Cassie

Are your products doing what you THINK they are?

We all want to get a great value, but I’m amazed by how many friends, family members, and clients are not getting the results they should from certain products or treatments, but are reluctant to change. Here are a few I’ve caught recently. I’ve really been re-thinking a few of my own product choices lately too. I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Moisturizers with SPF

I read an article online recently quoting a dermatologist who recommends sunscreen only as opposed to facial moisturizers that include sunscreens. It made really good sense, actually. I had always felt fine knowing that my beloved Derma E BB Creme has SPF 25. BUT…the dermatologist argued that for sunscreens to work, they have to be applied liberally to the skin. I only dot the BB Creme where I need help evening my skin tone. Many people who use moisturizers with SPF only dot them where needed and certainly don’t apply heavily under make-up. This is fine for walking from Gong Fu to the spa, but not for prolonged sun exposure. I need to invest in Derma E’s facial sun screen in addition!

Hand Cream for Nails and Cuticle Care

For dry skin on the hands, hand cream is a must, but most lotions are too heavy to do much to help dry cuticles and peeling nails because the molecules are too big to be effective. A cuticle oil with smaller molecules is more appropriate as it will absorb quicker to moisturize dry cuticles can even penetrate through nail polish to hydrate nails underneath. Clients who complain that their Shellac chips after a few days of wear but refuse to use an oil designed for cuticles that can penetrate through gel polishes because they believe their thick hand cream can do it all won’t get the results they want. Fortunately, a mini bottle of Solar Oil is less than $3 and will help keep nails from peeling underneath Shellac and will work wonders on dry cuticles and overall nail appearance. Partner the cuticle oil WITH your favorite hand cream for the rest of your skin, you’ll be looking like a hand model in no time.

Daily Exfoliation Cleansers:

You only need to exfoliate 1-2x/week with a good exfoliation product like Derma E’s Microdermabrasion Scrub. Daily cleansers with plastic beads are not doing enough to exfoliate, some drug store scrubs that are promoted for daily use are far too harsh due to the jagged edges of the abrasive ingredient. Even a good quality exfoliation product should not be used more than twice weekly.

Callus removing tools

Many people mistakenly believe that metal blades to shave or scrape calluses are the most effective way to remove them, but in reality, these harsh tools actually can damage skin leading to scarring and harder calluses as the skin works to repair itself. In many states, including Iowa, Credo Blades (metal callus razors) are illegal in nail salons so if you see one, RUN!

If you have hard calluses that are bothering you, the safest way to soften them is to use a gentle foot file like the ones we give you during your pedicures at the spa regularly in the shower, but not TOO aggressively. Products like Farmhouse Fresh Honey Heel Glaze can also gently soften calluses. Our calluses do serve a purpose in protecting our feet, especially for runners, walkers, and people who like to wear sandals or walk barefoot, so it is important to leave some callus!

Epsom Salt Baths:

We are total advocates for baths with Kneipp aromatherapy salts or Epsom Salts (even the drugstore epsom salts!) but you can get too much of a good thing. Some people mistakenly believe that salt baths soften the skin, but in truth, they can be quite drying, especially when combined with the hot water. If you take baths regularly, either add a softening agent to the bath in addition to your salt like a light bath oil (almond or jojoba) or the Kneipp Skin Soft Almond Bath, or be sure to rinse the salts off briefly after a soak and apply a good moisturizer.

The benefits of quiet during a spa service

Many of our guests for massage and facial services at the spa prefer to completely zone out and enjoy much needed quiet time, without the harassing buzz of e-mail alerts or demands of family or co-workers.

Sometimes guests ask if it is rude if they relax quietly and the answer is a big, resounding NO! If quietly venting about your stress to your therapist helps you to relax, then by all means, feel free, but don’t feel like we expect you to talk or you have to engage your massage therapist or esthetician in conversation.

