Body Shops

Sydney Morning Herald

Thursday January 31, 2008

Lucinda Mendel

Whether you need to de-stress, detox or just indulge, Lucinda Mendel tracks down the best facials, massages and health treatments in the city.

BEST FACIAL

Anna Field of The Paddington Beauty Room is one of those names found in the little black books of the bold and the beautiful. For a face-firming, radiance-boosting treatment that is less about eye-watering extractions and more about a great result, try the La Prairie Pure Gold Radiance Treatment. Your face is treated to three masks while your hands and feet are massaged with warmed body lotion. The complexion is coated in La Prairie's Cellular Radiance Concentrate Pure Gold serum. Twice. Expect brightened, energised skin. $220. The Paddington Beauty Room, 217 Glenmore Road, Paddington. Phone: 9356 8700; www.thepaddingtonbeautyroom.com.au.

Honourable mentions: For a thorough, no-fluff facial try Nicole Weinberg at Paddington Skin and Tonic, from $120, 86 William Street, Paddington. Phone: 9331 1016. Mankind specialises in men's skincare and offers Dermalogica facials, from $60, and Murad skin peels, from $120. 425 Crown Street, Surry Hills. Phone: 9081 0222;

www.mankind.com.au.

BEST DETOX

You're tired, a little troubled and toxic from the season that was silly. Aveda's two-hour Himalayan Rejuvenation Treatment transports mind and body not to the Himalayas but to a more accessible place of balance, restoration and wellbeing. Tension and sinus congestion is cleared with an aromatic steam inhalation while facial massage relieves stored tension; ditto the dry body exfoliation and a soothing, customised massage. You then sweat it out in a steam tent before a steady, Ayurvedic-inspired stream of rose-infused oil is trickled over the third eye to invite calm. Om. $249. Aveda Day Spa, 17 Oxford Street, Paddington. Phone: 8198 8207.

Honourable mentions: Elemis's Exotic Frangipani Nourishing Body Wrap, $145, at Four Seasons Hotel Spa, 199 George Street, city. Phone: 9238 0000; www.fourseasons.com. The Hydrotherapy Treatment (Aquamedic pool and steam session), $65, at Gillian Adams Salon and Spa, 1356 Pacific Highway, Turramurra. Phone: 9488 9944; www.gillianadams.com.au.

BEST DE-STRESSER

Peter Bablis has two waiting rooms full to bursting with sleep-challenged newborns, stressed-out CBD types and anxious A-listers. His expertise lies in an alternative therapy known as Neuro Emotional Technique (NET): a method used to access the physiology of emotions through kinesiology and chiropractic. Bablis heals mind and body by way of spinal adjustments, acupuncture and the use of kinesiology to identify debilitating emotional blocks. Getting in ain't easy but he's worth the wait. $70 per session (eight treatments are recommended). Universal Health, Suite I, Level 5, Park House, 187 Macquarie Street, city. Phone: 9232 8840;

www.universalhealth.com.au.

Honourable mentions: Peter Bablis recommends his NET-trained colleagues. Rick Schlederer at Universal Health charges $65

a session. 8 Patterson Street, Double Bay. Phone: 9302 2888. Gerald Vargas is at Essential Health Chiropractic, $55 per chiropractic session. Suite 26,

35 Old Northern Road, Baulkham Hills. Phone: 9686 2211.

BEST MASSAGE

Poultice Therapy is the signature massage treatment at Lilianfels Blue Mountains Resort & Spa and is worth the drive to Katoomba. The spa team here has created a unique hybrid of 14th-century poultice therapy (a heated muslin bag is loaded with lavender, rose, jasmine and ginger and stamped over the body) and Hawaiian kahuna massage movements. For just under two hours your body is treated to the harmonious hands of two therapists who work as one to treat tight, trouble areas and completely relax the body and mind. $245. Lilianfels Blue Mountains Resort & Spa, Lilianfels Avenue, Echo Point, Katoomba. Phone: 4780 1361;

www.lilianfels.com.au.

Honourable mentions: For a firm hand, try a massage, from $48, at Noa Therapy, Suite 1, 41 McClaren Street, North Sydney. Phone: 9922 1266; www.noatherapy.com.au. To ease a tight neck and shoulders, try the Indian head massage, $50, at Zen Day Spa, 116-118 Darlinghurst Road, Darlinghurst. Phone: 9361 4200; www.zendayspa.com.au.

