Thai Square Spa, Covent Garden

On my birthday (Tuesday) I was lucky enough to go into London's Covent Garden for a massage, not just any massage, but one at the award winning Thai Square Spa, which is one of those hidden gems you feel lucky to find and will never forget. Once through the door, you leave behind the hustle and bustle of a busy London tourist area and instead you find yourself transported to an oasis of calm and beauty.

Bringing traditional Thai treatments to London, everything within the reception area is one that exudes luxury, mystical and authenticity. The Thai Square Spa is the only traditional Thai Spa experience within the UK, something the staff are quite rightly proud to share and explain with their clients. The friendly manner and kindness shown to me upon arrival was nothing short of perfect. There are rules you must follow such as turning off your mobile phone and as I was taken to the changing area, again I was asked to remove my shoes and replace them with flip flops before being shown to the locker room where I was to change into my spa gown. 

Then within my treatment room, I was refreshed with a cool glass of water and then the treatment began with a traditional floral foot soak, my feet were plunged into a terracotta bowl of soothing warm soapy water with rose petals and herbs, by which point I was feeling incredibly relaxed within my surroundings.

My treatment was a Ritual Massage, one of the signature treatments and it is the first treatment to use the Royal Rachawadee massage oil from the spa's brand new lifestyle range iMantara, which is available to purchase at the spa or from the website.  The Ritual Massage encompasses various massage techniques from the East to soften, soothe and balance the senses. Once on the massage table, with my head looking directly down into a bowl of water with floating flower petals, I found my self slowly drifting away. My therapist, who was clearly an expert managed to work out how much pressure to apply to different spots on my body without me wincing or being in any pain, though at sometimes, when a knot was found it was slightly uncomfortable until it was worked out - then it was a feeling of bliss.  Having my back, legs, arms and neck massaged was out of this world and then my feet, something I thought I would have huge issues with, but instead found it absolutely amazing (I hate feet) and incredibly soothing before my head was then massaged.  The entire hour flew by and I could have quite happily stayed there all afternoon, it was so amazing.

Once my treatment was over, I was taken to the relaxation area, handed another glass of cool water and was left to take in my surroundings.  Little things like this made the experience all the more fantastic.  There was no pressure to hurry up and leave, I simply laid back on one of the relaxation chairs until I felt ready to move.

The spa itself has been voted Best Spa in the UK by national newspapers and magazines and you can see why, the experience is the best I have ever had and I left feeling as though I had been there the whole afternoon instead of one hour because I felt so refreshed and relaxed as I left. 

The following morning when my alarm rudely woke me, it was an incredible feeling to not have aching shoulders or lower back pain, I was instead wide awake, alert and ready to tackle rush hour.

I had the Ritual Massage, £75, but the spa offers a range of treatments including couples packages, treatments for men and maternity ones too. All of these packages are detailed here - www.thaisquarespa.com 

Pomelo by Jo Loves

Having spent an evening with the fabulous Jo Malone MBE and having a candle made is a truly amazing experience which I was very lucky and very fortunate to have done. Alongside the Shot Candle (which you can read about here) we were also gifted a Jo Loves fragrance - Pomelo**.

I am perfume obsessed and quite picky about what I will and won't wear. If I like a perfume then it tends to be from the very first spritz, rather than through prolonged use because I am incredibly fussy and perfumes usually mean something to me, Bvlgari Pour Femme for example is the perfume I wore on my wedding day and is very special to me. Jo Malone said that when she created Pomelo:

‘Inspired by memories of summer holidays, fresh linen sheets and sparkling iced water, I surround myself with Pomelo wherever I go. To my joy, it’s the fragrance that makes people stop me in the street to ask what I’m wearing.’

So it is a huge honour to have something that is clearly loved by the person who made it. The Pomelo is a large citrus fruit that looks and tastes similar to a grapefruit and when combined with Vetiver, which is quite earthy it creates an amazing scent.  Put them together and you have this absolutely stunning fragrance which is citrussy sharp as well as being fresh and clean from the moment it leaves the bottle to a good 6-7 hours later when on the skin which is pretty impressive, I only feel the need to re-apply if I am going out in the evening and even then, it is more for my own self-consciousness. Add to that the most amazing packaging with the chunky glass squared bottle, it is everything a luxurious perfume should be.

What I also love about Pomelo is that there is no hint of alcohol when you spray it, whereas some perfumes once settled have an odd after scent to them, this one is as fresh once settled as it is from its first spray and it is absolutely stunning, no wonder Jo Malone is so obsessed with it.

Pomelo is £115 for 100ml and £70 for 50ml and is available from Jo Loves.

Today is my Birthday

There isn't a post from me today because:

image source

I am spending the morning having time with my boys and then this afternoon I will be going for a massage in Covent Garden, so watch out for that review soon!  Then tonight, I will be spending time with my mister going for a meal, whenever I decide what it is I want to eat.

Jurlique Rose Silk Finishing Powder

Jurlique are one of my go to brands when my skins needs some TLC and I am obsessed with their Rosewater Balancing Mist which I keep on my desk at work to give my face some extra moisture mid way through the day when I have been sat looking at a computer screen.

In amongst all of their lovely products, this Rose Silk Finishing Powder is one of my all time favourite products from them and it is one I wanted to share on my blog today. 

I have a 'thing' with finishing powders.  I really like them to a mist but getting the hang of using them can become tiresome and annoying, you either add too much or not enough, so trial and error is a huge factor with products like this for me.  Like most Jurlique products, this one comes packed inside a beautifully decorated cardboard box which depicts some beautiful floral decoration along with everyting you need to know about what is inside.  Inside the box is a sleek looking tub which is really luxurious looking.  Lifting the lid on the tub there is a mirror which is a great size and really handy plus a powder puff for application.

The Jurlique Rose Silk Finishing Powder is described as being a "translucent facial powder with precious botanicals designed to minimise oiliness and shine, to help skin feel smooth and look radiant". The finishing powder itself is incredibly finely milled and has a lovely silky feel to it. It also doesn't feel as though you are just covering your face in talcum powder either which is a massive bonus and nor does it leave any hint of it being there on the skin, other than the incredible scent. If you have use any of the Rose products from Jurlique you will be familiar with the scent already, but if not, it smells just incredible of fresh roses.

Application of this finishing powder is quite easily, I use the powder puff to intitially apply the powder and then taking my Real Techniques Bold Metal Arched Powder Brush to ensure I have even coverage and have my t-zone well and truly covered. As I have said the powder is really lightweight so you don't know it is there and what it does do is ensure my skin stays oil and shine free for most of the day with only the need to re-apply if I have an event in the evening.

This is for me an incredible finishing powder and having had this little pot of joy for almost a year, I am sad to find it is coming to an end though it is definitely something I would re-purchase. Costing £26 for 10g it isn't cheap but it is definitely a worthwhile investment.

What is your favourite finishing powder or do you prefer finishing mists?