The truth is, your service will usually be much more beneficial with longer lasting results if you do take some time to quiet your mind. Your therapist can focus more on what he or she is doing and can really concentrate and “listen” to your tissue and feel for subtle changes in the muscles. If you zone out our doze off, your muscles tend to relax a bit more to allow for deeper work because your mind isn’t telling your muscles to tighten up or hold tension patterns.

If quieting the mind doesn’t come easily for you or if you find yourself needing to squeeze in a short massage between meetings, we’d like to offer a few ideas to help get into the right frame of mind to relax during your spa services.

1. If at all possible, arrive 5-10 minutes early so you can read a magazine, sip some tea or water, and feel like you’ve had a minute to transition to a spa frame of mind.

2. Leave your phone in the car or at home. Just knowing it is nearby can be enough to keep someone out of the zone and an unexpected beep or buzz can startle you back to reality.

3. When your therapist leaves you to disrobe and climb under the sheets, take a moment to enjoy the peaceful feeling of being alone and take some slow, deep breaths as you set an intention for your service and repeat it to yourself. Ideas include “I will let my mind rest,” or “I will let my tension go.”

4. During your massage, continue taking slow deep breaths and focus on the way your body feels and responds during the service.

A great resource on the benefits of a quiet treatment is the article The Healing Effects of Massage Mind. Click here to read the article. Click here to book your next spa service and mental vacation.

Should you try Nia?

When our massage therapist and certified Nia instructor Allison Peterson first approached me about teaching Nia at the spa, I wasn’t sure what to think because it seemed so out of our element, but upon further research, it seems like Nia is the perfect complement to our existing wellness services!

Nia was developed in the 1980s as a way to provide aerobic, stretching, and strength training in a safe, non-impact format. Nia is set to music and draws from various forms of dance, healing arts, and martial arts. Nia enthusiasts enjoy that the workout is both energizing and relaxing at the same time.

Alison recently did demonstrations of Nia at a spa event and it was a hit with the attendees! It was my first sample of the technique and I could pinpoint from the movements she guided us through exactly where my low back aches were stemming from.

Allison Peterson demonstrates Nia to spa party attendees

Nia is great for all fitness levels and will serve as a perfect way for people who are seeing our massage therapists to help with pain, balance and flexibility. Nia is even an appropriate fitness class for people who have Parkinson’s Disease, MS, arthritis and certain musculoskeletal conditions.

For an idea of the kinds of movements that make up a Nia class, watch this great video:

Class size is limited. We are offering two 8-week sessions of classes. one on Thursday mornings 8:00-9:15 am and one Monday evenings from 5:30-6:15. We recommend signing up for as many classes as you can, but recognize that life, meetings, and vacations happen so you can sign up for individual classes online here, as opposed to committing to the entire 8-week session! Individual classes are just $15 and space is limited to 10 per class.

Thursday morning session starts April 2, 2015, Monday evening session starts April 6, 2015.

5 Easy tips for your DIY manicures

Of course we love to have you come into the spa for a relaxing mani/pedi, but we know that sometimes in a pinch you need to do it yourself. There can also be something really meditative and relaxing about taking time to tend to your nails at home.

CND Offly Fast Home Shellac Removal Kits

5. You CAN safely remove Shellac at home, it just takes longer since you will be doing one hand at a time. As long as you are patient and follow recommended instructions, you should be fine. As soon as next week, we’ll even have DIY Shellac Removal Kits. The video linked to this post and the removal kits are intended for CND brand Shellac which comes off easier than other gel-polish brands, but you can research safe removal methods for other brands. We used to advise only getting professional removal (which is still the ideal) but we have too many clients who pick their polish off at home and damage their nails so we might as well make sure you know the best ways to remove it safely!

4. Shellac doesn’t have to mean 2 weeks of the same color! You can use a regular polish like Zoya or Vinylux over the top of Shellac to add designs or just a quick change of color, the remove it quickly with a gentle remover and swipe nail with alcohol to bring shine back. A quick swipe of gentle remover won’t take off the Shellac and this is a fun way to add a bit of art to your nails or paint a darker color over a light shellac shade or a shimmery sheer polish to add sparkle over a cream color Shellac.

