The fabulous team at Elemis have come to BeautyBuzz with an exclusive special offer.  Visit Elemis at Lane Crawford Pacific Place from February 22^nd to 28^th for an exclusive preview of their next generation Elemis Pro-Radiance Cream Cleanser where they will be giving away FREE samples plus FREE skincare kits worth HK$500 and FREE 30 minute Elemis Spa Pod facial’s with every Pro Radiance Cleanser purchase while stocks last!

Seems like a lot of FREE to us!  Scientifically formulated to defend skin against daily pollutants, this luxurious, deep-cleansing cream gently dissolves make-up and grime to purify, moisturise and reveal a radiantly youthful looking complexion.

If you would like to book your Elemis Skin Lab analysis and consultation in advance, or would like more information about Elemis promotions, please call 2918 0818 mentioning BeautyBuzz now.

BeautyBuzz review on the Elemis Pro-Radience Cream Clenser and facial coming soon…

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.

G211 1/F The Repulse Bay Arcade
109 Repulse Bay Road
Hong Kong

Tel: +852 2592 9668
www.capelli.hk

Reviews

Capelli Hairdressers opens in Repulse Bay Sense of Touch

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.

G/F 16A Staunton Street,
Central, Hong Kong

Tel:  +852-27712847
Mon – Sun: 11:00 – 22:00

www.aroma.com.hk

Reviews

Hong Kong Aromatherapy at its Best

Tucked away on Soho’s Staunton Street  is one of Hong Kong’s best kept secrets, its not another gastro tapas venue, or a new martini bar, its DK Aromatherapy.

Aromatherapy is form of  alternative medicine that uses concoctions of essential oils to treat various conditions.  By using specific essences, aromatherapy claims to alter your mood, and your mental and physical health.  Although it is mostly used in massage oils, it is said to have endless medical properties to treat conditions that are usually combated by potentially harmful chemicals and medicines.

‘A lot of mumbo jumbo hippie nonesense’ I hear you say, well most of us use products everyday that contain essential oils, and that reap the benefit of their properties such as Listerine mouth wash, Deep Heat and Vicks VapoRub.  So the next time you think that alternative practices don’t work, look in your own medicine cabinet and think again.

Stepping into the shop, you are immediately hit by a glorious amalgamation of different scents and soothing music.  It smells divine, and you are lulled into a state of relaxation.  It sells a vast array of new age items and aromatherapy lotions & potions, most of which from the house brand, DK aromatherapy.  All of the brands items are completely natural, and contain no synthetic chemicals, resulting in ethical, completely harmless, naturally scented products.

Like many people, I suffer from a back problem and from time to time, it gets quite bad.  I find that going for a massage helps, but most of the time I don’t trust a therapist to help and not hurt me when I am fragile.  Nancy at DK is my saviour, not only is she a very skilled and intuitive therapist, she is also extremely well educated in aromatherapy.  She brings my pain back from the brink every time and I am eternally grateful.   A life time of learning the art from some of the best aromatherapists have taught Nancy pretty much everything there is to know.  She will custom hand-make all manner of beauty creams for you, using all natural ingredients tailored to your needs.

This time I tried the Aroma Skin Care Luxury Facial.  The treatment room, although very warm and serene is not as elegant as some of the high-end day spas and salons in Hong Kong, but that is not the reason one visits Nancy and DK Aromatherapy.  The treatment starts with a consultation to find out how you are feeling, and what your skin condition is like, Nancy then selects various essential oils that will suit your needs.  She opted for jasmine, rose geranium, and orange blossom for me.  She then mixes on the spot the oils, creams and sprays used in the treatment.  It comprises of the usual steaming and cleaning of this skin, but also includes a head massage, a fabulous lymphatic facial massage, which drains the puffiness from under the eyes, and Nancy’s signature tapping movements that are said to be akin to the M6 electronic facial lasers.  An hour and a half (and a little snooze) later, the facial was over, my ever present eye-bags were definatley reduced and I felt fabulous.

If you are interested in learning more about aromatherapy, Nancy runs certificate courses and diplomas in the shop.  Many other workshops are run with resident experts such as massage (self, baby, Indian head, lymphatic), hypnosis, tarot, reiki, make-your-own beauty products,  and many more.  Contact the shop to find out more.

AsiaSpa announced the winners of the 2009 AsiaSpa Awards last week in a glamorous 1920’s themed awards night in the Armani Bar HK. The most anticipated spa event of the year saw 27 spas, resorts, treatments and industry professionls recieve independently voted accolade for the 2009 endeavours.

