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While Lynne’s facials are the star attraction at Complexions (book appointments several weeks in advance), she has a dynamite support staff including neuromuscular massage therapist Dianne Hodges, who works three days a week. She uses a combination of intense neuromuscular, deep tissue and Swedish massage techniques for a healing and relaxing treatment. Dianne primarily works on tender muscles at their attachment points on the bones, her fingers digging deep to relax muscle, get blood flowing, and relieve pain. Be prepared to fill out a medical history and discuss previous injuries… and don’t be surprised if you are sore the next morning. But it hurts sooo good when the result kicks in.
Complexions Skin Care by Lynne 2155 W. Hwy 89A (928-282-2564)
Sedona’s New Day Spa
Body and Soul Reviver
Sedona’s New Day Spa, with its unassuming exterior, has long been a favorite of locals for its friendly atmosphere and incredibly talented therapists and aestheticians. Look up the word “pamper” in the dictionary and you will probably find a description of Sedona’s New Day Spa’s Body and Soul Reviver treatment.
Upon arrival, I stepped into the waiting room – decorated in soothing greens and grays – and received a warm neck wrap, which smells like spice cake baking in the oven, and a cool bottle of water. Immediately, the stresses of the day seem to fade away.
Body and Soul Reviver begins with a scrub comprised of Dead Sea salt, honey and oil, which leaves skin glowing, followed by a refreshing facial mask of pure aloe vera and an oil treatment for my hair. Next, a warm mineral bath awaits, where I soak while sipping water and munching on dried fruit, nuts and chocolate while soft music plays. This was heaven!
After my tub time, I was led into a massage room for a milk mask for my face and an Aura-Soma massage. After a brief conversation about my emotions and what I’d like to achieve from my session, my therapist chooses one of 105 Aura-Soma bottles – brilliantly colored oil over water – to use in the massage (mine was soft pink oil over turquoise blue water). The oil contains essences of plants, herbs and crystals; the water includes mineral extracts. The combination of the colors, aromas and ingredients are believed to create a sense of well-being. The oil and water combination is mixed up and used in your body massage. When it was over, I felt like a new woman.
New Day Spa also offers massages, body treatments, facials, manicures and pedicures, wedding packages and men’s treatments.
Sedona’s New Day Spa 1449 W. Hwy 89A (928-284-6900; www.sedonanewdayspa.com)
The Hilton Sedona Spa
Painted Desert
Ever wonder what it would be like to be a beautiful piece of Native American pottery? Just step into the quiet sanctuary at The Hilton Sedona Spa for its signature Painted Desert clay wrap, and you’ll find it’s extraordinarily blissful.
The 90-minute treatment begins with my therapist, Tracy Cobb, painting my body with 100 percent pure pharmaceutical-grade calcium bentonite clay in colors reminiscent of the high desert: sagebrush green, sky blue, desert sand, sand hills tan, lavender sunset and, of course, Sedona red rock. With my body looking like Boynton Canyon at sunset, I was carefully wrapped in plastic sheets and warm towels for 30 minutes while the clay hardens and penetrates my skin, acting as an astringent and replenishing nutrients. While I lie on the massage table like a butterfly wrapped in a cocoon, reflexology is performed on my feet. (Trust me, after a reflexology session you’ll want to take your therapist home with you!)