I used Vinylux over the top of Shellac to create accent nails to wear for a day (I didn't use Vinylux top coat), and removed with Zoya remover and wiped with alcohol to restore shine. — I used Vinylux over the top of Shellac to create accent nails to wear for a day (I didn’t use Vinylux top coat), and removed with Zoya remover and wiped with alcohol to restore shine.

3. Love Zoya’s colors (especially the Pixies, glittery, and shimmery options) but the drying speed and long wear of Vinylux? Layer them! We like using similar shades and applying a layer of Vinylux as a base coat, topped with 1-2 layers of Zoya for color, and a layer of Vinylux top coat for quick drying. It is also fun to use a darker shade of Vinylux as a base and top it with a shimmery sheer Zoya shade to change up the look.

Ideas for pairing Vinylux and Zoya for the best of both worlds.

2. Add flair to your nails with a metallic sharpie! Even wobbly hands can do dots, hearts, stripes, or fun french tips with Sharpies (regular metallic Sharpies, not paint pens). Apply to dry polish or a gel polish (see #5) then top with a base coat. Full instructions and ideas here.

1. Whatever you do, cuticle oil is a must! I hate bundling and am terrible at wearing my gloves in the dry winter air so my hands and cuticles are fried! I snapped a before pic, applied CND Solar Oil, waited 10 minutes and it pretty much worked wonders. Solar Oil is designed to penetrate through the tiny tunnels in CND Shellac so it will continue to hydrate your nails and cuticles while you wear Shellac to help it last longer and so your nails stay healthy underneath the polish! Keep it on your night stand for a quick bedtime application.

My hands before and after Solar Oil. My nails are 1 week out from my last Shellac manicure and I’ve been really hard on them since!

Stop in to check out our selection of CND and Zoya brand polishes, or if you are more the type to let a pro pamper your nails, book your manicure or pedicure online!

Please believe us when we say…

Many of us have been practicing massage, esthetics, or nail care for a LONG time, but we were all clients before we were practitioners and we know how easy it is to ignore the advice of a pro. I polled our team to get their feedback on the top 15 things they wished clients knew (or rather, they wished clients would believe their esthetician, LMT, or nail tech about!)

15. If you are indecisive about nail polish colors, bring an article of clothing you want help matching for a special event or come with at least a basic idea of the color family (i.e. red, blue, pink) and whether you want cream or sparkle. Your nail tech has seen how all of the colors look with lots of different skin types so if you are torn between a few shades, defer to her for the color that will look best and get you the most compliments! If you arrive a few minutes early, ask the receptionist if you can walk back to the nail room for extra browsing time!

14. Sometimes the most effective massages aren’t the ones with the heaviest pressure. Lighter touch might do wonders for tension and services like Cranio Sacral Therapy are incredibly gentle but effective.

13. Shellac is a name brand gel polish from CND, but like most people call all kinds of tissues “Kleenx” even if they are a store brand or “Puffs” brand,some places just call all gel polishes “Shellac.” Real Shellac can remove gently in under 10 minutes with no damage to the nail, but if what you are wearing is an off-brand, it might take our nail techs longer which will cut into your other service times. Please be understanding with our nail techs if they have to adjust your service due to longer removal process of non-Shellac gel polishes.

12. While we love that people think we’re just naturally gifted, our professions do require quite a bit of education and continuing education. Many of our employees have over 1,000 hours of industry training, some over 2000 hours! All of our licensed employees are required to attend regular continuing education (which is awesome because our classes are so cool!)

11. Men visit the spa and not just for massage! Guys need skin care and facial treatments even more than women because of how irritating shaving can be on the skin. Did you know that lots of pro football players regularly get manicures and distance runners often get pedicures to keep their toenails healthy so they can survive the abuse of training?

