Posts belonging to Category 'South of River'

Hairdresser Review: Hair at the Zoo, Leeming.

What’s all this about: Wash, treatment, trim/tiny cut (inc. fringe), blowdry
Ka-ching: $74
Verdict: Worth it
Join the fun: (08) 9310 3239, Shop 17 Leeming Forum Shopng Cntr, Leeming, WA 6149

Hair at the Zoo is an unassuming little salon nestled next to a fish & chip shop and a real estate agency, it’s your average friendly, non intimidating local hairdresser.

Upon entering, it’s a low key salon, with a childs play area and simple couches. I’m greeted and asked to take a seat. Unfortunately it’s a busy time for them (after school period) and I have to wait half an hour even though I made an appointment.

I don’t mind as my afternoon is free & I’m kept busy by website planning & scowling young boys who don’t want their shaggy hair trimmed, but any other time I think I would have been annoyed – it is a long time to wait if you’ve made an appt.

The woman who washes my hair is very friendly, she does it twice, then asks me what I’d like to get out of my hair treatment (strength & shine in this case) and goes about applying the best one for my hair. Hot towels are then wrapped around my hair to help it penetrate.

It’s then rinsed out by another girl, scalp massaged & then over to the chair for snipping to begin.

I opt for about 4cm off to get rid of the last straggly layers my hair was sporting & a side-fringe trim. Crystal my hairdresser is great, listens to what I want & knows how my hair works (I’ve been to her a few times).

The hair is then blowdried and it looks good! My hair feels shiny, many less split ends, a better shape & a little shorter, so I’m pleased.

She did have to leave a few times to attend to people walking into the salon, again, it’s not a big deal for me, but some might be put off by it.

All up it cost me $74 for a wash, treatment, trim/tiny cut & blowdry. Which I think is a really reasonable price. I’ve had far worse cuts @ other salons for much more $$$ without a treatment.

I would definitely recommend Hair at the Zoo as the price is great and the hairdressers (well Crystal at least – I haven’t tried the others) know what they are doing. If you expect and demand 5 star service, then this may not be the salon for you, but if you are looking for somewhere cheap, cheerful and easy going then Hair at the Zoo may just be your new diamond in the rough! 🙂

Day Spa Review: Hot Stone Therapy Massage @ Beauty Cove Day Spa, South Perth.



What’s all this about: Hot Stone Therapy Massage
Ka-ching: $150 for 90 minutes
Verdict: 12 thumbs up
Join the fun:
Beauty Cove Day Spa – 47 Tate St South Perth WA 6151 – (08) 9367 1877

Long time followers (who are you!?!) may know my affinity for the Beauty Cove Day Spa, new friends may not, but the fact remains that it is one of the loveliest places South of the River to go when a little, or even big, pick-me-up is required. I lost my day spa virginity there (awww) and have been going back for more ever since!

Here’s the excerpt from their website

HOT STONE THERAPY MASSAGE

An experience, not to be missed, we place cooled and heated stones on key parts of the body and massage specific points to bring balance to the mind, body and spirit.

30mins – $65

60mins – $100

90mins – $150

I’d booked with my favourite massage therapist, Kate, for a 90 minute massage, $150 is pretty steep, but I hadn’t treated myself for a long, long time so I decided to go for it.

This massage focuses on the back, but also incorporates the legs, feet, arms and shoulders. I was disappointed because the rocks weren’t placed in a line down my spine as you often see in pictures and I was looking forward to it, however the rocks did feel amazing & they were never too hot. Just lovely, warm, melting into my muscles, taking me away to desert islands where nothing matters, swoon.

Throughout the massage relaxing, but also uplifting, music played as the rocks were used to whisk away tension from my body.

The hour and a half went so quickly that I thought I must have fallen asleep, I hadn’t, it was just so blissful that time slipped away!

I got to treat myself with a little after dinner mint type chocolate afterwards as well as a tall glass of water with lemon which is really good for flushing out toxins after the massage, and Kate recommended some other styles of massage she thought I might like. I forked over the cash and left feeling very light – wallet included – and happy.

Post-massage is always the most amazing part of the experience for me, just the profound sense of wellbeing. Colours seem brighter, thoughts seem much clearer, it honestly feels like being a child again, when you had no cares or worries. It’s definitely one of my favourite feelings!

So to re-cap:

Pros:

* Beauty Cove Day Spa atmosphere is good.

* Hot rocks massage in general, fantastic.

* Great therapist.

* Mint + lemon water afterwards.

Cons

* Wanted the rocks along the spine, which didn’t happen.

