hand to Hold-the-Line for three to five minutes, reinforcing the same behavior under steady, low-variability conditions.
Tracing-the-Line: A simple diagram showing the motion path for Tracing-the-Line (20–30 repetitions).
Holding-the-Line: Show hand placement holding the crease route for 3–5 minutes.
Nightly face washing is done before applying tapes. In the morning, moisturizer is acceptable because tapes are already off, and at that time a bit of slip can also help any residual adhesive release cleanly without interfering with trained behavior.
Technician guidance and check-in cadence
Every Optifold journey starts with an Eyelid Profile Video. The client records in landscape at 1080p and shows slow blinks and vertical target tracking from two angles, straight-on and low/upward. This captures how eyelid skin behaves during different motions, and it allows the technician to map the likely path for each eye. Using that review, the technician prescribes the F-tape size and arc, placement landmarks, N-tape positioning, and the exercise recipe.
Guidance is continuous but tapers with progress. Daily checkups in the first week teach correct application, tabletop-mirror setup, and small habit changes that prevent early setbacks. Weekly checkups over the next few weeks catch minor drifts and allow sizing or placement refinements as the eyelid adapts. Monthly checkups in the maintenance phase confirm that the routine remains accurate. By this time the crease typically lasts multiple days to a few weeks without tapes, and maintenance stays light. This staged coaching is a core element of Optifold and is not part of the LIDS BY DESIGN product experience.
Why cosmetic strips struggle to create lasting behavior
Cosmetic strips prioritize comfort and concealment during the day, so the eyelid often barely feels the strip and therefore receives little training while it is worn. Narrow geometry also concentrates peel forces at removal, which can tug a thin band of skin and inadvertently excite competing paths. Because there is no engineered pinch point equivalent to the Plate-over-Boundary design, and because there is no individualized sizing, extended-platform setup, structured removal sequence, or tapered oversight, it is difficult for cosmetic strips to convert a neat morning result into stable daily behavior across days.
Illustrated part guide:
F-tape and N-tape anatomy
F-tape parts
The Tension Base is the wider contact region of the F-tape that delivers a uniform, perceptible stimulus during wear and spreads removal force across a broader area. The practical purpose is route specificity: it encourages a single intended skin-tension path during wear and helps reduce accidental stimulation of neighboring paths during removal.
The Fold Lock surface is the upper margin of the F-tape where the eyelid skin is guided to form and where the crease boundary is set. During removal, this is the surface that must be disengaged first by releasing the upper skin from adhesive contact before any peel begins, so forces stay controlled.
The Interface Band is the lower margin of the F-tape that remains exposed so the lower contact of the N-tape Lid Compression Plate can adhere to it. This is the interface that creates the centered pinch point when the N-tape Plate straddles the crease boundary.
N-tape parts
The upper contact of the Lid Compression Plate adheres to eyelid skin that has formed over the Fold Lock surface. It applies downward compression to initiate shaping and helps define where the crease settles across the Plate when alignment is correct.
The lower contact of the Lid Compression Plate adheres to the Interface Band of the F-tape. Together with the upper contact, it forms the centered pinch point. When the pinch point is aligned correctly, the crease appears roughly midway across the Plate.
The Tension Bridge spans the lash margin without sticking, preserving blink function while conducting compression downward toward the lower eyelid region. The key idea is that compression is delivered without immobilizing the lash margin.
Froggy Toes are small terminal elements that help seat the bridge, resist shear during motion, and support precise placement so the pinch point remains centered during blinking and daily movement.
Helpful links (clean list)
Guide: Eyelid Profile Video
Patents and recognition: Korean patent (image) • Japanese patent (image) • U of T Health Edge recognition
Conclusion
LIDS BY DESIGN is a slender cosmetic strip whose strength is immediate appearance. It delivers little training stimulus during wear and concentrates removal forces into a narrow footprint, which limits its ability to build stable behavior across days without a training protocol. Optifold is a medical-device system that coordinates wider F-tape contact, a centered N-tape pinch point, a deliberate removal sequence that includes a short morning scaffolding window, post-removal eyelid crease exercises, and tapered technician oversight. This combination is designed to achieve day-long stability, then progress from days off-tape to multi-day or multi-week endurance, while keeping the routine practical and repeatable.