For a ‘spa’rkling you!

Manpriya Singh 

lmost all the buzzwords of the beauty industry have been done and dealt with—rejuvenation, organic, aromatherapy. You name it. Before the spa and beauty industry stimulates our senses, it’s got to go for our imagination. And what appeals more than the spa menus promising mind, body and soul rejuvenation with brand new catchphrases; for chocolate scrubs long got assimilated into neighborhood corner salons. Some of the latest at the spas in the city.  

Candle, charcoal & ice-cream

Before you jump the gun, they are three active ingredients in three different signature spa therapies. “No longer do you just use candles to brighten up your home but with the advent of skin care with burning candles you brighten up tone and texture of your skin too,” Richa Aggarwal, beauty expert, Cleopatra, gets us started on a treatment that she feels is the most successful in dealing with wrinkles, dull skin and anti-ageing.

From burning hot to ice-cold, they next have on board ice-cream hand and feet care. “Ice Cream Mani Padi is an indulgent way of taking care of your skin of hands and feet for hydrating, toning, exfoliating and brightening them. Ice-cream ball is rubbed onto the skin and messaged well, exfoliation process begins by adding sugar crystals, black grapes or cherries and oats and several other ingredients popular in the beauty world.” 

From the milky white ice-cream to black charcoal, they have on board bamboo charcoal-inspired skin care wherein hands and feet are cleaned with charcoal skin nourishing shampoo, which is followed by message, exfoliation and finally application of charcoal pack. She adds, “This remains the most purifying way of taking care of skin of hands and feet.” 

Red wine spa for lovebirds

In a fortnight the countdown to lovebirds’ global festival, Valentine’s Day, begins. A red wine scrub and massage may not sound all that new to a few discerning patrons of the latest in the spa world, it definitely sounds fresh to those in the city always on the lookout for the latest. 

Affirms Avneet Manchanda, manager, Quan Spa, JW Marriott, Chandigarh, “ It’s a procedure where we follow in a 30-minute body scrub with red wine as the active ingredient, followed by a 60-minute customised massage with an option of several essential oils. Red wine is known to have anti-ageing properties,” she shares. 

Hair D-stress spa 

We knew of spas taking care of skin and stress, but a recently opened unisex spa and salon Stylush promises to take care of every problem on the table— exam anxiety, work pressure or a taxing relationship—with hair detox and D-stress spa based on Japanese aromatherapy oils, pulse point massage and exfoliating salt scrubs for improving blood circulation and countering headaches. Shares the co-founder Shalu Swani, “Japanese live the longest as they believe in  going to the gym to exercise and regular D-stress sessions for a pulse point or a head massage and are therefore always mindful.”  

When the latest is the oldest 

No conversation on spa, salon and wellness can be considered exhaustive without taking into consideration what the nature and ancient therapies have to offer. Rejuve— the spa at Lalit’s Chandigarh property promises a spa experience encompassing aroma, Ayurvedic herbal and natural therapies. 

Elaborates Imit Arora, GM, “We are the only spa in the city with hydrotherapy aqua bed offering Ayurvedic herbal and hammam therapies. We offer our guests the ultimate spa experience through its Ayurvedic, healing, and curavtive therapies.” Going by the timeline while that may not sound very new but that definitely sounds novel. 

manpriya@tribunemail.com