Treating yourself to a spa treatment doesn't always have to involve dropping a stack of cash and locking yourself away to an hours-long session. Short but effective treatments you can do on your lunch break were what St Skin founders and beauty clinicians Maryan Al Talebi and Leelah Linke wanted when they opened their beauty clinic on Flinders Lane (now located in North Melbourne).
I tried a few lunchtime sessions at LED treatment at St Skin's LED Lounge. For the uninitiated, an LED treatment involves you sitting with your face under a bright, warm LED lamp that's a little bit like a dentist's lamp. There are three options available at St Skin: a blue light is billed as fighting acne, the red light is supposed to promote collagen production for skin elasticity, and infrared is described as an all-rounder that's soothing on skin inflammation and skin conditions like dermatitis and eczema.
It all sounds a bit weird (how does light fix your skin?), but there's definitely something to LED treatments. I've got your classic combination to oily skin that gets the odd monster stress zit, and after a 20-minute blast under the warm LED lamp my skin felt plumper and smoother. There's no social downtime like you might get after an acid peel, and I still had time to spare on my lunch hour afterwards.
The LED light emits different wavelengths, and depending on the colour light you go with these wavelengths are supposed to reach target different skin issues. The plumpness you get from increased blood flow to the skin from the warmth of the light. While you do get some instant gratification, I suspect this is a treatment that works best with good skin care at home. The team at St Skin recommends two to three sessions per week over two weeks to get the most results out of your LED light treatment. A single session will set you back $90, or you can also buy a pack of five sessions for $375 ($75 per session).
St Skin also offers standard length treatments and facials for clients who want to be properly primped and pampered. Each client who walks through St Skin's pristine white lobby will be given a questionnaire so the aestheticians can personalise the treatment they need for their skin concerns. Other treatments on offer include skin needling, acid peels, facials and microdermabrasion, a strangely satisfying procedure where you get your skin thoroughly scrubbed using a diamond-tipped suction device not unlike what you get at the dentist.
If you want to treat yourself without wrecking yourself, head over to St Skin for a pamper session.