April 30th, 2012
Forget the Hallmark card or the flowers and take Mom away for a real treat. We’ve put together some suggestions for a Mother’s Day she won’t soon forget.
Where: One&Only Palmilla, Los Cabos, Mexico
What: Get Mom a weekend of spa treatments in paradise.
When: Mother’s Day Weekend
Why Mom will love it: Mothers and daughters can unwind in the privacy of a double Spa villa at the ESPA spa complete with private garden, rain showers, outdoor Mexican daybeds, and whirlpool baths to relax in after a treatment. Special for the weekend are Mother-Daughter Soul-to-Soul moments ($640 for two) that include a Mother-Daughter yoga or salsa experience, an ESPA age-defying radiance facial or intensive facial, a spa lunch, and full use of the heat experience and relaxation area, or the Enduring Memory Mother’s Day Experience ($355) with a two-hour holistic body ritual, an in-villa 30-minute experience including a foot ritual, bath, and relaxation time, a spa lunch, and full use of the heat experience and relaxation areas. And all of this with her now favorite child.
Where: Inn on the Alameda, Santa Fe, New Mexico
What: Show Mom how much you care by sending her to the welcoming Inn on the Alameda for a weekend of adult-only relaxation.
When: Mothers Day Weekend
Why Mom will love it: With the Please Your Parents Package, Mom and Dad can enjoy a weekend away from the kids in Deluxe Accommodations at the Inn, including the Inn’s signature continental breakfast, afternoon wine hour, and one box of yummy bizcochitos, the official New Mexico state cookie.
Rate: Nightly rate is $220 plus tax per room per night. With a regular rate of $270 plus tax, this package has $50 nightly savings and applies to the Inn’s Deluxe Rooms only. The stay must include Mother’s Day, Sunday May 13, 2012, but there is no minimum night stay requirement. The offer is subject to hotel availability.
Where: The Peninsula Spa, New York
What: An amazing ESPA “Spa-Cation” without leaving the island
When: Perfect for the week before or after Mother’s Day
Why Mom will love it: Play hooky and take your mama out! Without hopping on planes trains, or automobiles, have a spa-cation right in the city. You and mom can indulge in a 60-minute treatment, a special lunch, and complimentary use of the pool and fitness center. It’s available Monday-Thursday for $285 per person.
Where: White Elephant and Brant Point Grill, Nantucket, Massachusetts
What: Breakfast in bed is a nice gesture, but we bet Mom will enjoy the “Best Brunch on the Island” even more!
When: Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 13, 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
Why Mom will love it: From the Benedict Burger to the make-your-own Bloody Mary bar, a Sparkling Station for mimosas, and a brand new tapas station, this brunch is complete with all of Mom’s favorites.
Rate: Brant Point Grill’s Mother’s Day Brunch is $55 for adults, $25 for kids ages 6-12 and $5 for kids ages 3-5. Combine your brunch with a stay at White Elephant and enjoy special Hot Dates Cool Rates, starting at $195 per night.
Where: Park Hyatt Beaver Creek, Avon, Colorado
What: Located in the heart of the Colorado Rockies, this luxury chateau-style resort features many amenities, including the 30,000 square-foot Allegria Spa, with a full-service fitness center, slopeside pool and hot tubs. This world-class spa is offering the “Her Day, Her Way Mother’s Day” package, an exceptional package for moms to unwind on their special day.
When: Mothers Day, Sunday, May 13, 2012.
Why Mom will love it: Spoil Mom with an extra luxurious spa escape with the “Her Day, Her Way Mother’s Day” package that includes a 50-minute Swedish Massage; choice of one of three select treatments (25 minute Sweet Lavender Body Scrub, 30 minute Custom Facial or Express Manicure & Pedicure); champagne; take-home spa gift; and access to Aqua Sanitas, the health club, the pools and hot tubs.
Where: Parrot Cay, Turks & Caicos
What: Max and relax with Mom for a stress-free weekend away
When: Mothers Day Weekend
Why Mom will love it: Stress is a fact of life for mothers and daughters alike, which is why Parrot Cay has designed a Stress Management Wellness Package to target and relieve sources of tension and worry. Professional consultants will take things down a few notches with deep relaxing therapies, enlightening outdoor pursuits, and smart tips to put some of the carefree “island life” of Turks & Caicos into the home routine. Let the experienced personal fitness trainers convert pent-up stress into a productive mother-daughter workout, and follow it up with mind- and body-balancing yoga and meditation.