Cocktails were drunk, fringed dresses were shimmied, and key players in the regions beauty and spa industry mingled while Editor-in-Chief, Rebecca Walker presented the winners with their awards.

Local Hong Kong winners included CHI, The Spa at Shangri-La who won both “In-Spa Training of the Year” and “Spa Marketing of the Year”, Bliss Spa at the W Hotel for “Urban Spa of the Year”, and the Chuan Spa at the Langham Place Mongkok for “Spa for Men of the Year”.

“Asia currently has the largest number of spas under development of any region in the world, a fact that is reflected in the magazine’s pages,” said Rebecca Walker. “We are looking forward to an exciting 2010.”   We couldn’t agree more!

Winners’ List

Destination Spa of the Year
Six Senses Destination Spa, Phuket, Thailand

Urban Spa of the Year
Bliss Spa, W Hotel, Hong Kong

Day Spa of the Year
Green T. House, Beijing

New Spa of the Year
The Spa at Mandarin Oriental, Sanya

Spa for Men of the Year
Chuan Spa at Langham Place Mongkok, Hong Kong

Spa Retreat of the Year
COMO Shambhala Retreat, Uma Ubud, Bali

Eco-Spa of the Year
Spa by Mandara, Alila Villas Hadahaa, Maldives

Socially Responsible Spa of the Year
The Shinta Mani Spa, Cambodia

Medi-Spa of the Year
S Medical Spa, Bangkok

Asian Spa Capital of the Year
Thailand

Spa Association of the Year
APSWC – Asia-Pacific Spa & Wellness Coalition

Spa Event of the Year
Global Spa Summit

Spa Personality of the Year
Karina Stewart, Co-founder, Brand & Concept Director, Kamalaya Wellness Sanctuary

In-Spa Training of the Year
CHI, The Spa at Shangri-La

Spa Academy of the Year
Banyan Tree Spa Academy

Spa Design of the Year
Green T. House, Beijing

Best Children’s Spa Menu of the Year
Ice Cream Spa, Conrad Maldives Rangali Island

Spa Treatment of the Year
“Hilot Trilogy”, Mandala Spa & Villas, Boracay

Holistic Treatment of the Year
“Sound and Stone”, Gwinganna Lifestyle Retreat, Australia

Men’s Spa Treatment of the Year
“Man Space Healing Balance Massage”, i.sawan Residential Spa & Club, Grand Hyatt, Erawan Bangkok

Spa’s Therapist Team of the Year
Mandarin Oriental

Spa Product of the Year
Algotherm

Anti-Ageing Product of the Year
Aromatherapy Associates, ‘Fine Line Face Oil’

Natural Product of the Year
ilã, ‘ilã Face Oil for Glowing Radiance’

Men’s Product of the Year
Pevonia, ‘Easy-Glide Shaving Emulsion’

Spa Cuisine of the Year
The Farm, Philippines

Spa Marketing of the Year
CHI, The Spa at Shangri-La

No, it’s not a dodgy sex position, showing up all over tinsel town and the catwalks this season it’s the new nail trend of the moment, -the Reverse French Manicure.  Dita Von Tease has been sporting  back-to-front coloured talons for quite a while, and its only a matter of time until the look hits ‘the HK’.  Be the envy of town by following BeautybuzzHK’s own guide to the Reverse French Manicure.

The Reverse French manicure

A look hailing from the 30’s is  back with a bang.  The 1930’s lady usually painted just the middle of the nail leaving the tip and moon bare.  Painting an entire nails was considered OTT, and nice girls didn’t do it!  Well we ARE nice girls, so for 2010’s version, try clashing colours from OPIs new fabulous ‘Hong Kong’ inspired range such as ‘Suzi says Feng Shui’ and ‘Jade is the new black’

1. Start by filiing all your nails to the same length, remember to only file in one direction.
2. Apply a good quality base coat.
3. Take the lighter colour of your two choices, and paint two coats on your nails, and leave them to dry well.
4. Apply some french manicure guides, these are crescent shaped sticker templates that can be found in Watsons, Mannings, Sasa or Bonjour.  Place these on the base of your nails, by your cuticle,  not the end as it says on the packet.
5. Now paint two coats of the darker of your two colours on your nails and over your nails guides.  When your polish is touch-dry, carefully peel off the manicure guides.
6. Finish off with a good shiny top coat.

For a more conventional take on this look, start with a white base coat, and paint a great shocking red like ‘Red my Fortune Cookie’ from Opi, or just do a normal back to front French.