The facials of the future
From a Fire & Ice peel to the Venus Freeze, the cutting edge, surgery-free treatments that really can transform your face
CAN YOU dip a toe in the water and try a lightweight version of some of the more extreme cosmetic procedures? yes. All you need is the right sort of facial — one with added benefits, such as microneedling, lasers, a light skin peel or electrical skin tightening.
These are the bridges between old-style, pampering, beauty-salon facials, and medical, clinic-based procedures, and you can find them both in salons and clinics nationwide. Here are some of the best . . .
THE OXYGEN GLOW BOOSTER
THE company behind this procedure — Intraceuticals — says a growing number of A-listers has bought the machines that deliver these treatments. Madonna has six — one for each of her houses around the world.
WHAT IS IT? A gentle, hydrating and face-sculpting facial, which has become a pre-event staple for celebrities from Kim Kardashian to Justin Bieber.
A slim wand blasts pressurised oxygen mixed with skin-improving serums over the face. The main serum is a lowmolecular-weight hyaluronic acid. (That means its molecules are really small, so can easily sink into the skin.)
There is also an acne-calming serum, a skin-brightening serum, or a second hyaluronic acid layered on top. The oxygen jet is meant to push the serums into the skin while also delivering a facesculpting lymphatic drainage massage.
WHAT IT FEELS LIKE: Unusual but fairly comfortable. PAIN LEVEL (OUT OF 10): 0 VERDICT: My cheeks look more defined and my skin has a fabulous dewy glow. The effect lasts the best part of a week. COST AND LOCATION: From £85 at salons nationwide ( intraceuticals.com).
THE VENUS FREEZE
NOT so much a facial as a high-tech skin-tightening treatment, the Venus Freeze delivers a combination of radiofrequency ( RF) energy and magnetic pulses for 20 minutes to tighten the skin and refine contours.
WHAT IS IT? I’m told the treatment is called the Venus Freeze because it ‘freezes’ the ageing process. RF is an energy derived from radio waves. It heats up the lower levels of the skin, where the collagen lies, forcing it to contract. This has a small, but instant, shrink-wrapping effect on the face and also stimulates collagen production.
WHAT IT FEELS LIKE: My face is covered with a gel to help the treatment device move over my skin. Ten minutes in, my face begins to feel hot. The therapist explains the treatment has to heat the skin to 39c or more to make the collagen shrink. She keeps whizzing the heatblaster around; if she pauses for a moment, it’s scorching.
PAIN LEVEL: 1 — as long as that treatment device is kept moving.
VERDICT: My forehead is smoother and my eyebrows have risen a fraction. The skin on my browbone is tighter and I swear my cheeks and jawline have more definition, and a lovely glow. Very impressive. Effects last up to a week but are cumulative, so a course of treatment will last longer. COST AND LOCATION: Venus Freeze, £90, nevillehairandbeauty.net and salons nationwide ( venustreatments.com).
THE ONE WITH NEEDLES
MIcRONEEdlINg involves using either a small roller covered in tiny spikes, or a pen-type device tipped with sharp, tiny needles, to punch thousands of very small holes in the skin.
Making holes through the outer cells of the epidermis means any skincare product that you slap on immediately afterwards can get direct access into the skin. Also, if done with long enough needles, it can stimulate a woundhealing response, prompting the skin to produce new, firming collagen.
When microneedling is on offer as part of a facial, it will be done with short needles which don’t cause bleeding. By contrast, collagen-stimulating needles are more like 3mm long — they will cause pinpoint bleeding and you will need anaesthetic cream beforehand.
WHAT IS IT? Marie Reynolds is a top UK facialist. Her latest treatment — the Master lift — involves microneedling with a dermapen, a device with a grid of tiny needles that punch in and out of the skin 110 times a second. It is used to drive a rejuvenating serum into the skin, after which the skin is massaged before an lEd light mask is applied.