April 19th, 2012
Guinot’s new Gel Douche Soleil to the rescue! This NEW shower gel, made especially for bathing after sun exposure, is here just in time for Spring and Summer 2012. Sun, salt, and chlorine dry the skin, while sunscreens leave minerals behind. This shower gel has been formulated to dissolve sunscreen residues and UV filters while neutralizing the effects of chlorine and salt water. While all things relating to a day at the beach or pool tend to cause skin dehydration, so, too, do many ordinary soaps and cleansers. This after-sun superstar has Jojoba Oil to moisturize and soften, preventing dehydration and making it gentle enough for sunburned skin.
TO USE:Lather with Gel Douche Soleil in the shower to wash away sunscreens, salt, and chlorine.
Gel Douche Soleil comes in a 300ml bottle priced at $30. Guinot products are carried in over 1,000 spas and salons within the US. To locate a spa, visit www.GuinotUSA.com.
April 6th, 2012
La Réserve Ramatuelle, an intimate French retreat dedicated to health, wellbeing, and relaxation, just added four brand new programs for Spring 2012. Combining medical assessments, spa treatments, personal training sessions, targeted physical activities, relaxation, and appropriate diets, La Réserve Ramatuelle’s new health and wellness programs range in length from three to six nights and feature a total care approach. With never-ending views of the Mediterranean and a host of new health inspired programs, La Réserve Ramatuelle offers the most discerning travelers and spa aficionados an escape on the French Riviera unlike any other.
Energy Program (7 days, 6 nights)
Following a medical assessment and personal trainer consultation, the invigorating retreat will devise a health plan with personalized energy-boosting diet. Participate in daily sport and health activities – Pilates, yoga, aqua strength training, Nordic walks, and healthy cooking lessons. Freshen the skin with “Better Aging” treatments and a therapeutic therapy (choice of relaxing massage, reflexology, acupuncture, or shiatsu – finger and palm pressure.)
Dates: April and May 2012
Cost: 1650 € for activities and meals. Accommodations are an additional cost.
Weight Loss Program (7 days, 6 nights)
Following a medical assessment and personal trainer consultation, this healthful weight loss retreat includes three personal training sessions, daily sport and health activities, a Cellu M6 endermology session to reduce fatty tissue, La Réserve’s signature “Better Aging” Body Treatment, a hydrotherapy session, one therapeutic treatment, and a personalized health plan with a customized slimming diet and therapeutic natural drinks.
Dates: April and May 2012
Cost: 1650 € for activities and meals. Accommodations are an additional cost.
Beauty and Well-Being Break (5 days, 4 nights)
This pampering program includes only the best treatments – a Crème de la Mer Excellence Facial Treatment and a Crème de la Mer Excellence Body Treatment, a La Réserve Better Aging Face Massage and Better Aging Body Treatment, a hydrotherapy session, manicure, feet beauty treatment, daily sport and health activities, and a customized well-being diet.
Dates: April and May 2012
Cost: 1390 € for activities and meals. Accommodations are an additional cost.
Express Fit & Beauty (4 days, 3 nights)
For a quick ‘get fit’ fix, La Réserve Ramatuelle’s Express Fit & Beauty program includes three Nordic Walking sessions, a hydrotherapy session, one therapeutic treatment, a La Réserve Better Aging Body Treatment, a Crème de la Mer Excellence Facial Treatment, daily sport and health activities, and a customized well-being diet.
Dates: April and May 2012
Cost: 1090 € for activities and meals. Accommodations are an additional cost.
For more information visit www.lareserve-ramatuelle.com. To book, call +33 4 94 44 94 44 or email inforamatuelle@lareserve.ch.
January 16th, 2012
Last night’s Golden Globes kicked off the 2012 Awards season, and Hollywood prep teams are hard at work ensuring our favorite starlets are putting the best foot, and face, forward on the Red Carpet. On a smaller scale, we all have our own versions of a Red Carpet moment, and without a prep team, we need to rely on the products in our cabinets to help us achieve that picture-perfect look. From anti-wrinkle creams to redness reducers, these products will leave your skin flawless, and of course, Red Carpet ready!
The problem: Red, blotchy skin
The cure: Guinot Crème Red Logic, 1.3oz $40
Avoid caking on too much makeup to mask unwanted red spots; opt instead for one layer of this dream cream. Ingredients like arnica extracts and esculosides work instantly to reduce the appearance of redness and tone capillary veins, leaving your complexion refreshed and spot free.
The problem: Fine lines
The cure: Guinot Mini-Lift Éclat Beauté, .06oz $22
This day of skin saver relies on a complex of natural sugars and witch hazel to smooth away fine lines and even out the complexion. Soy protein forms a protective barrier over the skin’s surface to shield the epidermis from external irritants and prolong makeup application, so your face is flawless throughout your big night.
