ESPA Natural Facelift at The Spa at The Midland

A couple of weeks ago, I had one of the most relaxing days I’ve had in years and it was all centred around an ESPA Natural Facelift at The Spa at The Midland, here in Manchester…

The Spa at The Midland

[Disclaimer: Our spa day and treatments were gifted by The Spa at The Midland but they have in no way influenced what I’ve written and all thought are genuine and my own]

My good friend and personal trainer, Vicki Mellard and I were in desperate need of some relaxation. We’ve both had an incredibly busy and stressful 18 months and are both building our own businesses, which is no easy thing. Vicki was due a holiday and I hadn’t had a day to myself in ages, so when I was invited to enjoy the Spa at The Midland and an ESPA facial, how could I say no? And of course, Vicki would be my plus 1.

So one weekday morning, kids dropped at childcare, I headed into town on the tram, book in my bag, ready for a day of relaxation.

We arrived at around 9.45am and were greeted by lovely staff, darkened rooms and relaxing smells. We were given our robes and slippers and quickly changed into our swimwear so we could make the most of the relaxation pool and hot-tub. Which we did! We spent about 1.5 hours in there chatting and relaxing, before we had a quick go in the sauna, steam-room and tropical showers.

Then it was time for our treatments…

ESPA Natural Facelift – what exactly is it?

Obviously, being a thirty-something tired mum, the thought of a facelift is pretty appealing right now, but a natural facelift is even better as I’m not planning to go under the knife any time soon!

I’ll cut to the chase and tell you all about it…

The treatment lasts approximately 1 hour 20 minutes and is entirely luxurious and intense (in a good way!). Walking into the room, I was greeted by the lovely Valeria, who showed me the ESPA products she’d be using on my skin and talked me through the stages of the natural facelift.

Firstly, my skin would be cleansed and exfoliated, with a relaxing massage.

Then the lights were switched on and a special UV lamp turned on to inspect my skin. Valeria was looking for signs of dry/oily/problematic skin and this part would shape the rest of the natural facelift and the products she’d use on my face. It was really interesting to see my skin under this light and I was glad I’ve been using my SPF daily!

Next, would be the vigorous part of the ESPA natural facelift and I was told I’d be slapped across the face. Yup, I was shocked too! Genuinely, Valeria was such a pro, it obviously didn’t hurt but this part of the treatment was vigorous and I was told it was to bring the collagen and blood to the surface of the skin, which would help in the next stage…

Then, was the sculpting part and this was a firm and pressured massage, sculpting the lines of my face, as if pushing it into a facelift. For someone who doesn’t get much sleep and clenches her jaw often, this part was lovely. Muscles I didn’t even know I had in my face were being massaged and it felt wonderful.

After this point, your face is quite warm and invigorated and so then comes the loveliest part…a cooling, thick face mask is applied and sets on your skin. At this point, I was given an amazing head, neck and shoulder massage…my favourite!

You know usually when you have a facial, you might get 5 minutes of neck and shoulder massage? Well this bit lasted 15-20 minutes and felt entirely indulgent and relaxing…just what I needed!

Natural Facelift – the verdict

After my natural facelift, I returned to the relaxation lounge of the Spa at The Midland and curled up in one of their sleeping pods for the next hour. Bliss. I genuinely think that the ESPA Natural Facelift is one of the best facials I’ve ever had in my life! No joke. I left wishing I could do it monthly, and swearing that I would do it at least quarterly. My skin felt amazing, tighter and glowing…I mean look at this photo taken right after…(no filter!)…

Afternoon Tea

After a totally relaxing experience, our indulgent day continued with an afternoon tea (and healthy vegetarian platter for Vicki) and a glass of Champagne. Followed by curling up in the relaxation lounge again, with a good book (The Danish Way of Parenting) for the rest of the afternoon. I genuinely couldn’t fault the day at all and I can’t way to book in to do it all again!