Ultimate Wellness Package @ COMO Shambhala – Perth’s Best New Day Spa.

 

After the craziness of Christmas & the silly season – cue late nights, champers & plenty of delicious festive treats, it’s not unusual to be left feeling a little flat as our bodies try their hardest to recover from lots of leftovers and (more than likely) a lack of exercise.

I was invited to try out the COMO Shambhala Ultimate Wellness Package ($195) – and if I could, I’d prescribe it to everyone in my life who needs to press restart on their health & wellness in 2016. Take two hours at this luxury Perth CBD day spa and call me in the morning.

The Ultimate Wellness Package consists of the 75 minute signature massage, followed by a super healthy main course & juice/smoothie of your choice from the COMO Shambhala menu at the on site restaurant (POST).

I’ve been lucky enough to try out many massages over the years, so I don’t take it lightly when I tell you that this experience with Jennifer my masseuse was, without a doubt, one of the best massages I have EVER had! I almost don’t want to share this review because it was THAT good and the word will spread, making it harder for me to book back in 😉 But I just can’t keep this gem to myself.

The pressure was firm, yet nurturing, & a gorgeous combination of essential oils – Bergamot, Thyme, Geranium & Marjoram mixed with a base of sweet almond & vitamin e – were expertly applied and massaged into my tired muscles, bliss.

I’m all about the little details and these were all on point. Hot towels on the feet AND neck (my absolute favvvvourite part of most treatments!), a home-made ginger, lemon & honey tea + healthy cookie (!!) post-massage, making sure I knew what was going on each step of the way, and a facial and head massage to complete the experience.

I floated out of there on Cloud 9, and promptly found myself on Cloud 10 upon reaching POST restaurant.

Choosing one of these incredible options and a juice proved tough – the all sounded AMAZING! After much deliberation I decided on the Green Goddess (this is usually a starter, but the staff kindly prepared a main size for me) & a gorgeous mixed veggie juice.

This was a warm green soup, and one of the best I’ve had, however my favourite part of the dish was the biggest flaxseed cracker I’ve ever seen – I’d eat this every day if I could! I felt so nourished and relaxed after slowly enjoying the meal and juice that I started wishing teleportation had been invented so I could click my fingers and instantly be back home, snoozing happily in bed.

Since this technology is not available yet, I said goodbye to the friendly staff & made my way home with a smile on my face, and a deep relaxation that I hadn’t felt since my holiday to Bali 6 months earlier.

If you can’t quite spring for an island holiday, this is honestly the next best thing. Thanks to the Ultimate Wellness treatment I’ve been able to start 2016 with my best (and most relaxed!) foot forward, and can’t wait to pay this beautiful new spa a visit again soon 🙂

For more information and to book, check out the COMO Shambhala Perth website & feel free to tell them I sent you!

Be well,

Annette xo

Salon Review: Mind and Body Rebalance at Ella Bache Salon and Spa, West Perth.

Choosing a treatment at a salon or spa, is like trying to choose what flavour you want at the icecream shop. They all look so yummy, and you know they’ll all make you happy (albeit tinged with possible slight regret in the case of icecream!), so you mentally ‘taste’ them all, licking your lips and thinking about the future experience…

It’s scenes like these that make me contemplate a Personal Icecream Assistant!

These deliberations of the most fun kind are what I experienced when I was trying to pick a ‘Spa Retreat Package’ at Ella Bache in West Perth, who kindly allowed me to trial one for review.

In the end I decided on a Mind & Body Rebalance ($230) because, like most, it’s something I’m constantly in desperate need of!

The two-hour treatment includes a full body Hot Rocks Massage (a delicious alternative to regular massage as the weather cools down) and Shirodhara Therapy, which involves a stream of oil being poured over your third eye, located between the brows and up towards the hairline.

♥ ♥ ♥

I’m all about options and customisable treatments, we’re all so different within ourselves on a day-to-day basis, let alone different from each other, that I believe spas and salons REALLY need to make their treatments as bespoke as possible in order to best cater for their clients. With that in mind, I was pleased to be offered the choice between scented and unscented massage. I went for the earthy smelling oils, but am also keen on a scent free massage too, depending on my mood.

My therapist Maggie did a great job of making sure the rocks were never too hot. At times I thought she might have been a magician, making hot rocks appear out of thin air as I swear her hands never left my body to be able to pick one up!

The highlight of the hot rocks experience was… having my ears massaged! Not with rocks, and just ever so lightly, but I don’t think I’ve ever had that before and my gosh was it dreamy! My little ears must have had a bit of tension pent up in them because they adored the attention.

Next up, the Shirodhara! But first, a word of warning:

Your hair is going to resemble an oil slick afterwards, plan on being plan-less to capitalise on the goodness of nourishing sesame oil. Your scalp will love it!

During this treatment, a ceramic container is positioned over your ‘third eye’ and oil streams out continuously. It’s a unique feeling, somewhat like a fish nibbling on your forehead! Afterwards I got to take a shower and wash away all the oil (I had somewhere to be!), which was much appreciated. They even provide a hair dryer for you, nice.

The only slight negative to my experience was that it was a little noisy on the Saturday I went in, which meant I couldn’t relax to the full extent that the treatment would have allowed me to. Regardless of that, I felt amazing for the next two days afterwards – very clear and calm.

Haven’t tried a hot rock massage or shirodhara treatment? I certainly recommend it!

Ella Bache West Perth

1260 Hay Street, WEST PERTH, Western Australia, 6005
Ph: (08) 9321 0560
E: ebspa@iinet.net.au

Ella Bache products are available online at StrawberryNET!

If you have tried either of these, or want to, leave a comment!

Be well,

Annette

xoxo