urban retreat treatment room
Facials are such a treat when they shouldn’t be – I love them but don’t have them often enough, and I know my skin, now that it is older, would benefit from me going regularly. I had Darphin facials for £30 almost every month throughout my 20s, and then I moved from the suburbs into London and couldn’t find a salon that wasn’t charging the earth for something similar.
An unlikely place for a value-for-money treatment, Harrods’ Urban Retreat has a facial for £55, which I decided to try out. The Guinot hydraclean treatment is a 40 minute facial that ended up being both cleansing and relaxing.
As a salon, the urban retreat is ok, as a collection of beauty/treatment rooms down endless corridors, it is great. I wasn’t there for the holistic experience though – just arrive, have my facial, and then leave. If you’re looking for a spa-like experience, then this is not the place for you. No wandering around in fluffy white robes, with plinky plonky music, and cups of green tea.
Back to my facial – the lovely Isabel was my therapist, and she was as sweet and attentive as one would expect. She was gentle with my sensitive skin, and paid attention when I had said my skin was feeling dehydrated. I came out with soft, smooth and plump skin which is still clear a week later, save for one little spot.
During the treatment facial massage, scrubs, masks, extraction, and a heated electrode (Thermoclean) were used to break down any toxins and sebum in, and under, the skin. The electrode is massaged against the skin which is actually quite a nice feeling – it is warm to hot (you can ask for the temperature to be adjusted) and it actually helps relax the muscles in the face somewhat. My usual creases between my eyebrows were nowhere to be seen after my facial!
A shoulder massage also helped ease tension, as well as the blend of oils used. I had booked myself in for a late facial (5pm) so I could go straight home and leave overnight whatever lotions and potions that were used. I was pleased to see there was no redness to skin afterwards, and a clarity and smoothness I haven’t seen in a while. You know those little bumps under the skin? They were gone. Still are.
It’s definitely worth a try. I’ll be heading back in a couple of months, and at £55 for 40 minutes, it’s not going to break the bank.
I really should have moved the water bottle and tidied up the towel