The problem: Dull complexion
The cure: ESPA Skin Radiance Mask, 25ml $68
Revive skin’s natural radiance with this instantly illuminating face-saving mask. Mulberry, bearberry, and liquorice work together to help visibly brighten and even out skin tone, while pumpkin enzymes dissolve dull cells clean away, breathing instant luminous light into skin.
The problem: Shiny skin
The cure: Guinot Matizone Moisturizer, 1.7oz $60
Eliminate shine while you prime with this mattifying moisturizer. Matti-sponges act to trap and neutralize shine by absorbing the oil on your face, and, unlike makeup powders, water is left behind ensuring the skin is not dried out. Hydrocyte complex works to lock in moisture by forming a protective barrier over the upper layers of the epidermis, which also makes it an ideal primer.
The problem: Messy makeup
The cure: Guinot Youth Time Treatment Foundation, 30ml $55
Covering up the problem is only half the battle. Now you can win the war on aging with Guinot’s new foundation. While may feel light, this long-lasting cover-up definitely pulls its weight! The Youth Time Treatment does double duty by masking the signs of aging and also decreasing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles over time. Green tea extracts and vitamin E work together to protect and sooth the skin, while hyaluronic acid spherical fillers penetrate the epidermis to plump out wrinkles and smooth facial features.
The problem: Dry cracked lips, smudged lipstick, and fine lines
The cure: Guinot Longue Vie Lèvres, .51oz $34
Nourish and plump up lips with this cellular regenerating treatment. Guinot’s replenishing spheres, which contain 56 cellular active ingredients, provide an anti-wrinkle effect by filling out fine lines around the lips, and camomile extract and vitamin E work together to ward off free radicals and moisturize the lip surface.
The problem: Tired eyes, crow’s feet, and puffiness
The cure: ESPA Lift and Firm Eye Moisturizer, 15ml $79
You don’t need to go under the knife to reduce the appearance of fine lines around the eye area. This potent line smoother provides an instant lifting effect beta glucan and chitin boost elasticity, while tightening argania spinosa extract and firming algae help recontour the delicate eye area. Golden root brightens dark circles, while summer snowflakebulb actively smoothes lines for a more youthful appearance.
The problem: Puffy eyes and dark circles
The cure: Guinot Anti-fatigue Yeux, .5oz $42
Alleviate the appearance of tired eyes with this revitalizing gel that gives the one-two punch to dark circles and puffiness. Plant extracts, horse chestnut, and ivy decongest and strengthen the capillary walls, while allantoin softens the epidermis and encourages cellular regeneration. Keep this gel in the refrigerator for a cooling effect that soothes heavy eyelids.
Find ESPA products at us.espaonline.com.
Find a store that carries Guinot at guinotusa.com.
November 1st, 2011
So maybe you’re more of an Estée than an Ina. That doesn’t mean you can’t create a sumptuous Thanksgiving feast for yourself (don’t worry – no turkeys are involved). We’ve created the perfect holiday menu for the spa-goer. Bon appétit!
Wine
To celebrate
In Argentina, Kaua Club & Spa at Park Hyatt Mendoza’s Wine Antioxident Spa treatment diminishes the effects of an extended afternoon wine tasting. Using grapes to rejuvenate and refresh recipients from head to toe, beginning with a Mendoza’s Wine Body Glow and followed by a facial of choice, aromatherapy massage with wine essence oils, and topped-off with a Grape Body Masque. Restoration is complete!
Passed hors d’oeuvres
Nuts, olives, and caviar
Rehydrate dehydrated skin with Guinot’s Hydra Cellulaire Serum featuring macadamia oil and give skin an extra boost with Guinot’s moisturizing Masque Hydra Beauté with olive wax.
For those indulgent snackers, in Nantucket, The Wauwinet’s Spa by the Sea’s Ultimate Caviar Facial is a 90 minute treatment that hydrates, lifts, firms, and smoothes the skin with protein-rich caviar.
Salad
Cucumber and carrot salad
Banish dark circles and puffiness with Guinot’s Anti-Fatigue Yeux with calming cucumber. To pamper maturing, dry, or stressed skin, spread on a soupcon of ESPA’s Regenerating Face Treatment Oil with carrot extract.
Sides
Cranberry sauce and wild yams
For a radiant complexion, apply Guinot’s Nouvel Eclat fresh radiance exfoliating peel-off mask, rich with cranberry extract, to give your face a “second skin” effect.