BEST CIRCULATION BOOSTER

LaStone therapy employs heated volcanic and chilled marble stones as massage tools to put the vascular system through what's best described as circulatory gymnastics. A wonderfully invigorating massage style, it's particular suited to sore, fatigued muscles and sluggish lymphatic systems. LaStone therapy helps to detox the body, kick-start the circulation and balance physical, mental and spiritual energies. Stone Soul's Susie Prichard-Casey is a talented masseuse, and having pampered London's elite, she's seen it all. From $125. Stone Soul, 3/189 Darling Street, Balmain. Phone: 9555 1102; www.stonesoul.com.au.

Honourable mentions: Robyn Hills is experienced in a wide range of massage techniques including LaStone. She works from her home in Queens Park and has a range of fees that start at $110. Phone: 0410 113 936. Aveda offers its own stone therapy signature, Fusion Stone Massage, $149. 17 Oxford Street, Paddington. Phone: 8198 8207.

BEST HANDS AND NAILS

Christina Fitzgerald is considered Sydney's most passionate, professional manicurist and her loyal clients, some of the city's best-groomed men and women, make weekly pilgrimages for her hand and foot maintenance. Fitzgerald's signature manicure style is for short, slightly square nails and her range of nail polish is one of the longest wearing on the market. Yes, there are cheaper manicures and pedicures around but few can claim Fitzgerald's hygiene standards and a result that outlasts all others. $50 (treatment manicure), $80 (treatment pedicure). The Manicure Room, Level 1, 354 South Dowling Street (Albion Avenue entrance), Paddington. Phone: 9368 0971.

Honourable mentions: Jocelyn Petroni has worked with Fitzgerald and stocks her polish range at Joss Beauty ($50 for a manicure and $65 for pedicure), 230 Glenmore Road, Paddington. Phone: 0416 320 986. Jane Wales runs a mobile manicure service in the eastern and southern suburbs. $50 for a manicure and $80 for a pedicure. Phone: 0419 424 918.

BEST REIKI

Feel like a restorative sleep while your therapist does all the hard work? The Japanese art of reiki is a healing technique used to boost and balance energy and strengthen the spirit. If you suffer from stress, depression, insomnia or general malaise then put yourself in the healing hands of Sharon McGlinchey. An experienced reiki practitioner, her lilting voice gently guides you through meditative breathing before she places her hands on certain parts of the body to assist the flow of healing energy. McGlinchey also performs organic facials incorporating reiki and her own skin-care range. $100 (one-hour reiki treatment). Phone: 9909 8315; www.mvskincare.com.au.

Honourable mentions: Try a reiki session, $90 for an hour, with Nicole Rigato at Arcana Healing Centre, 7 Cecil Street, Paddington, and

emerge feeling rested and calm. Phone: 9332 3238. There's also Spa Chakra, $140 for an hour, Suite 4, 6 Cowper Wharf Road, Woollomooloo. Phone: 9368 0888;

www.spachakra.com.

BEST INDULGENCE

Whether it's a pamper session for your good self or a gift for a significant other, a day-spa package is a sybaritic escape, without the long-haul travel. Treat yourself to La Prairie's most luxurious treatments packaged in a half-day extravaganza, christened Diamond Luxe. Your body is buffed and polished with a blend of micronised diamonds, freshwater pearls and quartz crystals. Then drift away with your choice of La Prairie facial. After a manicure or pedicure, leave with a complimentary bathrobe. $700. Men's spa packages also available. The Day Spa, The Observatory Hotel, 89-113 Kent Street, city. Phone: 8248 5250; www.observatoryhotel.com.au.

Honourable mentions: Try the Couples Volcanic Vitality Treatment, $600 per couple, at Lilianfels Blue Mountains Resort & Spa, Lilianfels Avenue, Echo Point, Katoomba. Phone: 4780 1200; www.lilianfels.com.au. The Eve Lom Signature Facial is $320 at The Blonde Room, 110a Queen Street, Woollahra. Phone: 9328 6700.

www.theblonderoom.com.au.