How much do you want that comb? We totally love Shocantelle and her style..not sure if the ‘look’ will take off here in Hong Kong.  More comedy beauty videos to come…

Set back in a discrete leafy lane, a few hops from Star Street lies Wanchai’s best hidden secret.  A new boutique beauty spa and nail salon set over two floors, offering fabulous OPI centric treatments and spa treatments including massages, facials and waxing Iyara Wanchai, sister to the Central escalator branch, is the new kid on the ever-growing Wanchai block, set in a surprisingly serene and relaxing location, up a cobbled stepped street, overlooking trees and greenery.

Decorated in aqua and chocolate hues, the welcoming parlour is a complete pleasure and surprise to walk into, and a definite must for lunchtime escapes  for Wanchai workers.  There cant be a better place in the area to spend a lunch break.  Bring in  a sarnie, have a pedi and feel a million miles away from the hussle and bussle of the city below.

Upstairs, the treatment rooms offer all manner of spa services such as really reasonably priced massages, slimming treatments, and waxing, and if they are anything like their mani-pedis, they should be fantastic.

I treated myself to their signature ’spa manicure and pedicure’ which comprises of a really good exfoliating scrub and foot massage, and finished off with a splash of my favourite OPI ‘a good Man-dar-in darling is hard to find’ nail polish..  The expert staff snipped, clipped and filed my talons to perfection, buffed my tired skin with their fantastic ‘milk and honey’ Cuccio scrub, and massaged all the tension I had left away with a great foot massage.

By the time it was over, my tootsies looked and felt divine enough to step onto Cloud 9.

Cost?
Spa Pedicure $330 Spa Manicure $190

Where?
Iyara Wanchai
(Inbetween Star Street and Hopewell Centre off Queen Road East)
Wanchai
Hong Kong

Telephone: +852 2545 8637 / +852 2545 8663
Email: iyara1@biznetvigator.com
Web: www.iyarabeauty.com

This promotion is currently closed, however if the current state of the angry volcano is anything to go by, Hong Kong may have more extra-time visitors soon!  If you are stuck in town, the offer will still stand…

Staying yet another night in a hotel?  Feel like you are outstaying your welcome as guests? Missing your best friend’s wedding or the business meeting of a lifetime? 

Thanks to the Icelandic Eyjafjallajokul volcano eruption disruption, the chances are you’ll be hanging around in Hong Kong for another week or so at least.

And that’s no bad thing! Trust us – we’re the experts in all things chilled in HK.

While the airlines do their best to bring the world at 40,000 feet back to normal, BBHK has the perfect addition to an extended break with exclusive spa deals in the top joints around town for stranded fliers.  Turn a negative into a positive, and feel your stress float away with discounted pampering all over Hong Kong.   You will be relaxed and destressed quicker than you can say Eyjafjallajokul. Boom.  Its a win-win situation.  Hurrah for BeautyBuzz I hear you say!

Take along your eticket, showing your cancellation and mention the volcano promotion to receive discounts at the following fabulous HK spas.  Don’t forget to join the BeautyBuzz members club for free, to be the first to know about exclusive offers.  Join here now.

WANCHAI
Iyara in Wanchai are offering 20% off regular priced services at Iyara Ship Street any weekday. Monday to Fridays only.   Show your eticket and mention the volcano special when booking the appointment

Iyara Wanchai Day Spa
1A, 53 Ship Street
(Inbetween Star Street and Hopewell Centre off Queen Road East)
Wanchai
Tel+852 2545 8637 / +852 2545 8663
Iyara1@biznetvigator.com
www.iyarabeauty.com

CENTRAL
All the Sense of Touch Spas in Central are offering 20% off facial, massage, signature treatments and waxing.  Show your eticket and mention the volcano special when booking the appointment

Sense of Touch Lan Kwai Fong Spa
1-5/F, 52 D’aguilar Street, Lan Kwai Fong, Central
Tel: 2526 6918

Sense of Touch Hollywood Road Spa
83A Hollywood Road, Central, Hong Kong
Tel: 2517 0939

Sense of Touch Arbuthnot Road Spa
Lower Ground Floor, The Ovolo, 2 Arbuthnot  Road Central, Hong Kong
Tel: 2869 0939

SOHO
DK Aromatherapy are offering 20% off all regular priced services.  Show your eticket and mention the volcano special when booking the appointment.  Read DK Aromatherapy review here.

