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Fashion Voyeur

People will stare, make it worth their while.

Categories: Beauty, North East

John Lewis Beauty Retreat

If you’ve visited John Lewis department store in Newcastle you’ll know it stands as a flagship shopping destination in the city.  Along with Fenwick it offers shoppers everything from fashion and beauty to kitchenware and appliances.  What you might not know is that hidden in plain sight, is the Beauty Retreat.

You’ll find this urban sanctuary hidden behind smoked glass at the back of the Beauty Hall and I’ll admit, I thought it housed only the Clarins beauty rooms.  What’s actually back there is a little more exciting than that….

I was invited along to the inaugural store specific blogger event aimed at discovering the beauty offerings from the department store giant.  You guys know already that I work with John Lewis on a national scale already and my ongoing love for inhouse denim brand AND/OR, but the beauty rooms are actually something that despite being right there in plain sight, are actually pretty easy to miss.  I’m here to tell you why they’re worth a visit.

JOHN LEWIS URBAN RETREAT SPA CANAPES
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I arrived to a super warm welcome from staff and a live performance from Music Newcastle’s David Ball (seriously, look him up, he’s young, hot and uber talented), our coats were whisked away and we were treated to a champagne reception and canapés that looked way too pretty to eat.  Well, I say that but I ate about twenty so maybe not strictly true, anyway, after an introduction from Spa Manager Claire, we were divided into two groups to explore on and off counter products and treatments.

With Taster Treatments on offer from Decleor, ESPA, Liz Earle, Elemis and Clarins we were spoilt for choice but managed to indulge in almost everything going.  The Retreat is a calming environment, despite being just yards away from the busy shop floor, it’s easy to find peace and tranquility in the soundproofed rooms.  So, what’s back there to aid the stressed out shopper in Newcastle?

DECLEOR

I hotfooted it to Decleor to try out a condensed version of their signature deep tissue massage on back and shoulders and as usual was told that my body is like a block of concrete.  Saying that, this girl almost had me sleeping, her firm touch was perfectly pitched for my aching shoulders and had me mentally adding her to my list of Fashion Voyeur approved Massage Therapists.

JOHN LEWIS URBAN RETREAT SPA DECLEOR

LIZ EARLE

Next up I headed to Liz Earle’s dedicated beauty room to hear all about the latest limited edition Hot Cloth Cleanse and Polish.  This cult product introduces a limited blend to its fragrance line up each holiday season, it doesn’t stick around and is always worth picking up, if you’re not familiar with the product then basically it does what it says on the tin.  it’s a eucalyptus blended cleanser that you ‘polish’ into wet skin using a muslin cloth and it removes ALL traces of grime, dirt and makeup without drying out your skin in the process.  The beauty room offers bespoke Liz Earle treatments that can be discussed and booked on counter in the Beauty Hall.

CLARINS

Clarins monopolises the upstairs space with a large counter and treatment spa which looks out over the store through smoked glass.  Therapists were on hand to give pressure point massages in those weird massage chairs that you can never quite get comfortable in.  The space upstairs is clinical, contemporary and quiet, despite being right in front of the busy department store.  With several treatment rooms at their disposal, the Clarins team have a suite of face and body treatments available to book as solo treatments or as a discounted block.

JOHN LEWIS URBAN RETREAT SPA CLARINS
JOHN LEWIS URBAN RETREAT SPA CLARINS FRONT

ESPA

ESPA are a spa specific brand I know and love, much like Decleor, their focus is on the power of aromatic blends which work deep into the muscles and surrounding tissue.  Their friendly Therapist was on hand to provide short massage treatments on the neck and shoulders and talk through the ethos behind the brand in the best smelling treatment room I’ve ever been in.  There’s also an Elemis beauty counter in the Beauty Hall with all of those candles you’ve come to know and love (Mama Tenenbaum buys me one every Christmas).

ELEMIS

Elemis was the last treatment room I visited and personally it’s where things unravelled for me, lack of attention to detail meant I was left with muscle cooling gel in my left eye causing blurred vision and if I’m honest, a pretty scary amount of pain, I wasn’t given any water or anything to try to clean it out, just a cotton pad.  Unfortunately my eye and the skin around it swelled and was left bloodshot meaning I couldn’t participate in any of the beauty hall counter action and this lasted long after I’d left the Retreat and arrived home.  If you’re booking in, maybe specify no muscle cooling gel on the eye area in advance to avoid any mishaps.

JOHN LEWIS BOBBI BROWN CHRISTMAS 2017
JOHN LEWIS BOBBI BROWN CHRISTMAS 2017 2

Needless to say, the Beauty Hall itself has some great cult brands represented such as Sisley and Creme de la Mer – if you haven’t tried the Creme de la Mer Tinted Moisturiser then hit up the counter for a three day sample pot straight away, it will change your life.  Bobbi Brown gave Influencers an exclusive preview of the new 2017 Christmas Collection ahead of its official launch and Chanel were on hand to give lip makeovers with their signature Rouge a Levres shade collection.  Something else you might not know about John Lewis Newcastle is that the GHD counter actually offers hair demonstrations with GHD tools; so if you’ve been wondering how the GHD Curve might work on your hair, or how to create the perfect curl with a flat iron, then pay them a visit on the ground floor, the girls on counter are always happy to help.

