Archives for December 2008

Cutting out spa treatments may seem like a silly thing to feel deprived over in bad economic times, but there are things that are simply easier to have someone else do (for me, manicures), but that I can do myself. Other things may mess with your head a bit if you can’t fit a treatment into your budget. For instance, do you include a treatment in your facial that makes your skin glow and keeps you looking perpetually peppy? If you have to cut out that kind of service, you may find yourself catching a glimpse of yourself in the mirror at some point and wonder why you suddenly look tired and, well, blah. That’s the kind of treatment that is worth it to keep up at home if you find it hard to fit a spa visit into the budget – if you feel like you have lost your “pep” every time you look in the mirror, you may end up feeling that way the rest of the time too.

Check out our favorite at-home brightening treatments that are spa-worthy (and in some cases, better in our opinion):

Liz Earle Naturally Active Skincare Brightening Treatment Mask:  I waxed on about how much I love this stuff in my product review recently. It works fast (two minutes or less), and does an amazing job. It made my skin look like I had the luxury of a perfect night’s sleep and endless energy. It naturally imparts what you try to make your skin look like with blush – pretty amazing. Find Liz Earle’s Brightening Treatment Mask at LizEarle.com for $24.

Bliss World Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask: If you are a bit of a mad scientist at heart, you’ll love the way Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask goes from a peach-colored gel to a massive, bubbling foam, crackling and popping for five minutes as it adds oxygen to your skin. If you aren’t a mad scientist, you’ll just love the results: your skin gets less oxygen from your blood as you get older, and this mask gives your skin a little oxygen kick. Which translates to rosy, radiant skin. Find bliss triple oxygen instant energizing facial mask at blissworld.com for $52. And for the record, I’m in the Mad Scientist catagory when it comes to skin care.

La Mer Radiant Infusion: This quick and effective brightening treatment goes to work on dull skin and leaves you with tight pores, bright skin, and a fresh feeling. Swipe some over your face on a cotton pad and your skin will have an instant boost of brightness. It contains antioxidants and lime to counteract sun damage and prevent further discoloration as well. And it feels great on! Find it at Saks.com.

Stay Hydrated: Yeah, we all know we should be drinking more water. Does your favorite spa have a special water/tea/”infusion”? Ask if they sell it so you can enjoy it at home while you are enjoying your home spa routine, and try to guzzle more water the rest of the time as well. A few cucumber slices go a long way to make tap water seem more crisp – if you are making yourself a salad, set a couple aside, put them in a container filled with water in your fridge for a few hours, and you will have tasty, crisp water, which will hopefully get you to drink more. I’m fortunate in that the tap water where I live is tasty all on it’s own, but I still need a little motivation every once in awhile – keep a water flavoring powder in the house or add a splash of juice if you need to. If you keep up with it, you can go from dull skin to radiant skin with an inner glow.

Mac Strobe Cream: Hey, sometimes you need to fake bright and luminous skin – and the makeup artist at the spa would tell you that same as she slathered a great cream like MAC Strobe Cream. Not only does it give you an instant luminous glow (you will look perpetually happy), it gets to work on your skin to make it naturally bright via green tea and anti-oxidants aimed at adding brightness and clarity to your skin. Find it at Nordstrom.com for $29.50.