Spa Beautifully

Targeted Skin Type Skin Care Products at Home

Colleen Coplick — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 21:20:18 +0000

We’re all had that professional facial, where the esthetician peers at your skin through a magnifying mirror, hmms to herself, and then selects certain products supposedly “tailored to your skin type”. Estheticians are trained in skin care, so I’m sure they know what they’re doing, but I’ve never known how to carry that over to my home facials.

BioElements, a lovely skin care lined used in salons worldwide, and one which I quite like, has taken the guess work out of this process for you with their new site.

In just two steps, you can find the skin products that you should be using for your skin type, and you’ll also come away with a complete regimine to take care of your skin each and every day, the professional way.

First, you select from seven different skin types, ranging from very oily to very dry and everything possible in between including sensitive and acne-prone skin. Then, BioElements identifies the Essential Products to get you started. You’ll also get information on why these specific products were recommended for you and why and how they work.

Tags: BioElements, facials, home products

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Winter Skin Woes? Try this

Colleen Coplick — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 03:30:45 +0000

Winter is coming, and the harsh weather - no matter what your version of harsh weather is - wrecks havoc on your skin. In the winter your skin deals with a lot of harsh environments, strong winds, cold air, indoor heaters, rain, snow, sleet and an overall lack of a good healthy dose of sunlight. We’re left with dry skin that can chap and crack.

Kayla Fioravanti, co-founder of Essential Wholesale and von Natur, has some tips to help your skin stay supple, soft and healthy throughout the hard Winter weather.

Your skin’s goals this winter should be to moisturize, exfoliate and moisturize again. Keep moisture in mind with all the choices you make in your skin care regime. Your skin functions differently in the winter so you need to change your routines.

Cleanse:
Winter is the time of year when you need to put away your foaming and soap cleansers and stock up on crème cleansers. Cleansing crèmes, lotions and milks are very effective cleansers and they do not contain the typical surfactant or detergent ingredients that most cleansing gels contain which can be too harsh on your skin in the winter months.

Tone:
Put away your astringents and switch to a toner for winter. Your skin needs to be soothed and balanced and not dried out further by an astringent.

Moisturize:
Choose heavier crèmes in the winter than you would in the summer months. Feel free to use your heavy eye crème around your lips and entire face. If your skin is itching it is because the dry air of winter is causing the moisture in the top layer of your skin to evaporate quickly. You will need to slather those areas with extra moisture until you feel relief. Never be afraid of using pure oils on your skin in the winter months. A bottle of jojoba oil or olive oil is a great thing to have on hand all winter. During the cold and flu season you should wash your hands liberally but be certain to apply a heavy hand crème every time you wash your hands.

Exfoliate:
Exfoliate twice per week to remove dead skin cells and allow your skin to absorb the extra moisture you are lathering on. The central heating plays havoc on the sebum our skin normally produces, which makes our skin lose water which should be retained in the lower dermis of the skin. Have you ever wondered about the areas of your skin that looks like your skin is flaking off your body? What happens is that during the winter months there are thousands of dry skin cells ready to be sloughed off the surface and they become clumped together with oil which forms what appear to be flakes. Don’t be flaky, exfoliate! Exfoliate your skin with crème based exfoliates with jojoba beads and your body will soak up the rich oils of a butter or oil based body scrub.

Just following these four simple steps will help you get through the winter without the drying, chapping and cracking.

Tags: , Cleanse, Exfoliate, Moisturize, skin care, Winter

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Jan Marini Skin Research Mask

Colleen Coplick — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 13:11:51 +0000

I got to try Factor-A Plus Mask. I’m a big fan of the home spa treatments, even if I do like to indulge in an afternoon at the spa. I’ll take it whenever I can get it, but I simply can’t go to the spa daily. I need some home products.

The Factor-A Plus Mask from Jan Marini was… interesting. It wasn’t as thick as I expected, and I needed to use more than I’d initially thought.

With 2% Salicylic Acid, the whole purpose of the mask is anti-acne and anti-inflammatory. I tend towards acne, which annoys the hell out of me, but it is what it is. I haven’t used Salicylic Acid or any other anti-acne facial products in some time, which is, I think, why in certain places, this mask stung a little. There were no break outs there, but I suspect they may have been brewing.

After getting over the initial surprise of the thinness of the product, my skin feels pretty darn fantastic. If you’ve got oily skin (which leads to breakouts), see about picking up a Jan Marini Skin Mask. It feels pretty good!

Next up from the Jan Marini line: their green papaya concentrate skin cleanser, and the green papaya enzyme mask. (sensing a theme here?).

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Win a $500 Spa Getaway in your City

Colleen Coplick — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:02:36 +0000

Between now and December 31, 2008, readers have a chance to win a $500 spa pampering day in their own city from the maker’s of the “FLABuLess” arm shaper-thingy.

“Arm shaper-thingy?” Ok, so no, that’s not the technical term but it’s what I called it when I first saw the device. It’s essentially, compression clothing for your upper arms, giving you the illusion of shaplier biceps.

image source: Flabuless

But that’s not what’s really important here. What’s really important is that giveaway. FLABuLESS is in search of a woman who thinks they best represent success, ambition and confidence. To enter, all you have to do it fill in an online submission form on their site, and explain why YOU are the most fabulous woman in the world. One winner will receive a 10% discount on their next FLABuLESS purchase but also the chance to win a spa package valued at more than $500 in their home city.The makers of FLABuLESS have also offered to give the readers of SpaBeautifully a chance to win an arm shaper from this site. If you guys are interested in that, just let me know in the comments and I’ll arrange it for you.

