Last night I went for my first ever microdermabrasion facial in Kensington, London. Having not had many facials before, let alone a micro-derma facial it’s safe to say I was a little nervous after watching YouTube videos of the procedure. Just for anyone out there who is wondering what the hell a micro-derma facial is, here it is summed up pretty well...
Microdermabrasion is
one of those cosmetic procedures that most people have heard of, but don’t
really know much about. Even if your skin-obsessed friend swears by it, or
you’ve seen it listed on spa menus, the procedure is still one of those best
discussed with a dermatologist.
Allow us to clear up
any misconceptions. Microdermabrasion is a procedure that exfoliates and
removes the superficial layer of dry, dead skin cells. According to licensed
medical aesthetician Maria Barry at Union Square Laser Dermatology,
microdermabrasion machines can buff and polish the skin using a stream of fine
crystals or a diamond tip. Some systems have suction to vacuum loose skin cells
from the face.
Read more here
After a year of travelling, and probably quite a bit of sun damage and dry skin, I knew that this type of facial was definitely needed. I visited the Kensington skin clinic which is located a short 10 minute walk from Earls Court station- the actual salon is
quite small, but it seems to fit everything in as it does hair, nails &
skincare. I headed down the stairs for my facial which was much quieter and
decorated really nicely, so a good first impression.
The salon offers many different facials for different problem areas at varying costs, being a bit of a savvy shopper I actually
booked my facial through Groupon and got it for £19.00 when the actual price on
the price list was £55 - so a bit of a bargain if you ask me, however you can see why I was a bit skeptical
of the procedure. My worries soon vanished when I met my facialist who
was the loveliest lady ever and made me feel very comfortable, she answered all my
skincare queries and gave me some really detailed advice on minimizing pores
and tackling problem areas on my skin.
The actual facial lasted for around 30 minutes, and it was a bit
of an experience. Firstly, she took any left over makeup off of my skin with some
lovely scented cream and cotton pads, and then began applying a pre-gel for the
procedure. Due to the fact that this is literally a hoover type machine rubbing crystals
all over your skin to literally scrape the dead skin cells off – it wasn’t the
most comfortable half an hour of my life, It did hurt a tiny bit on some areas where the
nozel was going over the more delicate areas of my skin, however nothing horrific.
The lady doing my facial told me all about the crystals, and
the fact that they were imported from Italy – so it seemed that no expense was
spared in terms of the brand and actual products. When she finished the actual
dermabrasion, she then applied a few different creams to my skin, and then applied
a really lovely chamomile cream mask and a cold compressed flannel onto my skin
to decrease the redness and swelling.
After the procedure, I must admit my skin felt so so smooth and looked amazing, even my flat
mates told me I was glowing. It just seemed as though it did what it said on the tin as it were – my skin looked healthier, felt smoother and generally looked more radiant. The facialist told me to make sure I thoroughly hydrated my skin over the next few
nights, and to return in two weeks for a follow up procedure, as with this it
generally works much better if you go for 2 or 3 procedures within 2 months,
but she told me for my age and because my skin isn’t too bad I only needed the
2.
Overall I would say I am very happy with my experience at the spa, and
am more than happy to go again and tell friends to visit- plus for £19.00 it
really is a bargain. One thing I really took away from the whole experience is
that as women we spend so much money each year on creams and serums that tell
us they will minimize our pores and make us look more radiant, but I’ve now realised
that it is much better value for money to just get a few facials a year instead, as these actually work! So I will
definitely be starting to look after my skin a lot more by making
regular visits to skincare salons.
If you would like to book this facial, click here or keep an eye on Groupon for skincare offers.