10. You will enjoy your service more if you arrive 5-10 minutes early to relax and shake off the day’s stresses so you can start your service in a place of relaxation. Arriving late sets the wrong tone, means it takes you longer to get “in the zone” and means a shorter session. If you just can’t seem to make it on time, book 15 minutes later.

9. Real change takes time. While our LMTs, Estheticians, and nail techs are experienced and well educated in their specialties, it usually takes more than one visit to help you achieve your goals. If you have had pain from your posture at work for years, it will take more than one massage for relief. If you have been a nail biter working to grow your nails, a series of manicures can do wonders. Working to see big improvements with your skin? It will take more than one facial. While one spa visit is great for an occasional indulgence, for real change, doing the recommended home care and visiting on a regular schedule will really improve the health of your skin or nails or decrease your pain.

8. We really do book up, especially for evenings and Saturdays. Our happiest clients are those who set aside a regular time for sessions and book standing weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, or quarterly services so they have something to look forward to and aren’t stressed when they can’t get in last minute. It is easier to give us a day’s notice to cancel than to get in at a popular time on a day’s notice.

7. Everyone’s skin needs change regularly, especially with seasons which is why monthly facials are good. Plus it is really nice to come regularly for a deeper cleanse with steam and extractions.

6. It is totally fine not to chat during your services! You’ll get to a deeper state of relaxation and your therapist can focus more on his or her work for a more effective session. If you snore, even better! We consider that our highest compliment!

5. If your nails are dry or brittle, your hands are frequently in water or you have a job requiring lots of hand washing, or you don’t regularly moisturize nails with cuticle oil, your polish (including CND Shellac) will chip sooner. Really, cuticle oil and starting with healthy nails will make a huge difference in how long your polish lasts.

4. Don’t plan a big night out drinking before (or after) your massage. Trust us, it is very hard to relax with a hangover and massage will not help. If you have a massage on the books and plan to go drinking afterward, you might feel extra crummy the next day. Don’t say we didn’t warn you!

3. All bodies are awesome. Trust us, we see pre-teens, great-great-grandmas, people with severe injuries, people undergoing cancer therapies, pregnant women, people of all heights and weights and we are not judging our clients on their bodies. Your therapist is not focusing on your weight or your body hair, or blemishes. He or she is focusing on how to help you feel great in the body you have and it is a really, really wonderful job.

2. Yes, our significant others are lucky (because we are awesome people) but no, they don’t get massage all the time. In most cases, they have to schedule appointments like everyone else. And often, they see our co-workers who are focused more on their therapy needs and not whether or not the dishes got done at home. 😉

1. Having regular massage will assist in strengthening the immune system by lowering stress levels and helping to keep stress in the body to a minimum. And, considering that stress is a huge risk factor for many major life-threatening diseases, reducing stress can save your life!

7 Fun Valentine’s Day Ideas (that are not couple’s massages!)

For the second year in a row, we’re sharing our favorite Valentine’s Day gift and activity ideas that are not couple’s massages! We have 3 couple’s massage rooms and all of them have been booked since mid January for Couple’s Massage because Valentine’s Day falls on a Saturday this year. You aren’t out of luck though, Des Moines offers lots of great date spots and we offer lots of great gifts for an at-home spa day!

1. Spa day at home

Draw a bath and soak in one of our Kneipp bath salts or liquid baths. We recommend a blend of the Pure Bliss and the Almond Soft Skin for a bath that will make your mood and your skin feel beautiful. Pick up one of our Kneipp or Farmhouse Fresh Massage Oils and trade massages. All of our massage oils are 15% off during February! Finally, at the end of your spa day at home, surprise your sweetie with a gift card to visit East Village Spa for the services of their choice.

2. Lunch at Trellis and a romantic stroll through the Botanical Center Gardens

It is cold and snowy white outside right now but warm and colorful in the lush gardens inside the Des Moines Botanical Center. Grab a romantic lunch and sip from the great wine and beer selection at Trellis inside the Botanical Center and stroll hand-in-hand while you look at the beautiful gardens.

