TOP 10 HEALING SPA TREATMENTS
1. Deep Tissue Massage – Rather than a classic massage that simply feels great, deep tissue helps relieve chronic pain, injuries, postural problems, muscle tension and more. Deep tissue massages use deeper pressure and slower movements than classic massages, focusing on areas of tension and pain. Relax was New York Mag’s pick for the best deep tissue massage in the city, but don’t let the name fool you… this is made for the tough girls. 716 Greenwich Street – 212.206.9714
2. Floatation – The ultimate in relaxation, during floatation you peacefully drift atop water that is saturated with mineralized salts. Floating rejuvenates the brain and skin, lowers blood pressure, and increases circulation. Head over to La Casa Spa to try it out. 41 East 20th Street – 212.673.2272
3. Body scrubs – Use body scrubs to eliminate dead skin cells, exfoliate and reduce cellulite. The best part is there are tons of great homemade scrub recipes that smell amazing and will leave your skin glowing. Try mixing a cup of sugar, ¼ cup honey, 2 tbsp of brewed tea and ½ tsp of almond extract for a quick and easy recipe! For an organic sea salt or brown sugar scrub, try Dtox Day Spa in LA. 3206 Los Feliz Blvd, Los Angeles, CA – 323.665.3869
4. Reflexology – This gentle massage therapy, which is essentially a foot rub, is helpful for a wide array of issues including stress, arthritis, insomnia and back pain. It has even been proven to help pregnant women with delivery by reducing labor time. Check out any of the Bliss spas around the world for a great reflexology session. In NYC? There’s Bliss Soho – 568 Broadway – 877.862.5477
5. Mud bath – There’s no better feeling in the world than taking a mud bath in the Dead Sea, but if you don’t plan on going to Israel anytime soon, there’s a more convenient alternative. Head over to your local spa to submerge in one of these baths that soothe your skin and alleviate aches and muscle pains. Venture out of Manhattan to experience a great mud bath at Euphora Medi Spa & Salon – 3815 Northern Blvd, Astoria, NY – 718.786.4558
6. Seaweed wrap – While you may look silly all covered in green, seaweed wraps have countless benefits. From slimming effects to rejuvenating skin, this detoxifying process is incredible. Try the legendary wrap at Susan Ciminelli Day Spa & Salon – 120 East 56th Street – 212.750.4441
7. Thalassotherapy – Thalassotherapy uses seawater, as well as sand, mud, algae and other marine objects. Treatments ranging from mud baths to whirlpools to algae masks provide calm and rejuvenation to the body. While offering many benefits, the main goal is to improve blood circulation. For an unforgettable Thalasso experience, visit the Mezzatorre Resort & Spa in Ischia, Italy. +39.081.986.111
8. Saunas – For some, saunas can be a little too claustrophobic and a little too steamy, but if you like it, it is the most relaxing and calming experience. Saunas relieve stress, relax muscles, flush toxins and cleanse skin. You leave the sauna feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. Juvenex Spa features a unique sauna that is open 24/7, so it is available for you any time you need to let off some steam. 25 West 32nd Street – 646.733.1330
9. Turkish bath – Similar to a sauna, a Turkish bath includes a scrub and massage as well. It’s essentially a combination of a few on the treatments previously mentioned. A Turkish bath reduces stress and improves circulation. Open since 1892, Russian & Turkish Baths is the go-to spot for the authentic experience. 268 East 10th Street – 212.674.9250
10. Hydrotherapy – Hydrotherapy refers to the use of water as treatment. Treatments include baths, showers and body wraps. Hydrotherapy dramatically aids detoxification, loosens tense muscles, and helps with stress, aches, acne and colds. If you happen to be in South Beach, check out The Standard Miami – 40 Island Avenue, Miami, FL – 305.673.1717
Photo via The Standard Miami
BOTOX FOR DEPRESSION?
For years, Botox has been a savior to women longing to freeze time, pun intended. It’s a quick and easy way to recapture the porcelain days of youth. However, Botox has also gained popularity for its medical uses, such as treating neck pain, eye twitching, crossed eyes and muscle stiffness.
