Soft touch

NEW: Orly Walking on Air Pedicure

Orly’s latest launch is a luxury pedicure that claims to transform feet in six steps, leaving clients feeling like they are “walking on air”.

The pedicure begins with a sanitise and soak to prepare feet for treatment, followed by a file and shape of the nails, then foot exfoliation and massage. The therapist then moves on to the removal of calluses, smoothing the brand’s Callus Eraser onto affected areas before filing them.

A renewing mask is then applied to both feet and the lower legs and left for five minutes to nourish skin before being removed with warm mitts. Cuticle oil is then used on each toe nail before moisturising lotion is applied using the Walking on Air massage technique.

The treatment finishes with lacquer or gel application in a colour of the client’s choosing.

Orly recommends charging between £45 and £60 for the 60-minute treatment. Call Grafton International on 01827 280080

NEW: Aromatherapy Associates Wellbeing Treatment Menu

The aromatherapy brand has worked with its panel of wellness experts, who specialise in mindfulness, relaxation, communication and laughter, to launch a collection of treatments that treat both mental and physical wellbeing.

There are four 60-minute treatments on the menu, with each using one of the brand’s signature collections – Relax, De-stress, Revive and Strength.

The “We Relax” treatment focuses on calm, better sleep and reducing anxiety with expert input from laughter yoga teacher Julie Whitehead; “We De-stress” aims to quiet a busy mind and ease an aching body with protocol suggestions from exercise and physical fitness guru Nicola Addison; “We Revive” claims to restore vitality to a weary body and spirit with advice from health nutritionist Yvonne Wake; and “We Strengthen” will instil resilience and courage in difficult times with techniques from somatic coach Jonathan Ward.

In each of the treatments, the body will be eased with specialised massage techniques, the mind trained using mindfulness exercises, and the spirit nurtured as the therapist shares life-affirming mantras and positive affirmations – each created exclusively for the ritual by the assigned wellbeing expert.

Other techniques in treatment include a centring sequence, where the therapist guides the client to mindful awareness of their body; and a grounding sequence, which takes place at the end, bringing the client back to their body ready for the rest of the day.

Aromatherapy Associates recommends charging from £50 to £80 (depending on location) for each of the 60-minute treatments. Call the brand on 020 8569 7030

This month we tried…

Decléor Facial Pilates

The lowdown: The facial is based on a full Pilates class, with a warm-up, a workout using deep-pressure massage, and stretches designed to help reshape the 52 core facial muscles. Created by Chico Shigeta, head of massage development at Decléor, the treatment is aimed at older clientele (50 plus) and the brand says customers should see a natural lift to the face after just one appointment.

The experience: Natasha James, training and education consultant for Decléor, did my treatment at the brand’s London training academy. She began with a thorough consultation, which covered my skincare regime, lifestyle habits and medical history, before performing Decléor’s signature “silent consultation” in the form of a 10-minute back diagnostic massage.

Using reflexology techniques, accompanied with open questions, James worked her way down my back looking for areas of particular heat and redness, which told her what was going on with my skin. From certain reactions, James could tell I suffered with cold feet due to poor circulation, and dry skin.

Using this information, James told me she was going to use products packed with magnolia to boost collagen, lychee to normalise skin tone and ginger to turbo-charge my complexion, in a bid to boost my hydration levels.

She then asked me to roll over, placed a hot water bottle on my feet to aid circulation and started the facial. Following cleansing, the first stage was the warm up, where firm pressures were applied to my facial contours to increase circulation and drain the tissues.

Next came the workout, where structuring massage moves were performed on core muscles to reshape contours, which was extremely firm but never uncomfortable. This was followed by the stretches – rhythmic lifting gestures to make sure every cell was working at optimum level.

She then applied the OrExcellence Energy Youth Concentrate Mask was then applied, before finishing off with eye and face cream. Afterwards my facial muscles felt tighter and my cheekbones more prominent. My skin also felt super-soft and looked hydrated and dewy.

Business benefits: This is the perfect treatment for those who want to fight the signs of ageing without going down the aesthetic procedures route. The personalised “silent consultation” is also bespoke to Decléor, which is an attractive selling point when marketing the facial.

The treatment could be a cost-effective solution for your business – focusing on traditional massage techniques instead of leasing and running a machine to give clients that much sought-after lift to the chin area.

Decléor recommends charging £75 for the 75-minute facial. Call the brand on 020 8762 5016 Tried by Amanda Pauley

Margaret Dabbs takes on Elemental Herbology for face and body

Podiatry brand Margaret Dabbs is expanding the offering in its clinics to include three face and body treatments from British skincare brand Elemental Herbology.

The Five Element Bespoke Facial, available as a 60 or 90-minute treatment, is designed to “harmonise and balance” skin and address issues unique to the client; while the 60-minute Pre Natal Well-Being Massage aims to relax any mum-to-be with an infusion of mandarin, rose and lavender flower.

The In Your Element Massage, available as a 45, 60 or 90-minute treatment, uses Eastern and Western massage and thermotherapy techniques to balance the body, clear the mind and ease muscle aches.

There are also five 30-minute upgrades that can be added to any treatment including the Eye Lift, Acupressure Scalp Massage, and Back, Neck and Shoulder Massage.

The treatments are currently available at the Alderley Edge and Cheltenham clinics and will be rolled out to other UK sites shortly.

Margaret Dabbs charges from £48 to £120 for the treatments and £45 for each of the upgrades. Call the brand on 01242 581906