3. Get your heart racing!

Join Fleet Feet, our neighbors across the street, for their Saturday Morning Social Run at 8 am on Saturday, February 14th. Single? Who knows, you might just meet your soul (or sole…get it?) mate! No registration needed, Fleet Feet hosts lots of free, fun social runs!

The annual Red Flannel Run is also on Valentine’s Day this year, starting and ending at the NEW Wellmark YMCA. Registration is still open!

4. Book her a blow out hairstyle at Blo and enjoy Hoq’s Valentine’s Day menu.

Visit our neighbors across the street at Blo for a blow-out hairstyle (I recommend getting the scalp massage upgrade!) and then take her to show it off over an Iowa farm-to-table dinner at Hoq. As of 2/4/15 Hoq still had openings after 8:30 pm for Valentine’s Day and had openings for their same prix fixe Valentine’s Menu on Friday 2/13. Blo had a few openings both Friday and Saturday. Reservations required for both!

Check out Hoq’s menu and contact info here, and book your Blo appointment online here.

5. Dinner at home

Purchase all the ingredients for a delicious dinner at home including spices and oils from our East Village Neighbors Allspice and add a fun surprise by including a special gift from Kitchen Collage that can be used to make the dish. Need recipe inspiration? Two of our favorite cooking blogs are Budget Bytes (easy, delicious and you can use the savings to buy higher quality spices!) and Iowa Girl Eats.

6. Movie and drinks

Fleur Cinema is a great place to catch a flick and if you bring your ticket stubs to neighboring Mezzodi’s, you get two for one drinks and the perfect opportunity to discuss the movie you just saw!

7. A perfect pair: Fruit Fantasia Tea from Gong Fu and something pretty from Amour

Amour in the East Village has lots of lovely underpinnings, jammies, and robes in a beautiful and inviting shop. Heather, the owner, and her team are great at making recommendations and helping even the most timid of gift-givers feel comfortable shopping for their sweeties. They also recommend Gong Fu Tea’s Fruit Fantasia blend as an aphrodisiac. With a rosy hue and sweet tart fruit flavor, it certainly is delicious!

The beauty of a bath

Just typing this blog post makes me long for a soak in the tub with a good book and my favorite Kneipp bath liquids. Baths are not only indulgent, but as any bathing aficionado knows, the health benefits can’t be denied!

Okay, I did get inspired by my own post and filled my trusty tub with beautiful blue Deep Sleep liquid bath from Kneipp. :) — Okay, I did get inspired by my own post and filled my trusty tub with beautiful blue Deep Sleep liquid bath from Kneipp. 🙂

Relief of joint and muscle pain:

According to the Arthritis Foundation, a warm bath benefits people who have fibromyalgia, low back pain, and arthritis. For added benefits, try using a muscle soak in your bath like Kneipp’s Arnica Joint Relief or Juniper Muscle Ache bath soaks.

Bedtime benefits:

The Mayo Clinic suggests trying a bath at bedtime as part of your night time ritual. For added benefit, we recommend trying the Kneipp Valerian and Hops Deep Sleep bath blend or the Lavender Bath blends. Kneipp recommends scheduling bedtime 15-20 minutes after a soak in their deep sleep bath.

Flexibility benefits:

A warm bath is a great place to gently stretch or massage easy to reach muscles like your calves, quads, or in your feet. Scheduling a massage or chiropractic adjustment, gentle yoga or stretching after a bath is great too because muscles are warmed up and loose.

Circulatory Boost:

For people with poor circulation or to warm up in the winter, a warm bath will help arteries and veins to expand and increase blood flow. I especially love (and need!) a bath after a winter run outside.

To enhance the circulatory benefits, add an aromatherapy bath with warming oils like Kneipp’s Spruce and Pine bath.

Soften Skin:

While bathing in overly hot water or salts can dry out skin, a bath in a softening or hydrating oil can nurture and moisturize skin, especially hard-to-reach skin on the back. A tablespoon of almond or jojoba oil added to the bath or some of Kneipp’s skin soft almond bath will leave skin feeling great.

