Luxe natural skincare meets high-tech

It’s very rare that I’ll brave being seen in public without a scrap of make-up on, particularly after a facial when there can be some post-scrub, mask and massage blotchiness. But having put my face in the hands of a skilful beauty therapist at the Mandarin Oriental spa in Knightsbridge to experience their new anti-ageing treatment, the Aromatherapy Associates Aroma Lift Facial, I’ve found the unquestionable exception.

Bedecked with delicate orchids, the surroundings of the Knightsbridge hotel’s spa are an apt setting for the luxury natural skincare company, but the twist is that this facial brings electric micro-currents to the party to amp up (excuse the pun) the toning and tightening effects.

The treatment starts with a standard cleanse, followed by the application of an exfoliating mask packed with natural pineapple and passionflower acids to gently slough away dead skin cells so that the potions and lotions which follow can penetrate skin more effectively. Next comes Aromathrapy Associates’ firming serum which allows the fine rods that conduct the current to glide over easily over the skin while the charge pushes it deep into the top layers where it tightens and plumps. Unlike old-school machines that use electric currents, this one won’t cause skin to tingle; instead it feels cooling and with the therapist’s fairy-light touch, gently calming.

There’s a trio of different movements employed using the rods: the first two work in lines over the skin to boost circulation and increase radiance, then to encourage the lymph glands to drain, de-puffing the contours of the face. The final movement is aimed at ‘lifting’ the muscle – think pinching the fattier parts of your face gently between two chopsticks and you wont be too far off the mark. A final application of hydrating gel manually massaged in leaves skin feeling warm and glowing but icy to touch – the symbiotic effects of simultaneous radiance boosting and complexion calming. And a cursory glance in the mirror reveals that my complexion looks perfectly plump and even, with not a fine dehydration line in sight.

It’s not the most pampering experience, although a post-facial chill out in the relaxation room with fragrant jasmine tea and ginger oat biscuits so good I bagged one to eat later, certainly elevate the indulgent element. Facing the street and journey home, I skipped the usual touch-up with foundation and cream blush in favour my complexion’s new found natural perfection.

At home, my flatmate tells me I look like I’ve had a week of great sleep (take note anyone with a wedding dress or big night out on the cards) and 24 hours later I was amazed at the difference – no lines around my eyes, all signs of dark circles banished, plus lifted and more defined cheekbones. Sometimes the best things come to those who wait…

For more information and to book, see The Mandarin Oriental’s website, or check on the Aromatherapy Associates site for treatments near you.

Bedecked with orchids, the surroundings of the Mandarin Oriental's spa are an apt setting for the luxury natural skincare company

Ellis Faas' irresistibly pretty Spring Set

Before we’re seduced by summer’s sultry tones and tropical brights, we’ll happily take a little time to flirt with spring’s subtle shades, offering an easy way to freshen up your make-up and fall in love with some pretty new colours. Whereas heatproof textures and colours to offset a sunkissed glow are de rigueur during summer months, products for spring are all about a lighter, more luminous look.

Running in Heels’ favourite make-up artist Ellis Faas never fails to knock our socks off with her innovative, creative products and the Spring Gift Set is no exception. Featuring three beauty treats hand-picked to satisfy mid-season cosmetics cravings, the set is presented in irresistibly chic packaging that just begs to be shown off and take pride of place on your dressing table.

Faas has selected three colours to suit eyes and lips, which used in combination offer a beautifully polished, understated look for spring. Smoky eye devotees will adore the taupe-accented parma violet shade – Creamy Eyes E106 – a liquid eyeshadow which glides on smoothly to create a long-lasting finish. It’s a refined colour and perfect for day wear – add a slick of dark liner to up the ante come evening, along with a flash of Light E304, a softly shimmery lilac shadow that’s sophisticated rather than girly.

Finish the look with a wash of velvety Milky Lips L207,  which marries pink and nude tones resulting in an illuminating hue to enhance natural lip colour. Spring is most certainly here.

The Ellis Faas Spring Gift Set is available to buy online here.