* Pricey, more of an indulgence than a weekly affair.

Alright so I’ve inspired myself… I’m going to get a massage on my day off, maybe just a regular one this time but I’ll let you know how it goes!

If anyone wants to love me up, buy me presents or get on my good side for life, then you know what to do 😉

xo

Mini Review: Clear Image Skin Clinic, Leeming

Today I whirled into this little salon (open Sunday so a big plus!) which is located South of the River @ the Farrington Road shops in Leeming.

My mission Today was to become less hairy, something which I have been REALLY lax about lately (much to my boy friends dismay @ my prickly legs, I find shaving a very sub-optimal form of hair removal) due to being unemployed for a while & sans-dollars. The torture areas of choice were eyebrows, lip & underarms (the legs will have to wait a few more days!!).

The salon itself is quite small, but it feels nice and clean inside. The therapist seemed young and wasn’t particularly talkative, which I don’t mind.

The brows were the first to go, she tidied them up with strip wax in one little rip for each brow. At other salons I’ve been to they do it incrementally, it turned out okay though so I’m not sure which I prefer.

The worst part was that a tiny bit of wax got on my eyelid so it hurt when she was taking it off, luckily it didn’t seem to have an effect on the lid but I was concerned it might.

The lip was definitely the worst! Afterwards it turned quite red and the therapist laughed when I asked if it was red, which I didn’t think was very professional, but she went and got some i.d Bare Escentuals make-up to conceal it.

The underarms were fine, I was asked a preference between hot / strip wax & I chose hot. In my experience hot wax is always the way to go for underarms! It hurts a lot more otherwise!

So now I’m free from having to worry when wearing dresses and singlets for about a month, I’m such a big advocate for underarm waxing – shaving is so messy & non lasting on me.

It cost $40 for those 3 treatments, which is a pretty standard cost.

PROS: Open on Sunday, average price, concealed post-wax redness with make-up

CONS: Therapist lacked professionality, lip was very red from strip wax, bit of wax on eyelid.

Overall I’m not sure if I’d heartily recommend it yet, definitely for a leg wax it’d be fine & being open on Sunday is a huge plus. If I went again I’d hope for a different therapist or just get legs / underarms done. They do IPL there which I am really interested in for my bikini line, but I might look around a bit more for a salon I feel a little more confident in going to.

6.5/10

Spa Review: My First Time! Facial @Beauty Cove Day Spa.

So for my first review, I thought it would be appropriate to share my first experience with a Day Spa! This was in 2007 and after ruthlessly researching online I decided upon the ‘Beauty Cove Day Spa’ in South Perth for a facial treatment… little did I know I was opening the door for an overwhelming love affair of massages, facials and everything pampering. Here goes!

(Note: This review is written in fairly simple terms as it was my first!)

http://www.beautycove.com.au

Upon entering I immediately noticed a small water feature in the corner which provided a soothing atmosphere, the girls were all friendly, gentle music playing and a very good feel overall to the entrance area.

They made me fill out a form all about my skin type, what I hoped to get out of my session, previous treatments I had used, drink preferences etc etc, which I thought was really nice! they offered me a drink and i waited 5-10 mins to go in.

I went and put my belongings in a little locker, was given a cute robe i was to put on & it had a little flower on top when it was resting in the cupboard which i thought was cute! The room i was in was really clean and dimly lit – very relaxing.

The facial I chose:

“USPA FACIALS
CONCEPT FACIALS

The facial begins with a ritual footbath, the relaxation continues with a back massage. Then your face is pampered with deep cleansing, exfoliation and warm towels to deeply infuse rich botanical ingredients. The facial is completed with a foot and scalp massage. Allow 90 mins”

It was DIVINE! the woman doing it was really professional, it felt great, at no point was I uncomfortable..she applied the hot towels to my face so well, it was my fav part 😀 face was cleansed, exfoliated, (maybe toned), massaged, steamed, hot towelled, masqued, cooling eye pads applied. the massage was excellent too. i left feeling sooooooooo relaxed and pampered which i would hope from what i paid!!!

The only con is that the BT tried to make me buy a few products at the end which i felt a bit awkward saying no to.

so overall……..8-9/10. very recommended and they have some cheaper facials/treatments too.

So as you can see, my younger self was very impressed with this new world that I had discovered! Beauty Cove is still one of my favourite places to get a treat, the massages there are amazing (ask for Kate), I’m dreaming of one right now… unfortunately I’ve just returned from a crazy holiday & am in no position to do so. But when I am I will pop down there again!

This place is highly recommended!