Spa spy Fresh outlook

It’s luxury all the way with a Guerlain facial at Edinburgh’s Caledonian hotel

The treatment

A 90 minute Guerlain Skin Light facial, £140 Monday to Thursday, £170 Friday to Sunday, at the Guerlain Spa at the Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh – The Caledonian.

Why go?

If you’re about as radiant as a furry and grey tangerine that’s been lingering at the bottom of the fruit bowl, this treatment is designed to restore your glow.

Our spy says

As with all of this five star hotel’s Guerlain treatments, this experience starts with a fragrance journey that involves smelling various perfumes to choose the favourite that will scent your treatment room.

Since I’m in a cheeky sort of mood, I go for Insolence, which features notes of violet, orange blossom and iris.

Then I’m led back to the relaxation room, where I wait with a group of be-gowned and relaxed looking women, all drinking chilled prosecco.

Leanne picks me up shortly for the foot ritual part of the experience, which takes place from the vantage point of one of the white chairs in the manicure area.

My feet are scrubbed and lotioned up, then I slip them back into my flipflops and head to my suitably fragrant treatment room, where I lie prone under a cool sheet.

Everything starts with a cleanse. My make-up is removed by various expensive smelling unguents, including their Crème De Beauté, while a steamer puffs onto my face, which opens the pores like mussels in a pot of boiling water.

Then Leanne examines my face under a very bright light.

I’m not sure what the report is, apart from, “We also offer waxing and tinting as part of our facials”.

I shall keep my moustache, thank you very much.

Next is the “microdermabrasion” element. I was a bit scared that this might be painful, but it turns out to be a relatively gentle manual scrub, which is used before a vaguely tingly exfoliating mask.

I lose track of all the unguents that are applied, sometimes with soft brushes and usually left on for a few seconds before being whisked off with toasty hot towels.

One is left on longer than the others, and while I percolate, Leanne writes out a prescription. This takes a while, since it involves advice (“requires weekly exfoliation to reduce buildup of dead skin, and a nourishing moisturiser”) and ten recommended products – mainly from their top-ofthe-range Orchidee Imperiale range, many of products of which feature in this facial – complete with prices.

Once the mask has been removed, there is some stimulating massage, which also incorporates my décollete and shoulders, using Guerlain’s whisking and pressing lifting techniques.

The results

I look like a freshly polished piece of fresh fruit. n