Spa At Home —
Energizing
www.howtospa.com/en
30 mn total
SPA AT HOME —
Energizing You’re at home and you have 30 minutes to spare for yourself. You can turn your safe place into a little spa with our tips and advice. These tutorials will help you enjoy a great relaxation moment with our step by step guide. You can skip some steps though, if you don’t have enough time or room for example or simply because you don’t feel comfortable doing them at the beginning. The aim here is to listen to your body and mind, at your own pace. We strongly recommend you to turn your phone off or set it to flight mode and avoid any disturbance while you’re relaxing to make the most of it. You’ve chosen the energizing result. For a total relaxation, let us guide you...
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Make yourself comfortable
When you’re following your spa ritual, we recommend you take 5 minutes to get into the relaxation state of mind. Take the time to get comfortable. You can also get in the mood with some special scents with our advised product from KOS : Jardin des Songes.
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Dim lighting will also be beneficial to your relaxation. Close your curtains, turn off your artificial lights, and light a few candles here and there in your house (bathroom included) with the advised product from L’Esprit Cocon : Inspiration Lointaine. You can also put on relaxing music by downloading from your iPhone this album: «80 minutes of Music Reiki» (also available on Deezer), or by accessing to these sites: https://www.massage-zen-therapie.com/radio-zen or https://www. musique-zen.fr.
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You can find all our recommended products on our eshop: https://howtospa.com/en/e-shop/
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First relaxation step
Spa experts will often recommend you enjoy a sauna or hammam or use a body scrub to get your skin ready for your spa treatment for an optimum result.
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Get the hammam feeling in your bathroom by running hot water for 3 minutes with the door closed. While the water is running, you can get some accessories ready for an ultimate spa feel: take a small or medium size towel (advised product: the «Oshibori» Towel from Couleur Locale), and dampen it with hot water. You can spray a few drops of essential oils on it (advised product: essentials oils from Vie Arôme). Fold the towel in half, once or twice, and roll it to make an “oshibori”. You’ll use it later. If you have a towel warmer, you can leave your bathrobe to warm up and and if you’re lucky enough to have a bathtub, you can add some nice scents or relaxation products.When it’s all ready and set up, step into your shower or bath. Tip: it’s best to take a bath or a shower at the end of the day but before you eat, it will help you sleep better.
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Now that you’re in your shower or bath, wash your body using a gentle product. Try a shower oil for a more relaxing experience, or our advised product the solid & natural Soap l’Intrépide from Les Savons de Béa. On damp skin, lightly massage in circular and deep movements. Rinse with hot water. If you chose to use a body scrub after your shower or bath, get the best products, with our advised product the Grapefruit body scrub from Blancrème. Massage gently in circles. Pay particular attention to the thick skin areas such as your elbows, knees and heals. You can use an exfoliating cloth (our advised product is from Konjac Sponge Company) for best results. For your back, use a long handled body brush (our advised product is from Couleur Locale). When you’re done, rinse off with tepid water, or best, cold water to boost your blood circulation. Now you can snuggle into your warm bathrobe or towel and take a deep breath in.You can use the oshibori you made for your hands. You can also roll up a damp towel with a few drops of essential oil on and put it around your neck to relax this area.
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The face
You can now leave the damp atmosphere of your bathroom to let your skin breathe again. Let’s now focus on relaxing your face as this is a very important step. Whether you suffer from sore eyes, headaches or stiff muscles, the self-massage movements described here will help you unwind and ease your pain. As a bonus, it reactivates your blood and lymphatic flow which gives your skin a nice healthy complexion again. For the massage, try this product The hemp, calendula, plum and carrot oils face oil from Cozie. Now let’s start. Apply the product on both your face and neck. Rub your palms together to warm them up, and then join them palm to palm like in a praying position. Breathe in and out, slowly, deeply. Put your hands gently on your face and feel the warmth, you are now ready. • WHOLE FACE With both hands, start with a light touch on your whole face and neck. Repeat 3 times. You can press more or less with the tip of your fingers, but use your whole palms, slowly or fast, whatever feels nicer to you. You can do linear or curved movements, like in Ss or 8s. • CHIN & SMILE FOLDS Starting with your chin, grab your skin and muscles between your thumb (underneath) and the rest of your fingers (with your fingertips only). Use circular kneading movements going from your chin up your nasolabial folds (your ‘smile wrinkles’). Repeat several times up and down the fold.