WHAT IT FEELS LIKE: After a quick cleanse, Marie covers my face with the serum and gets out the dermapen, which has 0.5 mm needles, so it barely hurts. Most of the time, I hardly feel it. Then she puts on a soft biocellulose mask full of hydrating serum, and tops it with the shield- shaped light mask. This feels lovely, as doses of red (healing), blue (antibacterial), and purple (energyboosting) light work their magic.
PAIN LEVEL: 3 — mildly uncomfortable, unless you’re particularly sensitive.
VERDICT: My skin is a little pink, but my face looks improved. Photos Marie takes show how the treatment has plumped out fine lines around my crow’s feet and lips.
She tells me to wear no make-up until the following day, as those tiny holes take a few hours to heal. The next day,
my skin is glowing with health and feels a bit tighter, too. The effect goes on improving for six weeks and lasts up to four months. great result. COST AND LOCATION: From £222 at Fortnum & Mason’s beauty room ( mariereynoldslondon.com). Many other salons and clinics offer facials with micronedling — see the tweakments guide.com for details.
FIRE & ICE PEEL
The Fire & Ice Treatment aims to make dull skin look smoother, brighter and more radiant.
WHAT IS IT? Two professional-strength masks. The ‘fire’ mask is 18 per cent glycolic acid with retinol, to exfoliate; the ‘ice’ mask is soothing with aloe vera, antioxidants and hydrating hyaluronic
acid. Both the masks and the products used alongside come from the well-accredited iS Clinical.
WHAT IT FEELS LIKE: After cleansing, the ‘fire’ mask is brushed on to my face and I lie there waiting for the tingling to start, as the glycolic acid dissolves the bonds holding old skin cells on to the skin’s surface. It doesn’t take long. I last for about two minutes of the itchy stinging, and the relief is immense when the acid is neutralised with water.
Dr Preema Vig’s clinic includes a face massage before the second mask, removing gunk from congested pores softened by the peel. After the second, soothing mask, all the surplus hydrating serum from the mask is massaged into my skin.
PAIN LEVEL: 4 — the glycolic mask is moderately uncomfortable.
VERDICT: Fabulous. My skin has shed its drab facade and looks brighter with a youthful glow. Celebrities such as halle Berry and Gwyneth Paltrow love this facial for a quick boost. I can see why — my skin looked terrific for a week. COST AND LOCATION: It costs from £120 ( drpreema. com). To find a local practitioner, see isclinical.co.uk
THE FACE LASER
ThIS super-quick treatment (you’re in and out in 15 minutes) uses two hightech machines to brighten the face.
WHAT IS IT? Skin Laundry is a laser salon in London department store Liberty, and this is a quick fix for the skin in the way that blow-dries are to hair.
The treatment uses an Nd:YAG laser and an intense pulsed light ( IPL) machine on a low setting, so no skin numbing is needed and you are left looking fresh, rather than reddened.
The laser beam vaporises dirt, oil and bacteria to deep-clean the skin, while IPL adds extra brightening. I had been sceptical of these ‘vaporising’ claims — but this sort of low-power laser is what is used to remove grime on stone buildings (and by the British Museum to clean artefacts like papyrus scrolls).
WHAT IT FEELS LIKE: A pen-like laser device is wafted over my face. It feels as if tiny drops of hot fat are being spattered across it, but it is a prickling sensation rather than actual pain. I’m more disconcerted by the fact there’s a frying smell, which I reckon is my blackheads being sautéed. Conductive gel is then applied before the IPL light device is fired across my face. I can’t even feel it. Afterwards, my skin is patted with a moisturising sunscreen.
PAIN LEVEL: 2 — very slight discomfort. VERDICT: My skin looks much brighter and fresher after its laser deep- clean. Only 12 minutes have passed, but it looks airbrushed — fresh and smooth.
COST AND LOCATION: The Skin Laundry Laser and Light Facial is available only at Liberty. First treatment is free (and you don’t have to commit to more); subsequent sessions £60, skinlaundry.com