All in all it made for a pretty awesome night actually, except for the eye mishap which left me flustered and headache-y.  The event itself was very well organised and the staff who man the retreat are friendly and knowledgable when it comes to their specialist areas – especially the team manning the Decleor room.

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We were given a programme of events on arrival meaning everything ran to time and we were given ample exploring time, the added bonus of us all  being entered into a pretty epic beauty prize draw was the climax of the evening and saw one lucky lady take home £300 worth of Charlotte Tilbury goodies, swoon!

Basically Voyeurs, go check it out, the fact that it’s a separate entity at the back of the store shouldn’t put you off, the team are lovely and they might just manage to revive you if you’re running out of steam during the festive shopping season.

Pixie xo

To book an appointment or enquire about the range of services on offer, email BeautyRetreat_Newcastle@johnlewis.co.uk

Categories: Uncategorized

Le Petit Spa, Malmaison Newcastle

When I was invited to spend the day at the Malmaison Hotel Spa, I jumped at the chance, after all, what girl wouldn’t want to spend a day being pampered, preened and beautified, right?!  My mission?  To allow myself to be waxed, exfoliated, prodded and polished all in the name of research and to let you lovely readers know whether it was worth it, and whether it’s worth your time.

Let’s first start with the fact that I wasn’t even aware that the Newcastle Malmaison Hotel even had a spa until around three weeks ago and it’s been there as long as the hotel has stood on the glorious Newcastle Quayside.  I know right?! Mind. blown.  I was given a date and time for my visit and asked to select some treatments from an extensive menu comprising mainly ESPA treatments.  On the day of my visit I packed up my hugest Tom Ford handbag and off I set.

The Malmaison is easy to find and it has designated parking (a dream in Newcastle city centre).  It stands on the Newcastle Quayside right next to the Millennium Bridge and behind The Pitcher & Piano bar, it’s a great spot, the views are fantastic and there’s a constant flow of people passing.

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Tucked away in the basement of the hotel is the spa, the hotel upstairs is a world away from the tranquil, hidden sanctuary below.  An elevator ride transports me to a calm, quiet and low-lit environment, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, and as the doors open, I’m greeted with smiles from behind a reception desk.  (The first thing I notice is how much higher up I am than the reception desk and I instantly wonder if I’m standing in the wrong place – I’m not)  We go through the standard discussion about allergies etc. and what to expect from today and then I’m given a brief tour before being given a robe (my attire for the day) and shown to the changing area by Laura, my Therapist for the day.

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One of the glaringly obvious things about the Malmaison Spa is that it doesn’t have the usual trappings that you would come to expect.  There’s no steam room, no jacuzzi, no whirlpool, plunge pool or indeed any pool of any kind, and that’s because this is purely a treatment spa.  yes, it’s a given that some people will consider this a negative, but in reality, it allows the therapists to concentrate on providing the best treatments available, and in a city like Newcastle, it’s more about getting beautified and getting out on the Town.

All of my personal belonging are locked away in a generously sized locker (good job really, as i decided to bring the biggest handbag in the history of handbags), and I’m shown through to the central Relaxation Area.  This area is the hub of the spa, it’s where everything starts and ends.  The room is dimly lit with music playing at a low-level, there are soft, squishy, leather massage chairs operated by remote control and there are a variety of teas available on a stand in the corner.  I spot a magazine rack filled with fashion mags and photography books and I settle down in a massage chair with Elle magazine.  After some intense Level Three pummeling from The Chair, I’m whisked into a treatment room by Laura.  The rooms here are gorgeous and don’t have the clinical feeling of some day spa’s, everything has low-lighting and is very calming, there are individual flowers on each treatment bed and the same music is played throughout all areas of the spa.

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First up is a Lycon Brazilian Wax, definitely an ice-breaker and  yep, it’s exactly as it sounds.  For anyone who goes through the pain of intimate waxing every six or seven weeks, if you haven’t yet discovered Lycon (or Brazilian Hot Wax), get it on your radar now as it’s almost pain-free and it takes half the time of strip wax.  In a nutshell, the therapist pre-cleanses the area with oil and the hot wax clings to the hair rather than the skin.  There are no cloth strips used in this process, the wax simply sets hard and is then pulled away.  Trust me when i say that the Malmaison Spa is a great example of this service.  The North East has been slow to jump on the hot wax trend, I know this because for the last fifteen years or so I’ve travelled to London for the privilege and although there are a few places offering it throughout Newcastle and the suburbs, they aren’t a patch on Laura.  So if f you’re curious, or even if you’re a regular waxer, give the Malmaison a try, you might just be pleasantly surprised.