DK Aromatherapy
G/F, 16A Staunton Street, Soho,
Central, Hong Kong
Tel: 2771 284

TSIMSHATSUI
The Mira Spa in the Mira Hotel are offering 20% off from Monday to Friday 10am to 6pm.  Show your eticket and mention the volcano special when booking the appointment.

The Mira Hong Kong
118 Nathan Road
Tsimshatsui
Kowloon
Hong Kong
Tel +852 2368 1111
www.themirahotel.com

REPULSE BAY
The Retreat is offering 15% off all services.  Show your eticket and mention the volcano special when booking the appointment.  See The Retreat reviews here and here

The Retreat
1/Floor, 33 Beach Road
Repulse Bay
Hong Kong
T: (852) 2803 1860
www.the-retreat.com.hk
info@the-retreat.com.hk

DISCOVERY BAY
The Sense of Touch Spa is offering 20% off facial, massage, signature treatments and waxing.  Show your eticket and mention the volcano special when booking the appointment

Sense of Touch Discovery Bay Spa
140A-1, 1st floor, Block C, DB Plaza, 
Discovery Bay, Lantau Island. 
(opp. Sunshine Kindergarden)
Tel: 2987 9198

All salons have the right to change or cancel the offers at their own discretion,

Ever lost in Central, looking for a fab little place to have a manipedi, but don’t want to pay extortionate prices, or get a free fungal disease with a dodgy looking local salon?

Well Rainbow Nails might just be the place for you.  Discretely tucked away, high up in a building near H&M you will find Helen Leung and her team at Rainbow Nails.  After ten years in the industry, Helen also is the chief OPI trainer in HK, and regularly runs nail classes in her quaint little shop.

In a strict shoes-off policy, the OPI centric shop is clean, friendly relaxing and very reasonable, not to mention you will have your nails done by one of the best nail technicians in Hong Kong.

Whether you are looking for gel nails, nail art, buffing, french or just a regular manipedi, Rainbow is a fabulous little gem in the middle of the bustling city.

“My nails are always a mess, I never have time to have a manicure”
I decided to try out the O.P.I Axxium Soak Off Gel nail varnish system, not to be confused with gel nails.  With regular gel nails, you have to have quite a thick layer of gel placed on the nails, generally with extensions, with a reasonable amount of damage to the nails.  This also has to be ‘filled in’ every 3 weeks.  With the new O.P.I Axxium Soak Off Gel, it is the half-way home between regular nail varnish and gel nails.  It claims not to damage the nails so much as it is a much lighter resin, and essentially a nail varnish, it just coats your nails in a thin layer of coloured gel, so you have shiny beautiful nail polish for three weeks that doesn’t chip!

Rainbow Nails YouTube Channel – OPI Axxuim Removal/Reapplication Demonstration

I personally have very thin nails with short nail beds, and nail varnish just chips off in about twenty minutes.  I am often envious of the beautiful talons I see clawing themselves around town, but I also don’t like the idea of fake nails,  and as I spend a lot of time typing, I can’t handle long nails, so with eighteen colours to choose from, the gel nails seemed to be a fabulous idea. Imagine, beautiful shiny nails, which are stronger than usual, that will stay pristine and chip free for two to three weeks!

The process took about an hour, in which time Leung, expertly applied very thin layers of coloured gel, which were set hard with a UV lamp.  I also had a fabulous manicure, in which Helen used a scary looking electric filer to remove the hard skin.  Much to my initial hesitance, and her reassurance, it was very effective in removing the hard skin without clipping, and possibly cutting my skin.  Helen warned me that if a technician isn’t trained properly to use the electric filer, then they can cause a lot of damage, and that most people don’t know how to use them, so do be cautious when you see them pulled out in less kosher looking salons.

