From bespoke extensions to specialist facials for oily skin, this month’s launches take personalisation to a whole new level

Caudalie Vinopure Facial

Ideal for clients with oily and congested skin, Caudalie’s Vinopure Facial purifies by regulating excess sebum using a mix of active ingredients. Grape polyphenols are combined with six purifying essential oils – lavender, lemongrass, geranium, rosemary, lemon balm and peppermint – to form a barrier against the production of acne bacteria, helping prevent blemishes and the oxidation of sebum.

The 55-minute treatment begins with a cleanse, tone and exfoliation, followed by a massage using a cryo-massager, which has an anti-inflammatory action on the skin, and Vinopure Balancing Concentrate. The cryo-massager is used on the cheeks, chin and forehead, as well as on the eye contours, where it stimulates circulation, helping to improve the appearance of dark circles.

Purifying Mask is then applied for 10 minutes to rebalance skin, during which the therapist performs an arm and hand massage. Once it’s removed, the facial finishes with a serum, eye cream, tinted moisturiser and dusting of powder. There is also a complementary homecare range to retail.

Caudalie recommends charging £70 for the treatment. Call the brand on 020 7720 7111

This month we tried… Yumi Lashes Keratin Lash Lift

The lowdown: Swiss semi-permanent make-up artist Sandra Viglino founded Yumi Lashes in 2011 after clients requested a natural-looking, low-maintenance alternative to extensions. The Keratin Lash Lift is billed as “a treatment that enhances the natural lashes, boosting and lifting them upwards, and works with the natural lash cycle.”

The experience: I had my treatment at Nails & Brows in Mayfair, London, where therapist Denisa Enache began by cleansing my natural lashes. She selected a mediumsized silicone pad to lift them, explaining that the largest pad wouldn’t have much effect as my lashes are already quite long, while the smallest would give a weirdlooking curl.

Enache then applied coenzyme Q10 gel pads over my lower lashes to keep them protected, before brushing on a water-soluble adhesive to stick my upper lashes to the pads on my eyelids. Two serums were then applied in succession. First, the keratin relaxing solution, which is left for a maximum of 10 minutes, depending on the length of the lashes; followed by a neutralising solution once the keratin was removed. This sat for eight minutes while Enache gave me a soothing head massage.

The final step is the (optional) tint and Enache chose a blue-black shade to give my lashes a dark, glossy tone. The treatment took just under an hour. The effect wasn’t as dramatic as I’d expected but my lashes were noticeably lifted and looked fluffy.

Business Benefits: Yumi has a cult following on social media and has been popularised by enough long-lashed celebrities to get clients booking in for the treatment. The lift gets great results that the brand says can last for up to 10 weeks and there’s also a keratin mascara that can be retailed or included in a package to upsell clients.

Nails & Brows charges £86 for the treatment. Call distributor Feel Good Promotions on 0844 854 7867

This month we tried… Kokolokahi Clarity Treatment

The lowdown: This 60-minute treatment is aimed at stressed-out clients who need to unwind. It uses a mixture of massage techniques to work out tension, and focuses on the upper body only because that’s where people carry stress the most, the brand says. The massage was developed by Clare Anderson, founder and managing director of Shared Beauty Secrets, which distributes Lava Shells and Kokolokahi, and launched in conjunction with the latest Kokolokahi oil, Clarity.

The experience: As someone who sits hunched over their desk five days a week, I was excited at the prospect of getting rid of the tension in my shoulders. My treatment took place at Spa Verta in the Crowne Plaza Battersea, London, and my therapist was Vanessa Franklin, executive trainer for Shared Beauty Secrets. Franklin began by asking me to lie down and inhale three deep breaths of Clarity oil, which is infused with clary sage, palmrosa, Spanish rosemary, geranium rose and lavender to soothe body and mind.

She then started the massage and focused largely on my head, working my face, neck and scalp with effleurage movements and uplifting sweeps. One technique that stood out was when Franklin tilted my head forward and asked me to let it fall slowly back into her hands, applying tension-releasing pressure from her fingertips as I did. This was repeated a few times and was extremely soothing.

Then, using a mixture of forearm techniques, pressure-point work and hands-on skills in combination with two warm Lava Shells – which transfer heat into muscles as they are being massaged, Franklin worked on easing pent-up frustration in my arms, décolleté, shoulders and back, conducting swift movements at a medium pressure.

She told me this combination not only works to increase the range of movement in the joints, but lowers anxiety levels and increases mental relaxation. I must admit, at the end of the treatment my body felt less tense and I slept very deeply that night.

Business benefits: If you’re a city-based salon then this treatment is ideal to get workers through your door after a long day at the office. The treatment not only tackles muscle stiffness but can help clients ease the symptoms of modern-day issues such as poor-quality sleep and anxiety, making them a customer for life.

The Clarity oil can also be retailed, which will help boost your profits.

Shared Beauty Secrets recommends charging from £60 for the treatment (depending on location). Call the brand on 01295 235511 Tried by Amanda Pauley

My Beautiful Eyes Mylash Volume

My Beautiful Eyes has expanded its lash offering with the addition of the Mylash Volume course. The extension treatment involves applying synthetic, pre-made 3D fans to clients’ individual natural lashes to create a dramatic, fluttery look. The fans are available in an array of lengths and curls, so the thickness can be easily adjusted, and are pre-loaded onto strips to enable faster application.

The treatment takes between 60 and 120 minutes, depending on whether the client wants a natural or full lash look, and the product cost averages £8.30 to £11.20. The six-hour training course is open to any artist who has undertaken a professional lash-extension course and sits alongside the brand’s other treatments, Mylash Professional, Mylash Express and Mylash Lift.

Ellisons recommends charging £55 to £65 for the treatment. Call the brand on 0345 222 8080