ESPA’s Deeply Nourishing Body Cream is the perfect winter moisturizer, deeply moisturizing skin with collagen-strengthening wild yam, along with liquorice, bearberry, and mulberry extracts.
Intermezzo
Ginger, to cleanse the palate
The Lanna Experience at Anantara Golden Triangle Resort & Spa in Thailand uses a species of ginger revered for its ability to cool inflammation, aid digestion, and combat joint and muscle aches during a foot ritual, scrub, body wrap, and massage.
Mains
Instead of wasting perfectly good seasonings on a turkey, use these aromatic herbs on yourself.
ESPA’s 24-Hour Balancing Moisturizer uses white thyme and lavender for a light moisturizing treatment for beautifully soft, clear, hydrated skin.
For an Eastern feast, ESPA’s Men’s Invigorating Body Reviver is bursting with the aromas of lemongrass and thyme – sure to be a hit with the ladies as well.
For a classic English herb, pour a capful of ESPA’s Energizing Bath Oil into your tub and sink back into an energizing rosemary-scented soak. For a double dose of rosemary, slough off dry winter skin with ESPA’s Relaxing Salt Scrub with rosemary and lavender.
Dessert
Pumpkin pie and fruit cake
No vegetable represents autumn quite like a big, orange pumpkin. Sub out the pumpkin pie for a radiant face with ESPA’s Skin Radiance Mask with pumpkin to enliven dull and tired skin.
For a decadent fruity spa treatment, pair Guinot’s Masque Hydra Beauté with its moisturizing fig derivative formula and ESPA’s Pink Hair and Scalp Mud with apricot kernel oil for silky, healthy hair and an immediate moisture boost for soft and supple skin.
Tea and Coffee
Chamomile, Rooibos, and Caffeine
Nothing soothes quite like a warm cup of chamomile tea, so extend that soothing feeling to pacify an irritated or red face with Guinot’s Crème Hydra Sensitive, loaded with calming chamomile.
En lieu of a toasty mug of Rooibos tea, slip on ESPA’s Calm and Soothe Mask, a deeply comforting treatment to help cool and mollify skin prone to redness made with Rooibos tea.
Liven up those limbs with a good dose of caffeine with Guinot’s Double Minceur Ciblée gel cream. The contouring cream helps tone and targets the initial process wherein fat starts to store itself.
September 12th, 2011
Summer is over, that chill is starting to creep back into the air, and pumpkins are showing up in grocery stores and at farmers markets. That tan is lingering, but for how long? No need to suffer goose bumps to get those last few rays of sun through the fall – we’ve consulted with some experts at ESPA and Guinot to find out the best ways to keep that golden tan!
While the sun is still strong enough to give you a bit of a glow…
Step 1: Stock your bathroom larder with ESPA’s Invigorating Salt Scrub, Essential Body Moisturizer, and Body Silk Spray.
Step 2: After catching some rays, be sure to exfoliate once or twice a week. ESPA’s Salt Scrub is an excellent exfoliator and will help the tan go deeper and make the skin hold its color longer. In addition to nourishing and making the skin feel smooth and fabulous, it stimulates pigmentation for a deeper tan, affecting new cells instead of only the top layer.
Step 3: Slather on some Essential Body Moisturizer to instantly quench thirsty skin, deeply hydrating with Bergamot and Lavender.
Step 4: Spritz on a bit of Body Silk Spray to give the skin a silky sheen and radiant glow, making any tan shine brighter.
Step 5: Be the envy of the office for weeks to come.
If the September sun isn’t quite warm enough to lure you into a teeny bikini…
Guinot has just the solution. We won’t tell anyone that you’re cheating – and your dermatologist won’t chastise you
Step 1: Fill the cabinet with Gommage Facile smoothing body scrub, Hydrazone Corps moisturizing body lotion, and Auto Bronze self tanning cream.
Step 2: Lather up with Gommage Facile to make your skin silky smooth and slough off any dead skin cells.
Step 3: Watch your skin become instantly bronzed while applying Auto Bronze self tanning cream – tinted to make application fool proof and to give an instant tan.
Step 4: Keep skin plump, hydrated, and healthy (and extend the life of your self tan) in between bronzing with Hydrazone Corps moisturizing body lotion.
Step 5: Fend off inquiries of your latest trip to the Caribbean with comments like, “Oh, I’m just naturally olive!”
More about the products: (more…)
February 28th, 2011
Who doesn’t want that inherently French, effortlessly slim look? Swimsuit season is approaching, and La Réserve Ramatuelle has the best way to shed your “winter coat” (translation: that extra layer of flab that crept up on you when you weren’t looking) without fasting or quick-stepping through tires. The très français boot camp will have two sessions in April and two sessions in May. Set just outside of St. Tropez, La Réserve Ramatuelle is surrounded by quintessential Cote d’Azur scenery and nearly 360 degree views of the Mediterranean Sea – a great spot for hikes through the Cyprus trees and olive groves.