Due to the UV light, my nails were dry as soon as she was finished, so I could go about my day not flapping my hands around like a baby.  “O.P.I Axxium Soak Off Gel is one of our most popular treatments,’ Helen told me.  “What is so fabulous is that the colour is so shiny and vivid, and lasts for up to three weeks.  You can also paint over it with regular nail varnish if you want to change, and the nail varnish remover  doesn’t remove the gel, just the colour on top”.

I decided to put them to the ultimate test.  I was off to Phuket the next day, and as girls know, nail varnish dies a death on holiday, with sun creams and bug sprays disintegrating them, as quickly as we paint them, they quickly start to get sticky and dull.  But with the OPI Axxium Gel Nail Varnish there was no such problem.  My nails stayed as shiny and perfect as they were when I walked out of Rainbow Nails.  Three weeks later, they still looked amazing, even though they had ‘grown out’ a bit.

The Upkeep
As you cant remove the gel yourself, you have to go back to the salon to get them soaked off, or topped up, whichever you prefer.  In the nature of research I soaked them, which took about half an hour, and also comprised of a mini-manicure and buff to remove the flaked top layer of nail. This is where I personally had a bit of a problem.  As my nails are unusually thin, I did sustain a bit of damage for the procedure.  I found for the next six weeks, my nails were flaky and even more brittle than normal.  However I have had acrylic nails in the past, and the damage was no way as much as before.  Helen advised me to rub nail oil on them, and keep them painted, which I did, but I was left longing to put the O.P.I Axxium Soak Off Gel  back on.  I had my fix, now I wanted another hit.

Conslusion:
I would 100% recommend Rainbow nails and Helen for all nail treatments.  With regards to the O.P.I Axxium Soak Off Gel system, even though I had a small issue when they were removed I think it is a fabulous, but addictive product.   I would do it again, especially if I had a holiday to go on, or maybe a wedding to go to, but as I wouldn’t want to keep going back every three weeks, and it did slightly damage my nails, I wouldn’t do it regularly.   Very few people have nails as thin as mine, so I don’t think the damage would be noticeable at all.  However if you do have very thin nails like myself, do consider the constant upkeep or the damage after.  If you seem to find that you are too busy to ever get your nails done, and you are constantly embarrassed of your hands, then I think the O.P.I Axxium Soak Off Gel system might be perfect for you.

How Much?
Rainbow nails regularly have promotions and special offers for returning customers, so do join their mailing list to in informed, but at the time of going to press the cost is:
For two treatments-
Hands: was $1,150 now $1,000
Feet: was $1,550  now $1,400

Where?
Address : Unit 503, 5/F., Canton House,   54-56 Queen’s Road Central,   H.K.
Telephone : (852) 2840 0660
Website : http://www.rainbownails.com.hk/
Email : rainbownails@rainbownails.com.hk

Hectic Hong Kong life leaves most of us feeling frazzled, tired, and stressed, surely there can’t be a better way to relax, unwind and spend a totally selfish day being pampered from tip-to-toe, and be treated like the queen that you are for a day?

The Retreat in Repulse Bay has the answer.  Their signature treatment ‘Queen for a Day’ promises to indulge you in chocolate decadence, complete with body treatment and facial followed by a simultaneous manicure and pedicure to complete your day fit for a queen.