Leave the stresses of city life behind...

Vaishaly’s Signature Facial isn’t just incredible; it’s three-month-waiting-list incredible. The sought-after facial created by the super facialist herself is a truly bespoke treatment tailored to each individual and their skin, incorporating massage techniques designed to relax and rejuvenate, resulting in a radiant, blemish-free complexion. However, if you’re not inclined to wait, you’re in luck – The Spa at the Four Seasons Hotel on London’s Park Lane now offers the facial as part of its treatment menu. Each member of the spa’s team has been personally trained by Vaishaly, and thus able to perform the must-have treatment to the facialist’s exacting standards.

Described as ‘more than just a facial’, the treatment takes into account each client’s personal skincare needs, such as seasonal or hormonal factors, and skin type. The facial massage that leads to the release of the mental and emotional stress – issues which Vaishaly believes are expressed outwardly in our skin, resulting in blemishes, skintone and ageing. By fully switching off and letting go of this stress, we are rebalanced and skin is revived and glowing.

The facial also incorporates exfoliation via a deep cleanse, gentle extraction and microdermabrasion, before a high frequency treatment which closes pores and banishes bacteria, making skin clearer and smoother. The facial massage tones and boosts elasticity – it’s an effective anti-ageing fix too. During the facial, Vaishaly’s own natural skincare products are used, and the final step in the treatment is the application of a mask – with the therapist choosing the ideal product to suit skin type and treat individual skin concerns.

In the surroundings of the Four Seasons Hotel’s exceptionally chic rooftop spa, it’s impossible not to feel relaxed and really pampered; in muted colours, the tranquil space boasts a 360° panorama of the London cityscape including views over the treetops of leafy Hyde Park. For a real moment of indulgence and skin that glows from inside, the Vaishaly Signature Facial isn’t just a facial – it’s the facial. The results speak for themselves – you’ll leave feeling absolutely blissed-out with a beautifully radiant complexion, and if the Park Lane spa didn’t offer the treatment, we would happily join the waiting list.

For more information and to book, see The Spa at the Four Seasons website, or call +44 (0) 207 319 5480.

On the tenth floor, and with 360° views over London's cityscape, The Spa at the Four Seasons offer a moment of true relaxation...

The new, chic perfumes from Jo Malone

The Grande Dame of British luxury frangrance is back. After Jo Malone sold her eponymous beauty business to Estée Lauder Companies, we’ve been wondering when the olfactory genius might create her own collection and provide a new source of sensory inspiration – and indulgence. JO LOVES marks Jo Malone’s retun to designing scent; a new range of fragrances which are truly personal to Jo, capturing the essence of smells that “evoke emotions or memories.”

It has taken five years for Jo to experiment with and refine JO LOVES, as she was determined to launch with only the right fragrances. So what can we expect from the collection? There are four perfumes available (all presented in fabulously glamorous red and black packaging), each offering a different, distinctive personality:

Pomelo: Described by Jo as “her best friend,” it’s clean, crisp and delivers a burst of energy with each spritz. If you like your perfumes fresh, sharp and with a citrus edge, you’ll love Pomelo.

Green Orange and Coriander: Rich, deep and sensual, it’s one part spicy and one part fresh – a warm, balanced combination of green citrus and herb. Green Orange and Coriander reminds Jo of “Sunday brunch in New York; sitting in a hotel wearing a big roll neck cashmere sweater drinking a glass of wine in front of a log fire.” A moment to linger in.

Orange Tulle: A pretty, floral scent inspired by the delicate tulle of a ballerina’s dress. “It’s a fragrance which captures movement and breathes life as it’s soft floral notes dance up and down drawing you in and teasing,” says Jo. This one’s truly feminine and girly.

Gardenia: Whereas Orange Tulle is a young, sweet fragrance, Gardenia is all about grown-up elegance. The distinctive floral scent is rich, regal and evokes a sense of ceremony.

The range is available to buy at Selfridges in London, or online on the JO LOVES site. There’s also a fun I LOVE app to try out: a moodboard of scent inspirations captured in images, which you can add to, or simply explore.