Tags: $500 spa package, Giveaways, shapewear

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Vaseline Men

Colleen Coplick — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 10:22:36 +0000

Vaseline has done a phenomenal job with their new Men’s line. It’s all strong and tough and manly - they’ve taken what is normally a women’s soft gentle domain and turned it into something a guy won’t be embarrassed to have in his bathroom.

Tags: , Men's line, Vaseline

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Microplane Foot File

Colleen Coplick — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 11:38:18 +0000

This is a very very cool product, with fantastic results, but it’s actually rather gross. The Microplane foot file removes the calluses from your feet by essentially ‘grating’ them. Microple actually makes word working tools and kitchen products like citrus zesters. The Mircoplane foot file works in a similar fashion, yet more gentle (oranges don’t feel or bleed).

Both the oval file and the file with the handle have containers to catch the skin you file off, so you’re not getting dead skin all over the bathroom or livingroom. Emptying the container is kinda icky, but if it leaves your feet smooth and soft, then I can handle a bit of ick.

And I think this is something I need to do this evening.. I’ve got rather rough feet at the moment! (Image source, Microplane USA)

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The Spa that comes to you

Colleen Coplick — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 08:31:19 +0000

Take out. Flowers. Groceries and the newspaper. All the good things that you can get delivered to you, and Spa Connections, a service based in LA, brings the spa to you. Spa Connections specializes in on-site/on-call beauty and wellness services and are the go to mobile spa for LA’s movers and shakers.

With an A-list client list which includes Christina Applegate and Britney Spears, Spa Connections’ services are available from 8am - 11pm, 7 days a week.

They offer the full slate of services, from facials and massages through to make up application (by their tv and movie trained, veteran make up artist, Jessica deBen) that leave you completely camera-ready.

So, if you live in LA (then I’m kinda jealous, just sayin’), try Spa Connections next time you’re in need. And colour me jealous. Because I’d be *all* over that.

Tags: celebrities, comes to you

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Introduction

Colleen Coplick — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 07:04:14 +0000

Hi! I’m Colleen, and I’ll be your blogger this evening. Would you like to see the wine list?

I wanted to introduce myself - I’m Colleen Coplick, and I’ll be taking over Spa Beautifully for Kori, officially beginning November 1st, but really, starting now.

Kori and I chatted about the site when I applied for the gig, and I took a look through the search terms to see what people were really interested in. I found out that you guys are not only interested in spa deals and cool places to go, but you’re also looking for information on home spa treatments. That works out well for me, because although I love to treat myself to a lovely hot stone massage or a fantastic facial, I also want to do all that at home when I’m watching Grey’s Anatomy, Heroes or My Own Worst Enemy. (Yes, I’m a tv junkie. I can’t help it.)

ANYway, I’m going to do my best to bring you all the new on the hot new spas, reviews of treatments and spas, as well as expanding the coverage for home treatments, as well as men’s options as well. Stretching Spa Beautifully’s wings so to speak. There’s a ton of options across the board for spa treatments, and new ones coming out all the time.

Also, I do tend to travel a lot, so I’ll do my best to include a spa event in each city I go to so you can find out where the best place to be pampered in your city is.

Please let me know if there’s anything that you’re interested in hearing more about. Have questions? Let me know. Let’s talk!

Tags: Home Treatments, introductions, Spa reviews, Taking over

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Fall Specials at the Chocolate Spa

Kori Ellis — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 00:27:10 +0000

The Spa at The Hotel Hershey in Hershey, Pennsylvania is also known as the “Chocolate Spa” because guests enjoy fantastic chocolate treatments such as the Whipped Cocoa Bath and Chocolate Fondue Wrap.

Right now, they have some special treatments available just for fall. From October 1 through November 30 select the Cranberry Pumpkin Facial (60 minutes, $110; 80 minutes, $160), Pumpkin Spice Scrub (30 minutes, $65) or Spice Soufflé Wrap (50 minutes, $125).

If you get all three seasonal offerings, you will receive 15% off the total cost. The Fall Sampler Package includes the 60-minute Cranberry Pumpkin Facial, along with the Pumpkin Spice Scrub and a Spice Soufflé Wrap.

Pumpkin is used in a lot of spa treatments because of its anti-aging, detoxifying properties. It leaves your skin feeling rejuvenated, hydrated and nourished.

To learn more about the Chocolate Spa visit ChocolateSpa.com or call 1-877-772-9988 to schedule your appointments.

Photo credit: sxc.hu

Tags: Body-Wrap, chocolate spa, chocolate spa treatments, Facial, pumpkin spa treatments, scrub, spa deals, Spa Specials, the hotel hershey

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Seasonal Treatments at The Spa at Marc Harris

Kori Ellis — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 20:40:00 +0000

If you are in the Boston area, The Spa at Marc Harris is offering 50% off all massages and $20 off facials throughout the month of October.

They feature a variety of wonderful treatments with a seasonal flavor. Some popular (and yummy!) treatments include:

Pumpkin Parfait Facial
50 minutes/$90 ($70 special through October 31)
This pumpkin treatment exfoliates skin cells, offers antioxidant support and stimulates collagen production. The treatment includes an all-natural pumpkin cleanser, pumpkin toner, pumpkin serum mask, and a pumpkin and flower moisturizer.

Cranberry/Pear Lotion Candle Massage
50 minutes/$95 and 80 minutes/$140 (50% off through October 31)
This massage is performed with the wax from a soy candle and the natural extract of cranberry and pear. It smells fabulous and is great for your skin!

To learn more about The Spa at Marc Harris, visit salonmarcharris.com. Marc Harris has five convenient locations.

Photo credit: sxc.hu

Tags: boston spas, facials, marc harris, massages, pumpkin facial, spa deals, Spa Specials, Spa Treatments

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