The Venue
Somewhat hard to find, The Retreat is situated on Beach Road, which is a hard left turn off Repulse Bay Road.  The rather irritable belching taxi driver dropped me off by 7-11, which at first glance does not look like a likely venue for a A-grade spa, but as we all know looks can be deceiving.  Upon entering The Retreat, I was greeted by a bright and airy reception.  One can immediately tell that no expense was spared in the design and interior of The Retreat, it is simply beautiful.   Its calm simplicity is where it differs from every other spa I have visited in Asia. Rather than going down the Asian zen-like interior route, the design team at The Retreat have opted for a clean, crisp, almost Miami beach chic, without a Buddha or a bong in sight.  The reception is also home to a Tony & Guy hair salon, and a fabulous health conscious cafe which offers a variety of snacks, salads, and home made smoothies and juices, the perfect compliment to a health spa.  The only shame is the window situation which I was assured is in the process of being fixed.  Running the whole length of the property will be floor to ceiling windows with unparalleled panoramic views overlooking Repulse Bay.  These are currently walled up due to planning bureaucracy, but once these are opened, The Retreat will have one of the best views in Hong Kong.

Mini Aura-Soma Introduction
My Therapist Carol first lead me into a room filled with hundreds of back-lit, beautiful dual coloured bottles.  Every colour combination conceivable was on view for me to choose from.  I was told to chose the four bottles that appealed to me the most, then Carol would be able to tell me about my personalty, talents, present situation and potential.  By interpreting the colours I chose,  Carol was able to tell me that I was very chilled out, relaxed, and happy.  I would expect that a beauty and spa writer would be very chilled out, with all the treatments reviewed, otherwise the spas would be doing something very wrong.  She then chose a particular bottle to take into the treatment room, which was to be opened and the colours’ energy was then said to work in alignment with the therapy.  I was also then ‘prescribed’ a certain shower gel which would help me in day to day life.  Although extremely charming, and enjoyable to hear about, I am always rather cautious about delving into ‘fortune telling’, as for the unsound mind, I believe that readings can be detrimental.  I was however assured that this was not fortune telling, but a heavily researched colour therapy that can aide you to a better path.  In fifteen minutes it is hard to tell if this is true, but it left me intrigued and interested to try a full consultation to find out what it is really about.  In the meantime, a little pink bottle came with me into room two…

The Treatment
Once inside the aqua and mosaic room, I derobed and was smothered from head to toe in rich, gooey dark chocolate.  I was then wrapped in cling film and covered in a heated blanket.  Although I was concerned that I would be cooked like a brownie, Carol informed me that the chocolate was extremely good for the skin, and would balance and hydrate my post Phuket sun-snogged skin.  While I was happily cooking, Carol started on the ‘Exotic Moisture Dew Facial’  and head massage, in which I found myself happily snoring.  I was then unwrapped from my cocoon and told to wash off the chocolate, which was a lot harder that I imagined as it was extremely sticky, but once clean my skin was as soft as a baby’s bottom, and left smelling of a bar of Dairy Milk.  Back on the bed I was treated to a collagen eye treatment to soothe my dark circles, and was sent back into a delirious snooze.  I was once again woken up, and left to dress.  I was then lead into the nail parlour, which hopefully soon will have the wonderful floor-to-ceiling windows.  Sitting in one of the most ingenious pedi-chairs I have ever seen, I had a coral pink OPI pedicure, which by all accounts was one of the best I have ever had.

The Conclusion
I was literally floating when I left The Retreat, the delicate smell of the chocolate on my skin seemed to continue my state of relaxation, more than the usual smell of aromatherapy oil that lingers after a treatment.  My skin felt ridiculously soft and fabulous, my eye bags didn’t seem as prominent as usual, and my toes looked beautiful.  I’m yet to decide if the little pink Aura-Soma bottle in the room added to the effect, but I went to sleep feeling somewhat royal and not wanting my day to end.

The Retreat details here
Queen for a Day  175 mins $tbc
Collegen Eye Treatment 30 mins $tbc

My antics so far this weekend would certainly suggest otherwise.
It’s Sunday morning, I am in a world of lager-induced pain, and I am back at the scene of crime – Lan Kwai Fong – for my first treatment as BBHK male grooming editor.
Cheers to Beers, the award-winning signature treatment at Sense of Touch (52 D’Aguilar Street), claims to the contrary, that beer is in fact the answer for the travel-heavy, muscle weary man. As I make my way up Lan Kwai Fong, tip toeing through the ebs and flows of last night’s empties (a selection of which are likely to have been mine), I think am going to need some convincing.