Jo Malone talks about the story behind JO LOVES…

Penhaligon’s divine Juniper Sling scent

British heritage brand Penhaligon’s is renowned for its innovative and clever use of scent, and the newest addition to the fragrance collection is no exception; introducing Juniper Sling, inspired by the iconic London Dry Gin. A fragrance inspired by a decadent alcoholic tipple, you say? Yes, please!

Created for Penhaligon’s by master perfumer and renowned ‘nose’ Olivier Cresp, the scent is an intoxicating homage to the bright young things of London’s roaring twenties. The bottle design is signature Penhaligon’s; a clear glass bottle with a ribbon-wrapped top but the silver label with its distinctive font is reminiscent of the jazz age and looks like something that might be found on a flapper’s dressing table, right next to the powdered rouge and costume jewellery.

The brand is known for using only the finest ingredients in its scents, and Juniper Sling is no exception, with top notes including cinnamon, orange brandy and juniper berry and base notes of brown sugar and black cherry, the list reads like a cocktail recipe. One sniff of this heady scent and you’ll want to be on your feet dancing the Charleston with an inappropriate young man.

Penhaligon’s latest offering is a playful and heady scent that is perfectly evocative of the 1920’s, a decade that has inspired so many with its bobbed hair, raised hemlines and long pearls. Apply this scent liberally, slip on your best heels and dance the night away!

Penhaligon’s Juniper Sling is available to buy online here.

A playful ‘mock-umentary’ created to celebrate the launch of Juniper Sling

A powerful, luxurious anti-ageing treatment

If we can calculate how desirable a product is based on its packaging, Carita’s Diamant De Beauté Regenerating Midnight Concentrate scores highly before we’ve even tried out the anti-ageing cream itself. Housed in a glossy amethyst box which opens to reveal a resplendently gleaming pot of the magic concentrate within a luxurious black velvet niche, the Regenerating Midnight Concentrate truly exudes luxury from every pore. But once we’ve got past being wowed by the outward appearance of the cream, what’s so special about Carita’s ultraluxe skincare?

Diamant De Beauté Regenerating Midnight Concentrate combines the crème de la crème of plant and mineral extracts along with the most innovative biotechnology and the powerful energy of precious stones to provide an anti-ageing solution that promises to restore skin’s youth and vitality, resulting in a radiant complexion. The concentrate banishes wrinkles, dark spots and blemishes and tones and firms the skin intensively. Applied as a mask, it’s intended for usage alongside the original Diamant de Beauté cream, an indulgent treatment to plump and boost the complexion two to three times a week.

The cost of  the Regenerating Midnight Concentrate obviously reflects the luxurious nature of the cream – but who can really put a price on beauty?

Carita Diamant De Beauté Regenerating Midnight Concentrate is available to buy online here.

Switch off the Blackberry and unwind....

For those who have been burning the candle at both ends of late, organic beauty brand NEOM have come up with an indulgent way to relax in the form of their Utter Relaxation Collection – four essential items in a gorgeous flowery box that would bring a smile to the face of the most frazzled workaholic. With all of their products containing at least 70% organic ingredients, the company was set up by Nicola Elliot in 2005 after searching in vain for ‘green’ products that also had an element of luxury to them. Since then, the brand has experienced a high demand for their famous organic candles made from vegetable wax (most other brands use the paraffin variety which emits toxic fumes into the environment) together with their sumptuous body oils, lotions and room sprays.

Lifting the ingredients out of their scented hay nest (bit of a packaging cliché, but never mind) I first soothed my weary limbs in a bath filled with their award-winning Tranquillity Organic Bath Oil – a soothing herbal blend of lavender, jasmine and sweet basil, with 70% organic ingredients and 30% essential oils. Being a massive advocate of the therapeutic qualities of regular baths (despite the subsequent gas bill being less than therapeutic…) I poured in the tiny 5ml bottle (only enough for one or two baths sadly) and lit the accompanying travel candle infused with rose and neroli, which together gave off a peaceful floral and herbal scent which soon filled the entire room. After 20 minutes of languishing in my blissful watery cocoon under the candle’s cheery glow, I emerged with skin supremely moisturised – although I do admit a preference for bath oils than turn to milk upon contact water, so you don’t get that residual oil clinging to the sides of the bathtub once you’re done!

