Review: Anesis Superboost Facial

I don’t know what it was about, but the last few weeks have been pretty full on with work and life and my face was starting to feel the effects of late nights, lack of sleep and not the healthiest of diets.

So when I was invited to try out a facial at Anesis Spa, you couldn’t get me in there fast enough

Based in Clapham Common, can I just pause and declare my love for the fact that Anesis Spa is on a road called The Pavement because it literally is the pavement, I just thought that was so cute

Moving on before you think my declarations of love for a road are a little excessive. The spa itself is really sleek and chic with dark floors, glass panels and shelves which hold a variety of brands that are focused on efficacy and not just on looking nice

My facial started off with my therapist Georgia asking me what my concerns about my face were, which I rattled off with ease (acne scarring, open pores) but left a few out to see if she would spot them.

I love that she didn’t take my word for it, but whipped out the scary I can see every pore on your face facial light (I honestly need to get myself one of those, although on second thoughts it might be a little dangerous in my hands), not the real name obviously, but that’s what I like to call it.

After careful examination of my face she mentioned the things I left off, (dehydrated, slightly sensitive/reactive), which left me feeling that I was in I was safe hands. There is nothing better than a therapist who can identify what your face really needs without you having to tell them, and I love that the facial is completely bespoke and customised to your skins concerns and needs

Adamina Spa Kensington

A few weeks ago I was lucky enough to be invited for a facial at the beautiful Adamina Spa in Kensington*, located about 5-10 minutes away from Kensington High Street. Set in a lovely old building, which used to be a bank, it has the quiet feel of a bank from the outside but once inside it is such a gorgeous elegant space with high ceilings, white pillars, lovely relaxing scents and spacious treatment rooms. The spa offers a whole host of treatments from facials, massages, manicures and pedicures to osteopathy, nutrition and pilates. They also have a lovely steam room and you can book the spa for a girly pampering retreat.

Review of the Bespoke Facial with Antonia Burrell

Antonia Burrell

Something I’m trying to start doing more often is facials and todays post is about the most amazing bespoke facial I had with Antonia Burrell.

Antonia is a well renowned UK skincare expert, an accredited BABTAC practitioner and a firm favourite with many beauty editors. Her “Natural Face Lift Facial” is so advanced that it has been formally accredited by BABTAC one of the beauty industry’s top awarding bodies and is now taught as part of the London College of Fashion postgraduate curriculum. So it’s safe to say that I was uber excited to meet her as not only is she renowned as an expert facialist but she is also a woman of colour which means that although she is an expert with all skin types, she also has the inside knowledge of our skin type and concerns. This is reflected in her skincare line, which is formulated, to be gentle but effective and specifically works to treat pigmentation, uneven skin tone and loss of radiance, something that affects a number of women of colour.

#6 Is it because I'm not a celebrity? - Facial at Linda Meredith

It was my first year’s wedding anniversary last month – woo hoo!!! I can’t believe how the time flew by and I have to admit to still feeling like a major novice in all things marital! But the two big things I have learnt are that you are both always on the same side (yes even when they try to convince you that you don’t need the lovely shoes you just saw on sale!) and what you get out of your marriage is what you put into it, so always make an effort. Anyway in the lead up to our anniversary I decided to be helpful and leave Mr Lotions & Potions various hints lying in obvious places around the house with certain key items circled, pages folded etc – and I thought it was going really well till we decided to go with the traditional theme of anniversary gifts and seeing as the first year is paper – I realised my circled gifts wouldn’t really work anymore. Thankfully the lovely Mr Lotions & Potions decided to surprise me so not only did I get my paper gift but he also got me one of my circled items which was to have a facial at Linda Meredith!!

Now Linda Meredith is known as a facialist to the stars – and boasts a client list that reads like ‘Who’s Who’ with names such as Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kate Moss as devotees of her facials. Her bespoke facials are often described as some of the finest ones around.

So introductions over – on the day of my facial – I dress with extreme care and skyscraper heels to rival some of the tallest buildings – I’m not ashamed to admit it, I was hoping to bump into some celebrity – please don’t ask me what I would have done if I had ……but alas there was no there in the waiting room when I arrived save for the numerous signed photographs on the wall from various a-list celebrities and my therapist who would be doing my facial. Now for those who are wondering, no it wasn’t Linda herself but one of her specially trained therapists whose skin by the way was so amazingly clear it was practically translucent plus it had the additional benefit of being all glowy and healthy! Wow I think, can I have whatever you just had.

My facial starts really well, with her explaining what she felt was going on with my skin and what specific products and tips would be helpful to turn my skin around but then it all went a bit sour!

While I’m lying there wrapped in my warm towels with something soothing on my closed eyelids, the door opens and a loud voice is heard telling her off for (a) having gone over my allocated facial time and (b) asking her how much longer she will be and urging her to speed it up. HOW RUDE! Obviously this meant that the rest of my facial was quite rushed and I felt completely sorry for my facialist and spent the rest of the time worrying about how much trouble she was in.

Now while I can understand that you have a business to run and need to reprimand staff if they are not able to work to timings, what I couldn’t understand was why this had to be done in the middle of my facial with me lying there (i.e. why couldn’t it wait until she finished with me or at the very least pull her out of the room and speak to her privately) and I couldn’t help but wonder and come to the conclusion that if I was someone who was deemed to be important, in other words a celebrity it wouldn’t have happened. I have to say it left me feeling slightly sad and overall the experience didn’t leave me feeling pampered or relaxed as it should have done. I was extremely disappointed....

On a positive note, my face was glowing when she finished and I felt like I had just been given a touch of what she had. Have a look at the website for facial and product details. www.lindameredith.com

Xoxo