Spend just a couple of days in New York City and the hum and pace of your body will change somehow. It’s as if your internal rhythm section starts playing double time through the chorus, picking up on the city’s electric energy. This can be exhilarating! It can also be tiring {and for me it was both}, so you can imagine how utterly spoiled I felt in having a spa treatment waiting for me at the end of my second day there.

In order to be able to understand and share with you the full Tata Harper experience, I was offered the opportunity to experience the indulgent pleasure of one of her signature custom facials at the eponimous NYC Exhale Spa.

Walking in, I was greeted by incredibly friendly front reception staff, who had me fill in a form to let them know all about my skin. After storing my things in a digitally locked locker and donning a waffle weave robe and some slippers, I was ushered down a hushed hallway {where the lighting quickly changed to warm candlelight and everything else on dimmers} and invited to settle into their waiting room. Surrounded by candles, imported and hand-carved wood pieces and options on daily customized teas and water, I settled into the comfy linen-slipcovered club chair to await my treatment.

After adjusting the temperature of the heated bed to my liking {i.e. turning it up to “therapeutic heat”}, Tiffany invited me to close my eyes and experience 3 different aromatherapy scents from which I could choose my signature aromatherapy for the treatment. Perhaps not surprisingly, I was drawn to Tata’s Bedtime Treatment, although the Stress Treatment and the Irritability Treatment were also lovely. But my body needed rest, and it said so. I was definitely in the right place. Once the signature aromatherapy was selected, Tiffany dispensed some of it into her palms and invited me to take 3 deep breaths, inhaling the calming aromatherapy with each breath. {Cue sigh number 2}

The facial began with gentle steam, a lovely place to start in order to open up my pores and allow the 2-step cleansing to take effect. Tiffany was careful to apply chilled compresses to cover the delicate skin around my eyes while she was using the steam, and she thoughtfully replaced them with freshly chilled compresses throughout the facial experience.

Cleansing began with the cleanser that I use daily, the Refreshing Cleanser, and then followed with the more exfoliating Regenerating Cleanser. The finely ground apricot seed powder in The Regenerating Cleanser still felt gentle {unlike others I’ve experienced that contain exfoliating grains}, and my skin felt fresh and light when she was finished.

The next step was the Resurfacing Mask, a product I had not yet had the opportunity to experience. Tiffany applied a generous layer of the mask to my face and then proceeded to give me a glorious arm and hand massage with Tata’s Revitalizing Body Oil. The intoxicating scent of this body oil could only come from the fields of organic flowers that Tata grows on her farm in Vermont. I felt transported by the aromas and my skin thirstily drank in all of the richness of the oil. Tiffany then carefully wrapped my hands to allow the oil to soak in and offered me an extra layer of heat with heated “mitts” that she gentle slipped over my hands {kind of like electric blanket oven mitts with no thumbs}. This was a very soothing alternative to the paraffin hand treatment I’ve received in the past, and a lovely way to ensure that all the nutrients of the generous application of body oil had a chance to thoroughly soak into my parched hands and cuticles. She then moved on to give me a scalp and shoulder massage with this same oil, nudging my body even further into relaxation. {Cue sigh number 3}

The next step was the part of the facial that we all tend to dread: extractions. With all of the gentle steam, 2-step cleansing and exfoliation, I was in for a pleasant surprise. This was honestly the most painless extraction experience I’ve ever had, no doubt in large part due to Tiffany’s skilled technique. Relief! {And sigh number 4}

To cool and refresh my skin after the mask was removed, Tiffany applied a cold compress mask to my entire face, a lovely way to close my pores after all of the warmth and steam and to calm any sensitive areas that might have felt “put out” by the extractions.

My skin always responds with gratitude with Tata’s Rejuvenating Serum is applied, but this time it absorbed even more fluidly, quickly becoming one with my skin and similarly followed by the Restorative Eye Cream and Rebuilding Moisturizer. Tiffany of course finished with the quintessential icing on the cake – the Replenishing Nutrient Complex. Have I mentioned how much I love this product? It is like rescue in a roll-on for my skin. It’s seriously my secret weapon for a daily glow.

With my decadent facial complete, I slowly made my way back to the change room, passing by a CoreFusion class being instructed in the Zen-like modern rustic exercise room down the hall where women were sculpting their bodies with one of the most famous barre method exercise classes in the country. Definitely something to try the next time I’m in town.

Needless to say I would highly recommend the Exhale Spa Tata Harper Custom Facial experience. With several locations in New York and many more throughout the US, you shouldn’t have too sojourn too far to find them!

Many thanks to Tiffany for such a delightful experience, and of course to Katherine, Lara and Keri for arranging such a treat for me! Can’t wait to get back to New York for another one!

xo
s.