A bubble beer bath
Having de-frocked, I am plunged into a deep bath of Aromatherapy Associates body wash, topped up with a flagon of dark ale. Bishnu, my therapist is keen to point out that it’s not for drinking, (don’t worry Bishnu, I’m still in the “I’m never drinking again” zone). It’s only part-fermented beer. Lacking in the strong scent of lager, half-fermented ale is rich in vitamin B, great for strong and healthy hair, nails and skin. I am told 30 minutes in here will warm and relax my tired muscles and that Cleopatra and other fashionistas supposedly bathed in beer for its skin softening properties. It would appear I am in good company (metaphorically, not physically unfortunately).
My bathe time passes quickly and I am certainly feeling a little revived, not to mention soft and smooth. Bishnu returns and tucks me into a tapestry of well-conditioned towels in anticipation of phase two, a 60 minute stress-relieving deep tissue massage.

Massage me
Bishnu tells me the Aromatherapy Associates body gel she’s willing into my aching limbs is water based and contains ginger, lavender and black pepper. The trio work together to heat and then relieve muscular pain.
The hour-long full body massage strikes a perfect balance. It goes to work on the bits that need it most, without losing the stress-free touch. A barley scrub is also offered as part of a slightly dearer two-hour package which opens the paws and softens the skin to an even greater degree.
My 90-minute treatment is concluded with a good going over with de-stress muscle body oil, which I’m told is also great for the temples and lymph nodes for headache relief.
“The treatments carry on working for another 48 hours,” says Bishnu as my time draws to a close. The oil molecules that are busy working their way into my skin are very fine, absorbed through hair follicles and are – as I speak – flowing directly into my blood stream. If they can just help displace last night’s excesses that seem reticent to the idea of leaving, we will be on to an absolute winner, I think to myself.
Is Cheers to Beers a boy’s thing, I ask Bishnu. “Not at all,” she replies, “women love it too.” I can see why as I leave refreshed and smelling of ginger, pepper and particularly lavender.
As a parting word it’s reiterated once more to me how great Cheers to Beers is for the business traveller. Well, as fate would have it, I fly to London in T minus 36 hours. I wonder, how will I feel in 48 hours time?…

Tuesday, 6am. Heathrow Airport Arrivals Lounge
A full English breakfast with proper bacon, sausages and sloppy cafeteria baked beans certainly play their part, but I do indeed feel pretty good, all things considered.
I’ve done lots of things with beer, including using it to try and make me feel better, but I don’t think I’ve ever bathed in it, and I’m certain it’s never made me feel this good. Perhaps I have found the true meaning of the warning labels that adorn the city’s liquor bottles… enjoy responsibly!

Drew Mills – male grooming editor

_________
Bath, scrub and massage: $1590/2 hours
Bath and massage only: $990/90 minutes
Sense of Touch details here

After months of speculation a new hairdressers has opened in the Repulse Bay Sense of Touch.  Set along side the recently launched Sense of Touch day-spa, Capelli overlooks the Moroccan themed gazebo garden.  This small but beautifully designed salon will be a welcome addition to the ever growing spa and beauty scene in the area, and an unwelcome rival to the Tony & Guy in The Retreat spa down the road.

Bubbly Creative Director Curt comes with a wealth of experience.  After being trained in Tony & Guy London, and a running a hairdressing academy in Shanghai, he has returned to his roots in Hong Kong, and now is extremely excited about his new salon, “It’s such a beautiful location, and we are so busy already…my clients have followed me and once the local clientele come here, they will not want to go anywhere else ever again”.

Curt tells me he is notorious for his love of long hair, and his ability to help his clients achieve long, thick healthy hair, no matter their age.  Being a scissor-phobic Rapunzel myself, this is music to my ears. Curt kept me entertained with his stories of globe-trekking whilst expertly sniping my long locks.  An hour later, my hair looked healthy, lush and happy with its beautiful new style.  My only gripe was the hair wash took far too long, but I will gladly put this down to teething problems of the first few days of business.