Bath Safety:

The arthritis foundation recommends soaking in warm (not hot) water between 92 and 100 degrees. They caution that anything hotter can stress the cardiovascular system, particularly for people predisposed to heart problems.

Adding oil to the tub will make it slick so be careful getting out of the bath and use caution the next morning if you hop in the shower to make sure it isn’t still slick!

Lastly, don’t add essential oils directly to your bath without a carrier oil or salt! There are many great soaking blends from companies like Kneipp that have proper instructions and dilutions, if you don’t have ample aromatherapy training or background, stick with those. Essential oils won’t mix with water so if you put drops of them “neat” (right out of the bottle undiluted with oil or salt) in your tub, you may end up with a burn (possibly in a sensitive spot!) because the oil won’t dissolve. Trust me, I can attest to this. Ouch!

What are your favorite bath rituals, products, or blends?

Are acne treatments contributing to superbugs and tips for mild to moderate acne.

A widely circulated article in the Wall Street Journal published this week discusses the risk of creating superbugs with traditional antibiotic acne treatment. Doctors are finding that the antibiotics that were once effective are no longer helping and the doctors quoted fear that prescribing antibiotics for acne will open teenagers and others up to developing other serious conditions like drug-resistant MRSA.

From our experience, people aren’t always clear on the causes and types of acne, plus there are lots of myths surrounding acne treatments and causes. This article from the Mayo Clinic offers great advice on the different types of acne and when to seek medical help for yours. It also offers tips on preparing for your appointment with a dermatologist.

Unfortunately, you can’t just hope for better skin, you need to make changes to your routine and possibly lifestyle. For mild acne, you might evaluate your day-to-day routine. A few ideas include:

Cleaning your phone with antibacterial wipes daily to avoid spreading oil and bacteria
Changing your pillowcase every couple of days
Washing your face morning and night with an appropriate cleanser for your skin type
Get a facial from a licensed esthetician (not just the advice of a sales person behind a cosmetic counter! Usually these are not trained estheticians) for advice and help unclogging your pores safely.
Using a moisturizer appropriate for your skin type (yes! Even people with oily skin need hydration, but a gel or acne-specific cream may be best)
Try a mask or spot treatment like Derma E’s Exfoliation Mask or Farmhouse Fresh’s Pajama Paste Mask
Exfoliate weekly with a product like Derma E’s Microdermabrasion Scrub or Farmhouse Fresh’s Sand your Ground Mask (which doubles as a scrub and clay mask but do not OVER exfoliate and do not exfoliate skin that is irritated or has open areas.

For more moderate acne, in addition to all of the above:

Try regular facials for deeper cleansing and help with deep pore extractions in a way that won’t scar skin
Try a series of light chemical peels
Reduce stress, especially if your acne flares up when you are under stress
Visit a dermatologist

For severe acne, visit your doctor or dermatologist for recommendations.

We know acne can be frustrating and believe me, some of us at the spa have battled painful scarring acne before so we can empathize with the frustrations. If you have questions or concerns, do not hesitate to speak with a licensed esthetician or your doctor for advice or a referral.

Don't hesitate to reach out to a professional for help if you are struggling to manage your acne at home! — Don’t hesitate to reach out to a professional for help if you are struggling to manage your acne at home!

Why we call our hot stone massage “Heavenly.”

Just typing “Hot Stone Massage” makes me melt a bit. The lovely forecast calling for a high of -3 degrees tomorrow shall serve as my blog inspiration tonight!

A hot stone at East Village Spa is quite unlike the stock photography you see everywhere showing a row of stones sitting directly on a client’s back and no therapist in sight. All the photo below is missing is an orchid growing out of her ear.

NOT what a hot stone massage looks like! (Photo courtesy of wikimedia commons)

What clients CAN expect is for their massage therapist to work with his or her hands to assess the muscles and tissue and then massage primarily with heated stones as an extension of their hands. Our therapists can also do a hybrid of hands-on techniques to address trigger points or specific areas of pain and hot stone massage for general relaxation.

