This is a two-hour treatment aimed at restoring balance and harmony in the skin. It is so much more than a normal facial – it starts off with a warm sage footbath and a consultation to determine how you feel about your skin and what you are hoping to
get from the facial.
How does it work? Once you're on the couch, gentle stretching and lymphatic massage are used with rosemary oil to stimulate circulation in the feet, legs and arms. Next it's on to the neck to help roll out tightness and tension.
By the time the facial starts in earnest you are already very relaxed. A series of compresses are applied on the face, neck and neckline. These start with lavender, followed by spruce and finally lemon. The lemon helps revive you as you have to sit up again for the next bit – a steam inhalation of herbs and plants to help clear the lungs as well as the skin.
Once that's over, you can lie back and drift off. After a cleansing mask, therapist Lorraine Mackie uses hands and soft brushes to stimulate the lymphatic system. Another treatment mask follows, but by this time you will be in the land of Nod. The final mask is removed with lemon compresses to encourage you to wake up again.
Cover up or strip off? As this facial extends to feet, legs and arms, you have to strip off, wrap up in a robe and lie under cover on the bed.
Who is it for? The Dr Hauschka brand is good for anyone with troubled skin – acne and eczema have responded well to the organic products. But it is also for anyone who likes to be pampered with pure products. There is no whale music unless you ask for it.
Does it work? It is incredibly soothing for both you and your skin.
How much is it? £80 for a two-hour treatment, including consultation.
Is it worth it? This will soothe and tone the skin on your face but it also works on a much deeper level and you will leave feeling very relaxed.
• Anthyllis, 30 Haymarket Terrace, Edinburgh (
www.anthyllis.co.uk, 0131 313 2001)
The full article contains 377 words and appears in Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