An exclusive deal with L’Oreal Professionnel and Kérastase, great haircuts and excellent customer reward packages should see this new salon a successful and permanent fixture in the area.

Haircuts start at $300 for a stylist and go up to $800 for the creative director.

Click here for Capelli details.

After nine years in business Centrals Body Conscious has closed its doors for the final time.  Owner Lawrence Brown blames high rentals and credit card procedures for the closure.  A lease signed at the peak of the rental market found BC paying 60% over market rates, and a new credit card rule that sees salons paid six months after the slip is signed forced the spa out of business.  But its not all doom and gloom, they have now merged with the Elemis Day Spa in D’Aguilar Street.  The expert staff from Body Conscious now all work in the new location, which is only a short hop down the hill from the previous site.

All unfinished packages from Body Conscious are being honoured by Elemis, and performed by the same staff, so its smiles all round!  A new refurbishment over Chinese New Year will see the new super-salon ready for business.

Please contact Elemis Day Spa for more details.

With the launch of ‘Mandarin Men’, The Mandarin Barber shows men the way to regular, professional grooming.  Available from 15 September 2009, ‘Mandarin Men’ is a programme that allows members to enjoy a complete grooming session each month. This includes a shave, haircut, manicure or pedicure and a choice of either a facial or massage.  Membership can be purchased for three, six or 12 months.

“Nowadays it isn’t only the ladies who are expected to be impeccably groomed,” says Spa Director Lynsey Hughes.  “The pressure is on for men too.  Mandarin Men makes it easier for busy professionals to keep on top of their grooming schedule with a balance of ‘must-do’s’ such as a regular shave and haircut, alongside long-term maintenance items such as facials and massages which add to the polished look of a gentleman nowadays.”

With its old-world charm blended with contemporary know-how, the Mandarin Barber offers gentlemen a comfortable and discreet location, meeting a need that is proving increasingly more popular.

“At the Mandarin Barber we have seen a conspicuous increase in requests for head-to-toe masculine grooming, including treatments such as manicures, pedicures, facials, waxing and massages,” continues Hughes.  “In fact we now have a private room in the barber specifically for men’s treatments.  In 2008 we saw a 95% increase in men booking facials compared to 2007 and in only the first six months of 2009 we have already performed 40% more men’s facials than we did in the whole of 2008.  Manicures and pedicures have shown similar increases with almost double the number of bookings in 2008 than in 2007, and we expect these figures to increase again in 2009.”

About Mandarin Men:

‘Mandarin Men’ is a monthly maintenance programme that entitles members to the following at the Mandarin Barber: one classic shave; one hair cut; one manicure or pedicure; and one 55-minute massage or facial.  Programmes are valid for three, six or 12 months.  Priced from HK$1,200 per month, the total value of treatments included in the package totals HK$1,810 and members can also enjoy discounts at the Cigar Divan.

3 month price: HK$1,400 per month

6 month price: HK$1,300 per month

12 month price: HK$1,200 per month

About The Mandarin Barber:

With its dark wood veneers, decorative ironwork and Chinese screen-printed glass – inspired by the Art Deco chic of 1930s Shanghai – The Mandarin Barber is a classic masculine retreat.  Located on the hotel’s second floor, its warm, inviting atmosphere provides an oasis of serenity in the heart of the city.  Inside this rarefied space a team of barbers, many of whom have more than twenty years of experience, presides over six traditional barber chairs and afford the city’s gentlemen a range of personal grooming services.  Signature treatments include the legendary Mandarin Shave (one hour of pure bliss, this is a classic shave with a straight-edged blade developed at the Mandarin Barber and includes hot towels, essential oils, massage and of course the best shave ever) and the Shanghai pedicure performed with sharp blades.

The Mandarin Barber is open 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. Monday to Saturday and from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. on Sundays.  Reservations can be made on +852 2825 4088 or by email: mohkg-barber@mohg.com