Cocooned! Time For TLC

There’s a nip in the air and those long strolls with the beau under a starlit sky are the stuff of ballads. Unfortunately, they are not so lovin’ to the skin. The skin’s natural moisture barrier goes for a toss—whether you are cooped up inside centrally heated rooms or out and about in the chilly wind. Hayley Louise Dack, director, The Imperial Spa & Salon says, “Blood circulation, immunity, and lymphatic drainage also suffer in this season.” Joint stiffness is another side effect. All is not lost though. To make sure you have happy, healthy and beautiful days up ahead, we at L’Officiel have put together the crème de la crème of winter saviours— from warming and immunity-boosting spa therapies to high-performance products loaded with ingredients that work overtime to keep your skin soft and luminous. A TIME FOR TLC EARTHLY PLEASURES Thermal muds and hot stones are part of the winter wellness prescription. “Hot stone massages are great for enhancing blood circulation,” says Dack. Luckily for us, most luxury spas have a Chakra-balancing hot basalt stone treatment on the menu and if you suffer from poor circulation, it’s worth a try. Telltale signs usually include cold hands and feet, hair loss, dizzy spells, varicose veins, dry skin and water retention. If hot stone massages are too tame for you, there are more ways of getting cosy this winter. Firecupping treatments involve the application of heated cups on the body (mainly the back, neck, thighs and shoulders) that create suction and help decrease inflammation, warm and relax muscle tissue and boost circulation. It is not for the faint-hearted, though. Thermal muds are warming and mineral-rich, making them excellent for lymphatic drainage—another casualty of dipping temperatures. Try the Classic Hungarian Body Wrap, ₹7,200, at Wildflower Hall, Shimla in the Himalayas—An Oberoi Resort, which uses Hungarian mud to draw out toxins and enrich your body with minerals. We also recommend the Aquatherapy with Moroccan Skin Purifying Wrap, ₹4,000 plus taxes, at R – The Spa at Radisson Blu Plaza, New Delhi. The volcanic ash and warm mud used in the treatment is purifying, cleansing and aids moisture-retention.

HERBal Secrets Many herbs and spices, such as cinnamon and black pepper, provide warmth, which make them very effective for winter. The Indian Spices Oil Therapy at Club Olympus Spa, Hyatt, New Delhi, capitalises on this and uses spice-spiked warm oil in a deep tissue or Swedish massage, starting at ₹4,000 plus taxes. Nilesh Kantak, spa manager, Club Olympus Spa, Hyatt, New Delhi, says, “This treatment is very good during the winter as it gives a warming effect, relieves muscle aches and pains, and also has anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties.” He adds, “It also helps release negative energy.” The Ananda Spice Salt Scrub at Ananda in The Himalayas is infused with 100 per cent pure cardamom, along with black pepper and ginger essential oils that help warm you up. The Worship Oil Drench (₹4,500), at Worship Salon & Spa, New Delhi, is designed for dry skin and comes with an option of using an oil with warm hints like clove and cinnamon. While the Six Senses Spa Zighy Bay, Oman, recommends the Balinese Boreh (starting at ₹16,700 plus taxes). A scrub treatment made from fresh herbs and spices, it is a traditional treatment to prevent colds and improve blood circulation to ease those achy muscles. The scrub is usually made using turmeric, rice, ginger, clove, cinnamon, coriander, pepper and nutmeg.

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CHOCOLATE INDULGENCE Chocolate is great in any season—but when a warm stream of it hits your skin, it’s just the thing to help find your centre after a cold, stressful day. That is why chocolate-based treatments, loaded with antioxidants and collagen-boosting properties, are a hit. We recommend the hour-long Chocolate Fondue massage (₹2,200) at Tamaya Spa by Seven Seas, Jaypee Palace Hotel & Convention Centre, Agra. “100% pure cocoa butter is melted and while still warm, mixed with oils for a sensorial massage,” says the hotel’s assistant manager, Manoj Uniyal. “Chocolate actually breaks down cellulite and fatty deposits as the skin texture improves with natural oxygenation,” he adds. You can also reap the cellulite banishing benefits by opting for a wrap treatment such as the Chocolate Slimming and Firming Envelopment, ₹5,618, at Myrah Spa, Mumbai. An exhaustive treatment with a cocoa peel exfoliation, a chocolate cream massage and a chocolate wrap, it aids toxin elimination from the body. And if you’re still hungry for more, head to The Spa at The Hotel Hershey in Pennsylvania, USA, where you can actually soak in chocolate with treatments like Chocolate Bean Polish, ₹4,300 approximately, and Whipped Cocoa Bath, ₹3,000 approximately. There’s nothing like hot chocolate in the winter!