While strenuous, this boot camp is hardly roughing it, chéries! Walks through the Mediterranean countryside, spa treatments, and delicious (and healthy) local flavors cooked up by Chef Eric Canino will have you feeling svelte, not spent. Designed for groups of 4-8 people, it’s a great excuse to bring along some friends.
The Boot Camp is a five-day (four-night) program. Guests start with a medical assessment to measure physical aptitude. The next day, training kicks off with an hour-long yoga session and healthy breakfast before a guide leads a fast-paced walk through the hills and along the coast. While sure to get hearts pumping, the duration and pace of these walks is determined on an individual basis. After the walks, guests can relax for the rest of the day, enjoying a healing and rejuvenating spa program that includes balneotherapy, body wraps, and the La Réserve Better Aging body treatment. (This detoxifying, slimming, and draining treatment enables cellular regeneration while eliminating blockages and tensions in the body.) Guests can also add à la carte experiences such as beauty and body therapies exclusively crafted for La Réserve by La Mer.
Dates:
April: Sunday, April 3-Friday, April 8
Sunday April 10-Friday, April 15
May: Sunday May 1-Friday, May 6
Sunday May 8-Friday, May 13
Price: €3900, accommodation in a Deluxe room and full board
Example of a typical day’s activities – day 1
6:30am Yoga session (1 hour)
7:30am Breakfast
8:30am Morning Walk
1pm Lunch at the hotel
2:30pm Balneotherapy
3pm Body Wrap
3:30pm Jet shower
4pm La Réserve Better Aging body treatment
6:30pm Relaxation session
8pm Dinner at the restaurant
February 16th, 2011
Paris’ posh Place des Vosges welcomes a new bar at the Marais District’s must-visit hotel, Pavillon de la Reine. Will you be served bubbly? Mais oui! Can you nibble a flaky croissant? Certainment! Is this going where you think it’s going? Non…
Pavillon de la Reine’s new nail bar offers manicures each Saturday in the hotel’s library. The inviting bibliothèque and honesty bar of the 54-bedroom hotel morphs into a beauty enclave where nails are buffed, shaped and lacquered with OPI polish. While you wait for your nails to dry, page through books from literary greats, cozy up to the crackling fireplace, and sip another verre de champagne. The ambiance feels like a comfortable neighborhood townhouse, rather than a typical nail salon, with decadent tapestries, luxurious wall coverings and oil paintings.
How’s that for a French manicure?
Technicians from the hotel’s Spa de la Reine by Carita give on-the-spot beauty for €25 (around US$33), with no reservation required. The nail bar is open to the public.
www.pavillondelareine.com or telephone: 33(0)1.40 29.19.19
November 23rd, 2010
While the holiday season might mean last minute shopping trips and extended family gatherings for some, see how some of the Swiss will be celebrating for a lesson in true holiday R&R.
Where: Palace Luzerne, Switzerland
What: Another reason to move to Switzerland
Why: Swiss hospitality is extending its courtesies to local parents this Holiday season. The Goose ‘n Wellness package will pick-up Swiss moms or dads in a limousine for a day of spa pampering with an evening make-over for mothers and a ‘manly’ manicure for fathers, while hotel chefs prepare a traditional Holiday meal including roasted goose, mashed potatoes, and red cabbage. When ready to return home (we think it could be hard), the limousine will take refreshed parents home with the perfectly prepared meal back to an awaiting family.
When: December 24-26. 579 Swiss Francs per mother including wellness treatment, glass of champagne and Christmas dinner for four.
November 17th, 2010
Crystal Cruises generously offers a $500 – $1000 per person “Spend as you Wish” onboard credit to guests and while it may be tempting to splurge on one of their fine wines or off-ship explorations, be sure not to miss the extensive Crystal Spa and Salon onboard! The first Feng Shui-designed spas at sea feature a private, canopied sun deck and a luxurious dry float bed suite in addition to private treatment rooms, a fully-equipped gym, complimentary yoga and Pilates classes, and their innovative Walking no Water program.
Treatments range from a salt and ginger scrub to a couples massage and acupuncture. For a quick pick-me-up, the spa also provides haircuts, styling, pedicures and manicures. There’s no better way to enjoy vacation than with a little pampering (even better when it’s on the house)!
Check out this yummy spa menu plate from a recent Spa Day!
