About Face

I just had the most fun facial ever!

After the Chocolate Spa, Kimberly Brooks invited me to her salon for a facial as a thank you for hosting the spa.

Kim Brooks – Esthetician & Manicurist – A Bella Style Salon & Day Spa

I’ve had facials before, but I would say this was by far my favorite experience.  Kim is fun and friendly and makes an experience that is often about “flaws” and fixing them, fun and relaxing.

I got the Ultimate Anti-Aging Facial – $85 – Cleanse, Tone, Steam, Extractions, Mask & Moisturizer, Facial, Neck and Shoulder massage, and Micro Current lifting treatment.

When I made my appointment I was expecting a nice hour chatting with Kim and doing something my face would appreciate, but I wasn’t expecting to see changes.  I mean… my skin is a bit dry, but otherwise pretty well-behaved… I have a few, as Kim so kindly called them, “expression lines” beginning to show, but for the most part… I’m pretty damn adorable.  (Mom agrees, so it must be true.) When I left I could see and feel a real difference.

So we started out with the cleansing and toning and facial massage…. and the hot towels…. oh yum!  Kim is great, she chatted about the different products and the equipment.  This wasn’t a hard-sell.. or even a sell… (I hate that, btw.  In the past had a lady try to sell me a lot of very expensive stuff while running down my skin and appearance the whole time… not the way to do it!)  This felt more like she wanted me to understand all the steps and how what she was doing was good for my skin.  She snuck a few educational skin tips in too.  It was really nice when she got to the “equipment” part of the facial… some of the glowing wands were a bit unnerving.  I had a pimple on my chin (I know I shouldn’t rest my chin on my hand… but I do… and so I often have a little pimple there…) and Kim explained about the High Frequency tool and how the purple one killed bacteria and the red one soothed and helped heal.  The High Frequency wands hummed and glowed… the red one got a little bit warm, but I didn’t really feel very much.  Afterward though, I could feel that the pimple had really gone down in size.  (Must remember this for the next big event when I will undoubtably get a prominent pimple!)

It was the Micro Current treatment that I was most skeptical about… not that I doubted that it really worked, but I didn’t think I really needed it… (yes, I am a bit vain… ) How much was it really going to do for me… especially in one session?

Kim started with the right side of my face… so I could check out the difference it made from one side to the other…. Wow!  There was a definite tightening around the jaw line and in the area around my mouth and nose…. and in my eye-lid too… wow!

For the Micro Current session, Kim first applied a gel (aloe and water) on my skin, then after warning me that it might tingle or cause muscle twitching, I might see flashes of light and I might experience a metallic taste (all of the above) she began to run two short metal wands (looked like mini curling irons) over my face.  It wasn’t exactly unpleasant, but it wasn’t really pleasant either…. it didn’t hurt…. but is wasn’t enjoyable…. but not so un-enjoyable that I would say never again… because I really did see results…. it’s just not something you would go do to relax or just for the fun of it.  I wasn’t squirming in the chair (like at the dentist) but I also wasn’t hoping it would go on forever (like a massage).

Halfway through, Kim stopped and let me look in the mirror.  It wasn’t a huge difference from one side to the other… I didn’t look like the Joker or anything…. but there was a definite tightening around my jaw, eye and cheek.

After the Micro Current, Kim finished off the facial with a neck and shoulder massage, more hot towels and a really lovely hand massage.  My skin felt great!

Over all:

I adore Kim.  She is fun and friendly, knowledgable and great about making you feel comfortable and relaxed.  The facial was delicious.  I’d love to have one every week!  Considering what a great time I had and the results, I’m thinking I could work a facial in once a month or so… I liked the Micro Current results, but at $50 a session (just the Micro Current, not all the other fun stuff) the suggested 10-12 treatments (for lasting results) seems a bit steep at the moment… I’m leaning toward the Spa Facial – $45 – that includes the yummy massage and steam and moisturizing.  I would do the Micro Current again before a big event though….

The salon needs to give Kim a bigger space to work… she manages nicely, but facials require a ton of equipment and lotions and potions and the salon has her stuffed in a teeny-tiny room.  She could really do amazing with a bit more space.

Kim also offers manicures, pedicures, waxing as well as facials and make-up.  I can’t wait to visit her before my next vacation!