Skin Sweeteners
Find out where you can treat your skin to sweet spa treatments – using anything from chocolate and sugar to cranberry as ingredients.
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After a month of indulging in heart-shaped chocolates, chocolate-covered strawberries and Sweethearts candies for the Valentine’s season, you can’t stand to gain one more pound for the sake of your sweet tooth. But there’s hope for you yet – at the spa.
Across the county, spas are offering treatments using sweet ingredients – including anything from coffee and sugar to cranberry, papaya and, of course, chocolate – for skincare and relaxation. Whether it’s a scrub, massage, wrap, facial, manicure, or pedicure, you will be sure to find something that satisfies your senses and reduces tension at the same time.
“These natural and hopefully organic treatments not only have the benefits of natural acids, antioxidants and natural humectants, but the aroma that stimulates the senses also adds a sense of comfort,” says Tana Diaz, owner of The Journey Spa & Wellness Center in Orange.
Here’s a quick list of sweet treatments from local spas to help you get started on finding the right one for you.
Chocolate Lovers Package
This couples treatment bundles chocolate, romance, skin care, and
massage in one neat little package. Incorporating chocolate, orange
essential oils and candlelight, the treatment begins with side-by-side
chocolate body wraps, face and scalp massages and some time to unwind
in a private eucalyptus steam room with Swiss showers; it ends with
side-by-side one-hour chocolate massages using chocolate-infused body
lotion and chocolate shea butter. The package is topped off with
Champagne and chocolate-dipped strawberries. $560 per couple for 2 1/2
hours at Yvonne Marciena, The Retreat Day Spa, 303 Broadway, Suite 208,
Laguna Beach, (949) 497-5414; ymspa.com
Paradise Scrub
If you enjoy fruity scents, the Paradise Scrub is like having your body smoothed over with warmed rainbow sherbet – it smells so sweet, you’ll want to take a bite out of your arm just to get a taste. The three-part treatment includes a lemon-sugar full-body scrub, a papaya enzyme wrap and a cranberry body balm rub, in that order. The papaya enzyme – a heavy, creamy conditioner – is so thick and richly papaya-scented, you'll feel like you are about to nap in a delicious tropical cocoon. $140 for 80 minutes at The Spa at South Coast Plaza, 695 Town Center Dr., Costa Mesa, (714) 850-0050; thespaandfitnessclub.com
Coffee Scrub
Since you’ve resolved to give up coffee this year, the Coffee Scrub could be the perfect way for you to get your dose of the coffee bean without the caffeine high. After a preliminary rinse with the Vichy shower over the back of your body, the therapist rubs a blend of ground coffea arabica, sea salts and essential oils onto your skin. The scrub has the strong, slightly sweet and intoxicating scent of an open can of fresh ground coffee. After the scrub is rinsed off, the therapist cleanses you with coffee flower bath wash; the process is repeated on your front side. The last 20 minutes consist of a light massage using coffee flower lotion. $230 for 60 minutes at The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel, One Ritz-Carlton Dr., Dana Point, (949) 240-2000; ritzcarlton.com
WEB-EXCLUSIVE: MORE SWEET TREATMENTS
Honey Hibiscus Hydrating Facial
Does your face feel like a poorly watered tropical plant? Maybe it's time for The Spa at Island Hotel's Honey Hibiscus Hydrating Facial – using a mixture of ingredients, including honey and hibiscus, promoting skin softness and hydration. $140 for 60 minutes at Island Hotel Newport Beach, 690 Newport Center Drive, Newport Beach, (866) 554-4618; theislandhotel.com
Aloha Body Scrub
So you can't make your annual trip to Hawaii this year, but you can dream can't you? Check out the Aloha Body Scrub at Spa Gregorie's for a tropics-scented treatment using Epicuren products to exfoliate and moisturize the body. A papaya-based product is used to remove dead skin and a pineapple cream offers ultimate skin hydration. It's not a week-long vacation, but at least you'll leave feeling relaxed and smelling like you've been somewhere exotic. $95 for 45 minutes at Spa Gregorie's in Newport Beach and Rancho Santa Margarita; spagregories.com
Fresh & Fruit Bliss Facial
You can get more of that sweet, tropical treatment at Movano Day Spa with the refreshing Fresh & Fruit Bliss Facial, which incorporates pineapple, papaya and mango extracts for gentle exfoliation (pineapple), skin balancing and moisture retention (mango). The papaya extract activates the skin's metabolism and soothes skin irritations. $85 for 60 minutes at Movano Day Spa, 2007 S. Pacific Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, 949-715-0225; movanospa.com