Arguably the most interesting recent use for Botox is using it to combat severe clinical depression. The Daily Mail reported that recent studies have discovered that injecting Botox into frown lines can drastically improve your mood. Scientists concluded that when people physically stop frowning (which can trigger negative emotions), they feel better. In a clinical study, researchers found that when the effects of the Botox wore off, depression symptoms returned. There is clearly a correlation there.
The FDA recently approved Botox as a treatment for chronic migraines and headaches. Now that’s not to say that a dermatologist visit should replace a Tylenol, but if it is an ongoing and severe problem, Botox could be a viable solution. It is injected into seven different sites on the head and neck, dulling the symptoms that accompany massive headaches.
Botox has also come to the rescue for people with severe perspiration problems and sweaty palms and feet. It can be injected into the problem areas to stop the glands from producing secretions, blocking the nerve supply in the sweat glands, effectively reducing perspiration.
Who says that vanity can’t contribute to medicine?
DOC TO THE RESCUE
The best kept secret for radiant skin is often a good dermatologist. In the last decade, some of them have become real celebrities, catering to Hollywood actresses and socialites, and creating their own lines of skincare. These range from Dr. Murad’s anti-acne and anti-aging solutions to the “Baron of Botox” Dr. Brandt’s no needles potions to Dr. Perricone’s pills and diets.
Here are some of their best sellers:
Dr. Brandt pores no more pore refiner: Hides pores, absorbs oils and mattifies shine. $45 - drbrandtskincare.com
Dr. Murad Rapid Age Spot and Pigment Lightening Serum: Restores clarity and evens skin tone. Reduces sun spots and age spots by 33% in 1 week. - $60 - murad.com
Dr. Perricone Blue Plasma: A non-acidic daily peel for brightness and glow. With Salmon Roe Enzyme and Copper. $95 -perriconemd.com
Dr. Dennis Gross Extra Strength Alpha Beta® Peel- 45 Application Jar: This patented two-step facial peel diminishes wrinkles, reduces pore size and dark spots, and improves skin tone and texture. $128 - dgskincare.com
Dr. Andrew Weil for Origins - Mega-Mushroom Skin Relief Advanced Face Serum: It helps defend against silent skin-agers, calms, soothe and makes skin more resilient. The result: visible aging is slowed. $115 - origins.com
DOWNTOWN LOOK PRODUCT GUIDE
by Kimberly Taylor
From left to right, top to bottom:
NARS Andy Warhol Flowers Eyeshadow Palette - $55
Benefit Cosmetics BADgal Lash Mascara - $10
Lipstick Queen Chinatown Glossy Pencil - $20
Charlotte Ronson A Perfect Mess Beach Hair - $20 (Exclusive)
Tom Ford Lip Color in Wild Ginger - $48
Ciaté Velvet Manicure™ - $19 (Exclusive - Limited Edition)
Stila Smudge Pots - $20
Stella McCartney Stella - $92
Lancome Dual End Smudger and Liner Brush - $20
Hourglass Aura Sheer Cheek Stain - $45
Carine Roitfeld for MAC Jungle Camouflage Compact - $44
Bumble and bumble Black Hair Powder - $19-35
UPTOWN GIRL MAINTENANCE
If the Lower East Side girl would give up on washing her hair for the dirty, undone look achieved with dry shampoo, an Upper East Side woman would do whatever it takes to look polished.
It takes time to get the proper maintenance for perfect hair and impeccable nails, a luxury that not many have, no matter if they are a career women or stay-at-home mom.
Fix Beauty Bar is coming to their rescue. The new Upper East Side salon is a one-stop shop where you can get a blowout, manicure and pedicure simultaneously. The entire process will only take 45 minutes.
The process is quick but never rushed, from the spa-like waiting area with magazines and snacks, to the pleasant scalp massage finishing your hair wash, to the cup of coffee or glass of wine offered while receiving your services.
For your hair, you can take a glance through their look book that features styles inspired by the biggest celebrity hair icons, from slick-straight tresses called the “Jen” to glam curls of “Kim”, or describe your own dream look. “Even when they go for beach waves, the hair will be flowy but still very well-controlled.” So even surf-girl hair is coiffed and UES-approved.
