Posts with tag spa

The recession is certainly taking its toll on our beauty routines. But you don't have to sacrifice your spa trips completely. Just move the spa into your own bathroom.

Metamorphosis Day Spa in New York City is offering something new: a Stem Cell Facial.

WTF? Wow, we totally didn't see this coming. Is this even legal?

Even if you're not a bath-taker, there's something about the first really cool night of fall that makes you want to take a hot, candlelit bath and just pamper yourself. But to do that, you need the right products -- fortunately, we've got some fabulous suggestions!

Women will do a lot of things to have fabulous feet, but a new pedicure is available in Washington, D.C., that might make you squirm -- the fish pedicure.

Heidi Montag has some serious celebrity power -- the power to make people vomit, that is. Maybe that's because she's the next bionic woman (her next plastic surgery is rumored to be butt implants), or maybe it's because people are sick to their stomachs that she's making so much money by doing so much nothing.

Today's poll over at sister site StyleList is Would You Wear a Turban? Thank you Olsen Twins and Prada, for another trip to Unwearable Village.

It's our opinion that you may only wear a turban:

• while doing your hair, at the spa or salon, or in the comfort of your own bathroom
• if you lost your hair due to cancer treatments or alopecia
• because it's part of your religion
• going to a Murder on the Orient Express party
• when the Queen grants you the use of Dame, e.g. Dame Elizabeth Taylor
• to satisfy an unbearable urge to pull out your old Dynasty costumes, i.e. you are Joan Collins

Otherwise, no.

Disagree with us? Head on over to the poll and vote!

You wouldn't think of Lancome as a brand associated with flying, but that might change with the Lancome Happy Boarding program. Happy Boarding is a luxury lounge space, located inside or near the Lancome store. Inside the lounge area, customers can get massages, makeovers and and beauty "check-ups". The Happy Boarding treatment program is for men and women and the full four-step experience includes a massage, a skin check-up, a make-over and advice about beauty tricks and tips. Happy Boarding events have already taken place at Buenos Aires Ezeiza Airport and in the Copenhagen Kastrup Airport. Given the proliferation of spas in airports, it makes sense that the makeup counter should move in too. They should get one of these in LAX for stars to get their touch-ups before facing the paparazzi at the luggage carousel.

I wash my hair with good-old-fashioned shampoo, and I figured I was lookin' alright. But today I learn that if I want my hair to really shine, I need to spend the big bucks.

At least, that's how it works for Catherine Zeta Jones, who apparently has so much money that she can spend more than £200 (about $400) just washing her hair. How is this even possible, you ask? Does she light her bathroom with fires made from burning money?

Not exactly (but almost). The actress believes she got her shiny locks by lathering her scalp in truffles and caviar. A spa near London flies in the fish eggs from Iran five days ahead of every treatment, then, upon Miss Zeta-Jones' arrival, washes her hair in a truffle-based shampoo before smearing on the caviar -- all while the star sips champagne and nibbles on culinary delicacies.

According to a source for the UK's Daily Mail, "The eggs are packed with omega-3 fatty acids necessary for the formation of structural proteins" which are supposed to repair dry and damaged hair.

According to me, this salon is scamming rich people and getting away with it.

Odd how the people with the most stress in their bodies are often the people who can least afford to get it massaged away.

There are exceptions, of course, like the overworked attorney who hasn't seen sun in weeks or the Wall Street fund manager who carries the weight of millions in his neck. But for the most part, the office drones (myself included), folks in the service industry, construction workers and nurses out there who could all use a good deep tissue massage can't justify the $70 an hour expense.

If you fall into this category of overworked and underpaid, massage schools are great ways to get on the massage table for a lot less payola. Massage schools often run student clinics that offer hour-long massages at half-price. You see, to become certified in the field, massage therapists need to have a certain number of supervised training hours. The good news is that schools are always looking for guinea pigs willing to forgo the chic, tranquil aesthetic of an expensive spa for humble surroundings and modestly-priced massage.

So if you are just looking for someone to knead the tension out of your body, a student massage is a great value. To find a massage school in your area, check out NaturalHealing.com's list of certified training centers.

Marshall G. Wolbers was enjoying the good life -- pedicures, spa treatments, the works. Only, he wasn't willing to pay for it. In at least 20 different spas over the past month, when it came time to settle the bill, Wolbers would claim to need "something from his car," then split, leaving the salon sans payment.

Authorities had been circulating a description of Wolbers throughout southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois -- where he'd been operating his scam. Police finally spotted the pedicure-fanatic driving through the Chicago suburbs -- but he refused to pull over, instead evading the cops after a reckless chase.

Two days later, he was arrested later at a local train station.

Finally, the spa is safe again.

In America, where 30 million citizens don't have access to health insurance, the idea of government-sponsored spa services seems not just decadent, but downright crazy. In Chile, however, where all citizens have access to free basic health care, the situation is quite different.

A case in point is a local council outside of Chile's capital Santiago, which recently opened a free community spa. Apparently residents can come to the Spa Aqua Colina for everything from hot stone massage to physical therapy, and everything is free.

According to Mayor Olavarria Rodriguez, the local spa isn't just about pampering, it's about public health. He says, "Many people in my community are leading unhealthy lifestyles that will cost us money in the long run. In Chile, councils are in charge of financing their own health surgeries. I would prefer to tackle the root of the problem by stopping patients from becoming ill in the first place."

I don't know about you, but I'm starting to feel like the US government owes me a shiatsu massage right about now.

One of the nice things about getting a facial is that the treatment is fairly standardized. Sure, the order of the process might differ along with the products, but you can pretty much bet the farm that a facial in any spa around in the world will include cleansing, exfoliation, steaming and a mask.

For the wild-at-heart spa goer, the New York Times Style Section highlighted a few new treatments out there that are sure to feel more unpredictable than your typical European facial. There's the champagne and caviar facial, which blends the enzymes of bubbly with the benefits of caviar extract for a truly luxe experience. Offered at Verabella Skin Therapy in Beverly Hills, the spa claims the treatment offers a firming, hydrating effect for the face. Then there's the Beer Pedicure at Exsalonce Salon and Day Spa in Chicago, which uses the enzymes of the brew to help soften calluses and exfoliate the feet. And for the truly adventurous, there's the Boyzilian Wax at the Nickel Spa in San Francisco. Boyzilian being a Brazilian for boys. Any takers on that one?