It looks like we’re going to be doing our usual celebrations online for now – including the 2020 Good Spa Guide Awards and maybe Christmas parties, too.
How many of us are going to be spruced and sequined from the waist up with cosy PJs hidden below? It’s going to be the look of the season. (Just make sure there’s no surprise Amazon delivery that makes you leap up suddenly mid-Zoom revealing your casualwear).
Whether you want to glitter for an online ball, shine at the Christmas party or just experience some glamour and sparkle as the nights draw in, here are our favourite products, treatments and spas with that extra dollop of glam to see you through.
Diamonds
In its true nature, diamond is the crystalised form of pure carbon, the hardest material – so hard it’s used in industrial tools. In skincare, it is mainly used as colloidal nanocrystalline particles – diamond powder – which is said to be able to penetrate the skin carrying other anti-aging ingredients, while bestowing an illuminated glow.
Disclaimer: while crushed diamond is often used in skincare simply to add sparkle and a bit of glamour, it is not an ingredient in Natura Bissé’s Diamond Collection. Rather it is you who will be infused with a jewel-like radiance after using. For a pre-party face lift, you can’t go wrong with any of NB’s products. However, in this online era, the Diamond Cocoon collection is your new bestie. Polyshield and OxySkin-HEV repairs and protects against damage caused by blue lights emitted from screens. Our Spa Spy enjoyed a Diamond Cocoon facial, which you can read about here.
BeautyLab ® London’s Black Diamond Skincare Discovery Set (£52) is a neat capsule collection containing all you need to prep your skin to party. What we love is the powerful botanical ingredients that target wrinkles and plump your skin, with a sprinkle of sapphire and diamonds to give you the red carpet-ready radiance. The kit contains a 15ml Peptide Cleanser with extracts of cranberry and radish root, a 15ml Energising Serum and a deliciously satiny Moisture Complex. Our skin totally gleamed and glowed after use.
Tata Harper skincare has landed at the uber-glittery Lanesborough Club and Spa in London. We love their Illuminating Eye Crème (£87) using real diamond dust to deflect from those pesky dark circles – a permanent feature of party-season – and illume your peepers.
Gold
It's common knowledge that Cleopatra used gold as a beauty mask, like the one pictured below. Gold is said to have anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, so it’s useful in healing. The ions help stimulate cells in your body helping improve circulation – who knew that gold necklaces are more than just a fashion accessory, but a wellness wearable.
Temple Spa’s Trufflesque Face Mask (£55)
Our Spa Spy recently enjoyed this in her Champagne & Truffles Deluxe Treatment (90 minutes, £135) at Lincombe Hall Spa on the English Riviera. (Talk about glamour, this spa has gold hands emerging from the walls upon which to hang your jewellery). The mask contains black summer truffles, gold and silk particles to plump and smooth the skin, while gold and silver particles add luminosity and radiance. “The thick, gold Trufflesque mask felt as luxurious and indulgent as it sounds,” our Spa Spy reported.
Meanwhile, our doyenne of luxury Sybaritic Spy had the Bespoke Gold Cellular Face Mask (90 minutes, £160), an Ila Treatment, at the Five Bubble Luxury Three Graces Spa at Grantley Hall. For those who love glamour plus wellness, this treatment combines Ayurveda (there are singing bowls for sound healing) with modern skincare practices, such as LED light and stem cells.
One of the most glamorous spas in the UK is in the basement of the Bulgari Hotel in Knightsbridge, around the corner from Harrods. The jewel in its crown is the gold-leaf tiled hydropool where you can literally bathe in gold. The enormous swimming pool is also dotted with gold tiles – you can lounge on the poolside cabanas, order lunch and gaze at the gold reflection glittering on the ceiling.
Silver
Silver was used by the ancients to heal wounds and treat ulcers – Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine, praised its healing effects on battle wounds and infections. Today, its antimicrobial and antibacterial elements make it a prime candidate to treat skin ailments, from acne to fine lines and wrinkles.
Silver Skin Saviour by Omorovicza (50ml, £69)
This face mask contains colloidal silver which helps calm inflammation, as well as a patented Healing Concentrate™. Results are immediate: a plump, firm, glowing complexion – ready for your Zoom close-up.
A post party detox
After your night in/out, you might want to detox -- or keep the magic alive -- by soaking in a bath filled with The Grounding Crystals (£35), part of ESPA’s Modern Alchemy Collection. The Himalayan pink salt contains 84 mineral extracts including copper, which has antioxidant properties and amber extract, known for balancing emotion and cleansing any lingering negative energy. Well, you know how some parties can get…
Read about precious elements in skincare in our article Skin that Sparkles.
Scarlet Spy
18th November 2020
Spy Likes:
Nature-inspired spas, cold water plunges, sound baths, deep tissue massage, delicious food.
Spy Dislikes:
Thin walls in treatment rooms, lounger hoggers, soggy robes, bright lights.