Owners and friends Michelle Breskin and Karol Markowicz, who always loved to get their hair blow dried together, conceived their salon as a throwback to the ‘60s when women would congregate at the salon to gossip and catch up. The architecture of the main station, built as a cube, encourages a conversation and makes it a perfect hangout place for girlfriends.The simultaneous mani-pedi is what sets this blow dry bar apart from the competition. You can even dry one hand while painting the other in the ingenious dryer built into the manicure table.
It may sound too good to be true, but the pricing is quite affordable. A blow dry is $40, while a simultaneous manicure is $15. Packages are available for members, starting at $75.
Fix Beauty Bar is located at 847 Lexington Avenue, 2nd floor – tel. 212-744-0800 - http://fixbeautybar.com/
TOP 10 FAUX PAS
Year after year, these beauty mishaps conquered celebrities, beauty junkies and the masses, leaving us asking the eternal question: “What were we thinking?”. Here are the worst beauty ‘faux pas’ to date, with their top offenders. Madonna is not in the list. She has sported many of these trends, from the teased bang to the lip liner to the over-plucked eyebrows…but she is the only one that, somehow, could pull them off.
1- Teased Bangs - 80s - Demi Moore, Courtney Cox, Tiffani Amber Thiessen
2- The Mullet - 80s - Pat Benatar, Joyce DeWitt, John Stamos
3- The Perm - 80s - Glenn Close, Sarah Jessica Parker, Nicole Kidman
4- Plucked Eyebrows - 90s - Pamela Anderson, Gwen Stefani, Drew Barrimore
5- Dark Lip Liner - 90s - Pamela Anderson, Nicki Minaj, Gwen Stefani
6- Spray Tanner - 2000s - Linday Lohan, Paris Hilton, Christina Aguilera
7- Hair Extensions - 2000s - Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan
8- Eyelash Extensions - 2000s - Alicia Keys, Kim Kardashian, Adele
9- The Shrillex - 2010s - Rihanna, Cassie, Keisha
10 - Tacky Nail Art - 2010s - Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Beyonce
Check out our Pinterest board with images of these beauty faux pas and more!
MY BEAUTY ADVENTURE
Kimberly Taylor Gindi is not only our Beauty Diary muse, but a celebrated designer who launched an eponymous clothing line and is now working on her fine jewelry collection, Blac Diamond. In this week’s Beauty Adventure, Kim tells us all about beauty in Brooklyn.
When I was growing up in Brooklyn, you never said you were from “Brooklyn.” You said “NYC.” It didn’t seem like there was a big difference. The truth is, though, I was a bridge-and-tunnel girl.
When I began attending NYU and interning for Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga and Teen Vogue, I still had a typical Brooklyn beauty routine. Every Friday, I got my blowout and French Manicure, and I didn’t leave home without my lip liner. It was a way to belong and fit in. Little did I know, these trends had never made it over the bridge.
In Brooklyn, for your sixteenth birthday, you would get makeup lessons and a bag filled with cosmetics, and share the same passion for plum lip liner with baby pink gloss.
One day, one of my best friends looked at my lip liner and just wiped it off of my face. In this dramatic gesture she made me realize that my beauty look made me an outcast in NYC. I never wear lip liner anymore, even if it’s the same color, not even when the person doing my make-up swears that it will completely blend in my lipstick – it just makes me paranoid.
Up until recently, I’ve done my best to try to fit with my beauty look. I went to Zurich last month and put very low-profile nail polish on, as European women generally a laid back style. When I got there, all of the girls had blue nails! I realized you can never ensure that your look will fit in, so you should just be yourself and do what you like.
I have a lot of respect for the women in Brooklyn. They really take care of their appearance, from regular mani-pedis to Keratin treatments. I don’t find it shallow - for me, it’s a sign that a woman respects herself and her appearance. Even the men in Brooklyn are very well groomed. I know men that are always in a suit and tie, and they really believe that “the way you carry yourself reflects on the world around you.”
From the day that my friend wiped off my lip liner at 18, the beauty world as I knew it shattered. It was only okay in Brooklyn. It was Brooklyn’s look, not New York’s, not America’s, not the world’s. I’ve been trying to get my mom to leave these BK trends in the past, but she doesn’t listen!