Afterwards I moved the candle into the other room and smoothed on the Real Luxury Organic Body Lotion which has a subtle scent of lavender, jasmine and Brazilian rosewood. I’ve found that applying a body lotion can often be chore when you’re waiting for it to absorb, or even worse, unpleasantly cold! Happily this one was neither, with a rich luxuriant texture – including skin-nourishing Vitamin A & E, shea butter and macadamia nut oil – that blended beautifully and left my skin feeling wonderfully soft.

After reading a few chapters of Jane Eyre (favourite bedtime book by far) I blew the candle out (leaving one last strong waft of its lovely fragrance in a wisp of grey smoke) and came to the last stage of spritzing my pillow with the Tranquillity Organic Pillow Mist. This type of fragrance I’d never before encountered or tried (room mist yes, but specifically for the pillow – no.) but I have to say this was my favourite product of the four. As I tend to sleep on my side with half a head buried in the pillow, its powdery sweet aroma sent me happily on my way to the land of nod.

All in all the Utter Relaxation Collection is a delightful treat if you’re overworked or stressed out or simply in need of some self-indulgence. It’s just a shame the bath oil ran out long before the other three products did; plus the body lotion did smell delicious but was a tad too subtle for me – I prefer lotions to have a bit more punch to them fragrance-wise, but each to their own… However, nit-picking aside, the kit is a great way to wind down after a stressful week – and introduce a relaxation ‘ritual’ into your bedtime routine. It’s also an ideal gift to give an exhausted new mum (whilst simultaneously offering to babysit for the night!) a stressed-out best mate, bride-to-be or fellow beauty junkie. Night all!

The NEOM Utter Relaxation Kit is available to buy online here.

Refreshments at The Chelsea Day Spa

You’ve increased the intensity and frequency of your workouts, avoided ice creams in the park, and now indulgent mornings lazing on the beach are finally on the horizon. Well, you may have skipped steps one and two, but for most of us it’s that time of year – time to relax and enjoy a summer holiday.

And the best way to prepare for a week or two of relaxation? With a blissed-out couple of hours at the spa. The Chelsea Day Spa’s Beach Body Beautiful package is a multi-tasking selection of treats that will prepare you for lounging next to the pool, whilst taking some time out in tranquil surroundings. The cute boutique spa is located in a quiet spot just off the chic shopping territory of the King’s Road in upmarket Chelsea, making it an ideal location to spend an afternoon with the girls. On arrival there’s a selection of refreshments on offer to make you feel at home, along with a warm welcome from the spa’s therapists, who really bring a personal touch to all of the services. The spa is prettily decorated, with fresh flowers, chintzy wallpaper and white furnishings; it’s a light, airy and feminine space – there’s no  New Age music or heavy incense here!

The package itself is a perfect mix of essential and luxurious pre-beach treatments and is guaranteed to put in you in the holiday mood.  There are three treatment options available of which you can choose any two as part of the Beach Body Beautiful plan. Depilation is a must at this time of year and so waxing (full leg, bikini, half arm, underarm and eyebrows are all included) is a certainly sage choice. Now for the indulgent bit; the spa’s New York manicure and pedicure – hands and feet are taken care of with a soak, massage and moisturising treatment, as well as the usual cuticle work and filing. There’s a dazzling range of Jessica nail colours to choose from, so you can select a shade to match your  swimwear.

A spray tan is a great way to get a blast of summer colour before you head to the sun and Vita Liberata’s odourless, organic tan is one of the best. There are three colour options available so that if you’re more of an English Rose than a Brazilian glamazon, you can be sure that you won’t look a fluorescent orange shade. Of course, it’s essential to exfoliate at home and skip the moisturiser so that your colour looks even and streak-free. Salon owner Faye Fasan is a pro when it comes to tanning and my tan lasted a full seven days and gave me a healthy glow that looked incredibly natural.