Next on the agenda is a muscle warming ESPA Body Wrap.  I’m taken to a different treatment area where we choose products by conducting a “Smell Test”.  This involves smelling various oils and positions and basing my choices on preference of smell.  Once I’ve selected my preferred aromas, Laura tells me that this will give a muscle warming wrap – perfect as I’m nursing a shoulder injury.  I’m exfoliated head to toe and covered in a green smoothie like substance before being wrapped in a big tin foil-esque blanket.  Once I’m wrapped, I’m treated to an aromatherapy head massage whist the green stuff gets to work.  I can feel a sort of deep heat sensation and the whole experience, strange as it is, is super relaxing.  As soon as I’m cooked, i’m unwrapped and whilst covered up i’m taken to a private shower behind a screen in the corner of the room and instructed on how best to wash the mixture off, i’m then moved onto a fresh bed and we move on to the full body hydrating massage section of the wrap experience, including a bespoke deep tissue massage to aid recovery of my injured shoulder.

Now let’s be clear, I’m a massage freak.  I have at least one a week and I’m pretty fussy too; I tell Laura that “I like to feel like I’ve been beaten with sticks” and she laughs and agrees.  After all, what’s the point if you can’t feel it, right?!  For a petite girl, Laura is strong and she’s right in there, all-elbows and heels of hands, she tells me that my back is full of knots and she’s not surprised I’m always in pain.  She goes on to explain that each knot is a build up of lactic acid that should be released through pressure.  The thing I really loved about this particular Deep Tissue Massage is that Laura is particularly attentive and has a knack for picking out those exact hyper-sensitive spots, moving my arm into various positions to slide my shoulder-blade, she’s almost relentless in her mission to iron me out, and regularly asks is the pressure is ok.  I can tell she’s frustrated when there are knots that she can’t flatten.

On to the facial and I’ve opted for an Active Peel Facial; it claims to be a powerful and effective natural peel which smoothes, softens and evens out skin tone.  A Clarisonic brush cleanse is followed by an intense enzyme peel containing botanical extracts and pumpkin enzymes which exfoliate and remove dead skin cells.  I’m no stranger to a glycolic peel and I love the familiar tingling sensation when it eventually begins.  Once the peel is removed, skin is massaged with rose quartz crystal rollers which cool and calm the skin and send me into a relaxing trance.

To finish with, I’m handed over to Bronia who sits me down for a Jessica Geleration Polish.  Generation delivers a high shine, chip free finish for up to two weeks in a variety of colours.  For a small charge you can add nail art or a French polish but I’m a creature of habit and I opt for a Rouge Noir type colour.  As most of us already know, gel polish is cured under a lamp and so there’s no drying time – perfect if you need to be out in a hurry and don’t want to sit around waiting for polish to dry, also perfect if, like me, you opt for rich, dark colours.  It’s worth noting that help polish should be soaked off when it’s ready to be removed, this way you protect the nail underneath and minimise any damage, the Malmaison offers a soak off service for £15.  Bronia is hilarious, she has me cackling like a hyena throughout my polish, kind of like a friend you haven’t seen in a long time.

As my day of treatments draws to a close, I’m taken back to the relaxation room where I’m told I can stay as long as I want, or if I’d prefer, I can use the sauna and drencher bucket shower, there’s no hurry to get rid of me, the vibe here is chilled and relaxed and clients are encouraged to stay and do the same.

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One of the great things about the spa at the Malmaison is that there’s no judgement.  In an environment where you’re in and out of a robe and very little else for treatments, these girls have seen it all before and they aren’t bothered.  I’m sure we’ve all been to that one place where we’ve felt a little uncomfortable but this is not it.  Here, it’s just day-to-day business and the girls are completely unaffected.  If you’re the nervous or body conscious type, have no fear, the staff here are friendly and professional and within about ten minutes you’ll have forgotten all about the worries you might have had when you arrived.

Le Petit Spa at Malmaison Newcastle is a hidden sanctuary in a busy city, and one that I’ll be returning to.  It’s on the Quayside, has its own designated parking and offers every treatment you could possibly want and more.  Yes it could do with a lick of paint but that doesn’t affect the treatments.  In terms of aesthetics, the spa may have to up its game in the ever-changing sky scape of Newcastle but given the multi-million pound overhaul the hotel has just had, that might not be out of the question.  For now though, know that if you’re ever in the city and just fancy a little peace and quiet, or some space to relax, it’s right there, underneath your favourite Quayside hotel.  Would I recommend it? Yes, absolutely.  It may just change the way you see beauty treatments.  It’s a one stop shop and you get a relaxation room thrown into the mix, how many regular beauty salons can boast that?  So, go, try it out, and let me know how you get on.

Pixie x

The treatments I had on the day were:

Lycon Hollywood Wax £34

ESPA Body Wrap £60

30 Minute Deep Tissue Massage £42

Active Peel Facial £75

Jessica Geleration Nails £30

Huge thanks to Therapists Laura and Bronia for looking after me all day long!

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Pixie Tenenbaum 2024

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People will stare, make it worth their while

Pixie Tenenbaum

FASHION VOYEUR

Freelance Fashion and Beauty Writer
Currently taking review slots
Hire Me: pixie.tenenbaum@gmail.com

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