To that, I would still say to each their own. Be yourself, express your beauty, but make sure that, no matter what your look is, it’s done well!
French Manicures: Yay or Nay?
By Tiffany Etessami
“As soon as we put an end to French manicures, they will come back in style again.” –Deborah Lippmann, celebrity manicurist.
There is no beauty trend that has people more split than the French manicure. You either love it or you hate it, and it’s very rare that someone will change their stance on the issue. According to recent polls, 58.9% of Glamour readers love it, but a whopping 86% of InStyle readers said it was out!
In recent years, the French mani’s popularity has faded a bit. Devotees started migrating towards solid neutral shades like greige and soft pinks. More and more people started agreeing that it is a dated fad and not current or cool. Issue settled.
But, wait a second… pictures surfaced last month of trendsetter and undeniable cool girl, Rihanna, sporting not only a French mani, but a French pedicure! This look has always been an inarguable faux pas in the nail world – something that’s not up for debate – but since almost anything Rihanna does is considered cool, what does this mean for French nails?
Rihanna’s stamp of approval or not, I still find the French an outdated beauty look. To make the manicure more current, try using a sheer pink rather than stark white on the tips. Or try a funky reverse French manicure, which was seen all over the Fashion Week runways. Regardless of what I think, though, it seems like fans of the standard French manicure will remain forever devoted to this classic; so it looks like it’s here to stay!
Photo of E! ManiCam via @amelieg
BRAZILIAN MANI
by Tiffany Etessami
Viviane Vidal’s Beauty Adventure made us curious about the process of the Brazilian manicure. We were able to speak to Fernanda Lacerda, owner of Maria Bonita Salon & Spa (the salon that Viviane swears by). She took us through the steps of this impeccable mani.
At Maria Bonita, the entire process takes about forty-five minutes – it is meticulously done, and worth the extra time. The treatment begins with a paraffin immersion (during the colder months) or a cooling masque (during the Summer). This is followed by exfoliation, and an intense hand massage.
Here’s the part that makes this manicure so unique: every single inner and exposed cuticle will be removed. Following that, your nails will be painted all over, leaving absolutely no corner behind. It is going to look sloppy at first – polish will go on your skin – but this is intentional. They want to make sure the entire nail is covered with lacquer. Finally, they will remove the excess polish with acetone remover.
In the end, your hands will feel smoother, and your nails will have a beautiful, lustrous finish!
A MODEL’s BEAUTY REGIME
by Carole Hallac
Curious about the beauty regime of a hot Brazilian model? Our muse of the week, 22 year old model Viviane Vidal, reveals to the Daily Pamp her beauty secrets.
Tell us about your morning beauty routine.
I always use La Mer as a moisturizer. Before I go out, I put on basic make-up: concealer from Givenchy, some blush, my favorite is Nars in Orgasm, Lancome Hypnose Drama mascara and eye shadows from Mac.
How do you keep in shape?
I do yoga, pilates and I run. I am a vegetarian but I also eat fish for protein. I love Brasilian food but I also like Japanese.
How do you take care of your skin?
In the winter, I use Cetaphil to moisturize my body. For my face, my make-up removal product is from Bioderma, and I use the night serum from La Mer. For sun protection, I love the light milk from La Roche-Posay, 50SPF.For my lips, the great balm from La Mer.
What about your great locks?
Because of my work I have to take great care of my hair. Kerastase products are amazing; to protect my hair from the heat of styling tools I use Chroma Thermique Thermo-Radiance Protecting Milk and to treat split ends, Fibre Architecte dual serum. I am also a big fan of Moroccan Oil and Kiehl’s Olive Fruit Oil shampoo and mask.
Any other favorite products?
Essie for nail polish, affordable and trendy. I change nail polish all the time. I love red and black especially for winter, but I use neutrals and pastels as well.
Who is your to-go professional?
The Brasilian salon Maria Bonita in Soho, New York. I do it all, hair, nails, massage, the real Brasilian way, which is the only way to go!
Where do you shop for your beauty products?
Sephora, I love to have my make-up done there.
Your fragrance?
Chance, Chanel.
Favorite designers?
Rebecca Taylor, Marc Jacobs, Rag & Bone and Current/Elliott.