Even if you’re not jetting off beach-wards, the Beach Body Beautiful package is a delicious moment of summer indulgence, guaranteed to make you feel a million dollars – and in the mood for sipping a chilled cocktail whilst watching the sunset.

For more information on the Beach Body Beautiful package, see the Chelsea Day Spa’s website.

The cute boutique spa is located in a quiet spot just off the chic shopping territory of the King's Road in upmarket Chelsea...

Nail Rocks' reptile printed nail wraps

Unless you’re living in nail parlour mecca, New York, a manicure is probably a treat rather than part of your weekly beauty routine. However, if there’s a moment when you are inclined to indulge, it’s likely when you’re heading off to sunny climes for a summer break; after all, who wants to spend time worrying about their nails when they could be concentrating on cocktails at sunset, relaxing poolside with a good book or checking out that cute barman?

Which is why you should try out Nail Rock; a quick way to get a long-lasting, on-trend look on your fingertips. The DIY nail wraps are easily applied; after removing any existing polish from your nails, simply select a size to fit, then use a hairdryer to soften the wrap and push firmly onto your nail to seal in place. Excess can then be filed off, ensuring a perfect fit. Et voilà!

Any fashionista worth her salt will tell you that these days the place to wear the trends is most definitely on your nails; from Chanel’s ever-covetable seasonal shades to Wah Nails’ personalised manicures, the traditional French polish has certainly had its day. And Nail Rock’s wraps are about as far from classic as you can get – there’s a bold, eclectic collection of designs on offer to co-ordinate with whatever you’re wearing this summer.

Go tribal with iconic leopard print nails – best worn with this season’s vibrant jewel hues for a seventies-inspired look. Or how about monochrome polka dots – perfect for matching with a black or white bikini for French Riviera chic? Lace continues its hold over fashion trends for S/S 2011 and Nail Rock’s lace wraps are arguably a much more accessible way to wear to look than opting for a peekaboo lace tee in the office. And our favourites? The metallic lizard design – reptile prints have been giving leopard a run for its money of late, and we reckon that these wraps would beautifully accessorise almost any ensemble – from an elegant LBD to a pair of rock’n'roll denim cut-0ffs.

Nail Rocks are available to buy online here.

How to rock Nail Rocks…

A natural way to super shiny, velvety smooth locks

Colouring, blow-drying, pollution; hair comes under attack from a barrage of damaging factors on a daily basis. And this veritable assault tends to leave us with dry, dull locks, rather than gleaming tresses exuding health. Beauty boutique shelves are stocked with a wealth of products all claiming to give you shine worthy of a Hollywood star, but many are packed with unpronounceable chemical ingredients that don’t really take care of your hair.

John Masters Organics Shine On Leave in treatment says it offers “supernatural shine & softness” and having tested out the magical stuff, we can agree wholeheartedly. The company itself is based in Wales, where John Masters has been making organic products for over twenty years – he started out creating his range with natural ingredients in his kitchen sink! Fast forward to today, and the brand now has over 30 haircare, skincare and bodycare products.

Shine On is made with a blend of caring organic ingredients including aloe vera leaf juice, kelp, calendula and chamomile; and of course, it’s free from synthetic nasties, including petroleum-based silicone. The herb and plant extracts add shine of course, and also strengthen, soften and hydrate hair.

Styling products can often leave a residue, which results in creating one problem whilst you’re resolving another; luckily John Masters Organics Shine On doesn’t weigh hair down. Best of all, application is easy and fuss-free; there’s no messing about with waiting ten minutes to rinse off, as the treatment is designed to be left in for extra conditioning care. Once you’ve washed and conditioned, simply smooth on to damp hair and comb through before blow-drying. Et voila; super shiny, velvety smooth locks. If (super)natural shine and softness is what you’re after, Shine On comes highly recommended.

John Masters Organics Shine On is available to buy online here.