The stones are heated to between 120 and 130 degrees and the therapist is able to safely hold them with bare hands and should keep them moving until they have significantly cooled off before placing them directly on the skin and leaving them. The heat from the stones will help to boost circulation, relax tight muscles, and quiet the mind.

The therapist uses a variety of different shaped warm jade stones as an extension of their hands to relax tense muscles.

Still not convinced of how awesome a stone massage is? This video is a perfect little example of some of the techniques massage therapists can use with different shaped warm stones (note, this is not a company we endorse or have used, but their video provides a great example of just some of the many stone techniques a therapist might incorporate.)

As wonderful as hot stone massages are for most clients, there are a few times we don’t advise them including for clients who are pregnant, clients who have burns, skin conditions or are undergoing radiation. People with fragile thin skin or who are diabetic, paralyzed or otherwise unable to sense heat are also not good candidates for a hot stone massage and would benefit more from a traditional session.

A cold week like this one might be the perfect opportunity for you to change up your massage routine and try out a hot stone massage with one of our experienced therapists. Click here to book yours!

Planning your wedding spa service timeline

The holidays are one of the most popular times to get engaged and if you were part of a couple celebrating your recent engagement, CONGRATULATIONS! Hopefully you are able to enjoy planning a celebration with family and friends, but we know sometimes wedding planning can be stressful and confusing. Here are a few helpful hints for planning spa services to prepare for your wedding.

Waxing:

Whether it is a bride looking to schedule a first Brazilian or a groom wanting his first back wax, the worst time to experiment is the day or two before your wedding! For best results, we recommend getting the wax services you’re considering for your wedding and honeymoon at least 6 months out and then keeping up the routine until your wedding. The first wax is often the most painful and until you have a wax, you won’t know how your skin will react. With regular waxing, you’ll likely get a smoother result and less irritation for the big day.

If you are planning to wax your underarms or legs prior to your wedding, plan to have AT LEAST 6 weeks of growth for a smoother wax. Hair needs to be a minimum of 1/4 inch long and the longer the better in those areas. Brow and lip waxing should be planned at least 3-4 days in advance of the wedding.

Nails:

If you are a nail biter looking to grow your nails for your wedding, we recommend at least 3 months out getting at least a basic manicure every 2 weeks to help keep your cuticles and nails in shape and reduce your temptation to bite them. Applying a cuticle oil like CND Solar Oil and hand cream nightly will do wonders to get your hands and nails in shape for wedding photos.

Wearing a hard polish like Shellac is a great way to grow your nails because it makes it harder to bite your nails and easier to break the habit, especially with stressful wedding planning. Using REAL CND brand Shellac (as opposed to one of the imitation versions some salons call “Shellac”) with proper removal will not damage your nails.

Facials:

If you have skin concerns you’re looking to address before wedding photos, the best time to start working on them is at least 6 months out. A professional esthetician can help you determine the best products are for your skin needs (and your lifestyle). They can also help with clogged pores and clearing up your skin. Once a month is best for a facial, but taking care of your skin at home with the proper products for your skin type between facials is going to make the most difference!

Avoid booking a facial the day or two before your wedding or your engagement photos, especially if you are traveling and aren’t familiar with the esthetician or product lines in case your skin reacts or because deep pore cleansing can lead to break-outs while your skin is purging impurities. A facial with an esthetician you know well and products you are accustomed to should be fine the week of your wedding or photos, your esthetician can always go easy on extractions to avoid any redness.

An added benefit to facials is that they are super relaxing, with tons of massage on the face, scalp, neck, and arms. Any bride-to-be can use that nurturing stress relief!

Massage:

Sometimes during the wedding planning it can be easy to lose touch with your fiance! Booking a couple’s massage can be a great way to reconnect and relax together.

To book time to prepare for your wedding, give us a call at (515) 309-2904 or hop online to schedule when it is most convenient for you!