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5 mn
• CHEEKBONES Starting at the outer edge of your nose, apply gentle pressure as your fingers move up to your cheekbones, and continue along the cheekbones. Following the same course, sweep your fingers firmly this time. Repeat 5 times. • EYE AREA Starting on the inside corner of your eyes, massage the arch of your eyebrows towards the outside corner of your eyes, and gently down to your lower eyelids then inside corner again. Repeat 5 times in circles. • FOREHEAD With the tip of your fingers, massage your forehead up towards your hairline. Repeat several times and then do the same but with your palms. •FACE Grab your skin between your thumb and index. Do ‘grab-release’ movements all over your face. With the back of your hand, starting under your chin, do gentle slaps all around your face. Finish your face massage by firmly (firm but not hard) sweeping your hands from your chin to your clavicles. Repeat 3 times. For a complete facial ritual, we recommend the products of Mademoiselle Saint Germain: * The Geranium cleansing water for gentle make-up removal. * The Fontainebleau face scrub for deep cleansing. * The Cucumber eye contour roll-on for a boost of freshness. If your skin needs comfort, we recommend the My Huilette Rescue balm from Les Huilettes, to be applied to very dry areas of the face and body, as well as the Pulp N°1 lip balm from Les Savons de Béa. 7
You can find all our recommended products on our eshop: https://howtospa.com/en/e-shop/
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The body
Get comfortable, ready for your body self-massage. You can sit on a comfy cushion (advised product from Whole) your legs slightly bent. Keep clothes you’re comfortable in and which allow you to move freely. Use a relaxing massage oil (our advised product is the body oil L’Huile d’Après Belem from L’Art Du Bain). With your hands palm to palm on your chest, breathe deeply. Gently rub in the oil on your legs, from hip to toes. Now you’re ready. For each movement, start with one side and then follow the same steps for the other. • FEET & ANKLES - Bend your leg and turn it on the outside so you can reach your foot easily. With both hands, massage your sole and pay particular attention to the plexus reflex area on the plantar surface. It’s below the heads of metatarsals 2 & 3, at the start of the internal curve of your foot. - On the upper side of your foot, massage the lines going from between your toes to your ankle with brief pressures with your thumbs.These lines follow the lines between the metatarsals. - Place both hands tightly around one ankle, one above the other. Turn your hands -kept tight- in opposite directions around your ankle. • LEGS Lower leg - With your leg bent towards the outside, massage the inside of your lower leg from ankle to knee sweeping firmly your thumb. Do the same on the outside of your leg (turn your leg towards the inside).
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10 mn
- Place your foot on the ground (or any other surface you’re sitting on) and apply a gentle pressure with both thumbs placed on your calf, start towards your knee and go down to your heal (more specifically your Achilles’ tendon). • LEGS Thighs Bend your leg slightly and massage your thigh with both hands. Spread your fingers and apply firm pressure with the tip of your fingers all over your thigh. With your fists, gently tap your thigh all over. • ARMS Now sit in a lotus like position. Rub in your massage oil on your whole arms and shoulders. - With your right hand and fingers, make a bracelet around your left wrist. Turn the bracelet left and right energetically to massage your wrist.Then with the tip of your right hand fingers, rub your forearm and then upper arm on their entire length (firm and quick massage, in an ayurvedic massage way). Do the same on your right arm using your left hand. - Place one hand on the opposite shoulder, and with the other hand, use your wrist to tap your biceps and triceps. • ABDOMEN Massage your chest clockwise going up towards your clavicles (towards your cleavage for women). Pay particular attention to your clavicles area, and then finish with a neck and shoulder massage.
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You can find all our recommended products on our eshop: https://howtospa.com/en/e-shop/
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The post-massage time: as long as you need or wish!
In many spas, you’ll find a relaxation room. It’s a room dedicated to the after treatment time. You often find comfortable beds to lie down, but also magazines to take your mind away from stressful thoughts and food and drinks to mix relaxation and pleasure. Make the most of the time you have there. You can have this precious time at home too; put on some comfy clothes and get cosy in your living room. Wrap yourself in a nice blanket We advised you the gorgeous plaid from Sweet Alpaga. You can decorate your living room as a relaxation room (advised products: home decoration from Peter & Clo, cushions from Whole). Prepare yourself an infusion or a tea (advised products: Sencha Lemon tea from Nunshen; Energie Bio infusion from Chic Des Plantess) as well as some dried fruits and almonds / hazelnuts if you wish. Grab a book, listen to some music, turn on your phone again if you need to. Slowly reconnect with the outside world. A book that our team recommends for a better daily life: the book of Hygge. You might be going to bed now, so why not spray some mist on your pillow for a deep relaxing sleep... (advised product Eau du Brésil from Cinq Mondes).
Spa tip: During a massage, when you are on your back, the therapist will put a relaxing cloth mask on your eyes to avoid any disturbances. This has an immediate soothing effect. In order to offer you an equally experience, we recommend the Relaxation Cloth Mask with flax seeds and essential oils from Les Décousues.
Did you like it? Do you feel the difference? Was this massage a nice experience? Please let us know and share your impressions on social networks. Your next step? Why not try another of our massage tutorials?
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You can find all our recommended products on our eshop: https://howtospa.com/en/e-shop/
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www.howtospa.com/en © HowtoSpa 2016-2023 - Photos: Alexis Sciard - illustrations : Lora Hristova Réalisation : www.ecom-design.fr - Créatrice de protocoles d’automassage : Fabienne Crocq