Facials Trearment

All about facials

Getting a facial is one of the best investments you can make in yourself. Not only can a facial make your skin look better, it's also a great way to clean out pores which are beleaguered by weather, pollution and stress.

A lot of us are investing in our faces these days. The net result is often softened wrinkles, better skin tone, brighter complexions, fewer break-outs, improved firmness and relaxation.

Facials are an affordable way to do something special for yourself. Averaging about R280  for 45 minutes to an hour, facials are a lot less expensive than the more serious chemical peels, laser procedures and botox injections. At some high-priced salons, however, facials can run R380 and more.

The biggest problem facing women today is loss of moisture. Our skin is exposed to sun, wind, air conditioning and heat, which are very aggressive to skin. Leave it up to the facial professional to decide what she thinks your skin needs. There are literally thousands of names for facials, every salon and beauty products company has its own way of labeling and marketing facials. We have chosen Gatineau because of Madame Jeanne Gatineau
The history of this well respected brand begins in 1885 with the birth of an extraordinary Frenchwoman Madame Jeanne Gatineau who devoted her entire life to beauty. She opened her first beauty salon in Paris in 1937 working in close collaboration with doctors and dermatologists to develop her first line of skincare products. In 1950 the first Jeanne Gatineau Beauty School was opened in Paris, where Jeanne Gatineau shared her wealth of knowledge with hundreds of students, teaching them about the skin, the wonders of creams and the Gatineau techniques.

The success of that first salon was the beginning of a series of firsts for the brand name of Gatineau - with many of its products being ahead of their time. Gatineau was the first skincare house to develop exfoliants and slimming creams and the first to discover and put to use the benefits of various antioxidants in skincare, such as green tea, and vitamins A, E and F.

WHAT TO EXPECT DURING A FACIAL

In a good facial, expect the therapist to first analyse your skin and decide what type of products to use. Next, she'll do a deep cleansing. Good cleansing rids the face of makeup residue, as well as wipes away pollution.

Next comes exfoliation to get dead cells off. The trend today is in non-abrasive exfoliation, products that penetrate into the pores without any scrubbing. When you keep as many dead cells off as possible, new cells can find their way to the top and you'll look better. Exfoliation also helps restore lost moisture as dry skin doesn't regenerate itself well.

Toner is the next step, usually sprayed in a fine mist to restore balance to the skin. A toner shouldn't take the place of a good cleanser, however, its purpose isn't to remove residue that you should have gotten off with your cleanser.

Depending on what's going on with your face, the next step would be a special treatment. Oily skin would have different products applied to it than dry skin. Someone might be fighting blackheads, while another may be plagued with redness. Sometimes gentle steam is applied to help the skin absorb the products. Then comes the massage , the therapist will usually apply a cream to moisturise and nourish your face and massage it in for a few minutes.

The mask then soaks up excess oil as well as brightens and tones the skin. There are many types of masks available today. An application of a day or night cream is the finishing touch. Day creams protect and moisturise, night creams nourish.

You should see a difference in your skin right away. It should appear brighter, firmer and freshened. A facial shouldn't make you break out; if that's happening, it's not the right product for you.

HOW OFTEN SHOULD I GET A FACIAL?

The experts agree once a month if you can afford it. If your budget won't allow that frequency, then at least as the seasons change. Getting one before winter and one for the summer will help shore up your complexion for the war against the elements.