OIL SLICK Nothing oils your parts as well in the winter than… well, oils! You can’t go wrong with therapies in which warm oils are the star—especially if they feature sesame, coconut or olive oils, as they are best suited for the season. Abhyanga, one of the staple massages of Ayurveda, uses warm medicated oil and is a great option for the season. “The two-hour-long Abhyanga Massage at Tamaya, ₹3,800, involves liberal application of oil followed by smooth, gentle movements to rub it in deeply into the body,” says Uniyal. The 90-minute Kh iz is we dan a Synchronised Ritual, ₹12,000 plus taxes, at the Spa by ESPA at The Leela Palace, New Delhi, is an indulgent one for the season, too. Tania Bardhan, spa manager, The Leela Palace, New Delhi says, “Performed by two therapists working in perfect unison, it begins with pouring of heated aromatherapy oil onto the centre of your body to warm your skin.” This is followed by a warm herbal poultice massage. However, you don’t have to always wait to go to a spa to get the benefits of aromatherapy oils. Add 5-10 drops of essential oils into a warm bath, or blend in 10-15 ml into a 200 ml bottle of any base oil like sesame or olive and massage into your skin daily. Cinnamon is warming and combats the sniffles; eucalyptus stimulates the sinuses; ravensara boosts immunity; rosemary warms and aids circulation; while sandalwood, rosewood and frankincense banish dryness. And just in case you have the winter blues, rose, ylang-ylang and bergamot act as anti-depressants. I am truly a mani-pedi addict. It’s marvellously gratifying to dip your limbs into hot water and have someone fuss over them. But things got even better when for the first time, I dipped them into paraffin wax at R – The Spa at Radisson Blu, New Delhi. The Paraffin Manicure (Rs 700 plus taxes) and Paraffin Pedicure (Rs 950 plus taxes) begin with the usual soak, nail conditioning and dead skin removal. Then came the great part—an incredible olive oil massage. No hand and foot creams, thank you very much! Olive oil is considered one of the best oils for winter and a fabulous fix for those nasty winter itches, too. This was followed by my hands and feet being carefully immersed into liquid paraffin wax, which began to solidify and set on my skin in a couple of seconds. The wax—still wonderfully warm—was then covered by a towel and allowed to work. I spent the next 15 minutes with my hands and feet cocooned in wax and mummified in towels, after which my therapists took it off like wax gloves and socks. I walked in weather-worn and walked out with baby soft skin on my hands and feet.

One of the most effective winter therapies in Ayurveda is the potli or warm poultice massage and I made my way to experience it at the spa at The Imperial, New Delhi. Unlike most hotel spas in the capital, the guests-only spa is located away from the main areas of the property. A vision in white, the entrance is surrounded by lush greens—I could not believe I was in the heart of the city. After a jacuzzi and sauna session followed by a thorough consultation and dosha-diagnosis, I was led to the Kerala Suite. The 90-minute Potli treatment, priced at ₹7,000, begins with Ayurveda’s go-to wellness therapy—the Abhyanga massage with warm herbal oil. After the deeply relaxing massage, it was time for the therapeutic leg of the treatment— with my therapist using long strokes and gentle pressure on the oil-drenched warm poultice on my weary body. Potli packs in the goodness of turmeric, lemongrass, camphor, and kaffir lime. It boosts immunity, reduces inflammation, promotes circulation and lymphatic drainage, relieves joint pain and stiffness and tones the skin—making it a winner for winter. With all my workout sores and winter stiffness gone, I emerged ready to take on the world again.