My Blend by Clarins has debuted its newest innovation, Youth Synergy, at Velaa Private Island in the Maldives with a view to rolling out the tech-focused treatment worldwide.

Prisca Courtin-Clarins, director of spas, My Blend and Clarins retail, says Youth Synergy builds on its bespoke beauty approach: “This new treatment is more high-tech – with a skin diagnosis, three treatment machines and four high-precision skincare accessories – more sensorial and even more personalised, with customised blends and after-treatment routines.”

Following the Youth Synergy facial, a My Colorblend light therapy LED mask is placed over the face emitting wavelengths with specific colours: red to calm, boost collagen cells and reduce signs of ageing; blue to purify and kill bacteria; and pink to accelerate skin recovery.

Next, My Wave Blend is applied. In this 12-minute session, vibrations are used on the face and décolleté to stimulate lymphatic drainage, drain toxins and decrease puffiness.

Finally, My Cryotech is a cooling wand using cryotherapy technology to tone the skin for an instant glow and tighter pores, before make-up application.

Spa-kit keyword: Clarins

TouchAmerica, the family-owned spa equipment manufacturer, has teamed up with industry architect Robert Henry to launch a collection of convertible and portable furniture and equipment.

The Robert Henry Design by TouchAmerica has been created for hotels that want to offer spa treatments but don’t want a full-service facility – something which both parties feel there’s a gap in the market for.

“Based on feedback from our advisory board, TouchAmerica is prioritising the development of equipment, furniture and retail solutions to take the wellness experience outside the spa’s four walls,” says TouchAmerica’s CEO Stewart Griffith.

With those goals in mind, Henry designed three core pieces. The Masquerade is a hospitality day bed that converts into a massage table for easy guestroom massages; while The Concierge, a roaming spa cart that includes a warming drawer, attachments for mag lamp and steamer and pull-out manicure table, can be taken to a pool area for outdoor treatments. The Zero-G is a lightweight zero-gravity lounger that features stretch bands to evenly distribute weight.

In other news, Henry has also partnered with Salt Chamber to design the Salt Booth – a halotherapy cabin that’s the size of a large shower.

Spa-kit keyword: TouchAmerica

Studio by Oakworks Spa is a new interactive, visual online tool that allows spa directors or consultants to design their own massage tables – choosing from thousands of combinations of styles, materials, finishes and features – and see the creation come to life on-screen.

“In order to keep up with changing design trends, we want to offer a level of table customisation that has not been available in the spa industry before,” says Dafne Berlanga, vice president of international business development.

Studio lets you see the table design change in real time and the programme is in high-definition, so details like wood grains and textures stand out. Concepts can be saved and shared with others, making for easy collaboration.

The programme also makes it possible to create a bespoke table that can reflect a spa’s style or brand. Want to see what that table looks like in your spa’s signature purple? Click a button and watch it come to life. Prefer a wood-grain base? Click again.

In case you don’t know where to start – or need inspiration – Oakworks has created five design groups including contemporary and industrial styles for spas to customise.

Spa-kit keyword: Oakworks

Semi-precious gemstones and sustainably-sourced woods form the basis of the new Yoga Mala necklace and bracelet spa retail collection by Mala + Mantra.

The accessories, hand-crafted by fair trade Filipino artisans, come with a written mantra based on the holistic properties and energies of each gemstone and material to evoke an overall sense of mindfulness and wellness.

“We started this business in an effort to create a meaningful brand whose products would resonate with conscious consumers and, through our products, help to spread the powerful message of mindfulness,” says founder Judith Compton.

“We source the highest quality sustainable raw materials, consciously produced with fair labour. This includes paying fair wages and providing a safe, supportive working environment.”

The beads retail at top hotel spas such as at Red Mountain Resort, Utah and The Ritz-Carlton Aruba.

Compton adds that integrating Yoga Mala into a yoga or meditation practice enhances the wellness experience: “The beads symbolise the namaste mantra, which translates to ‘the divine light in me honours the divine light in you’.”

Spa-kit.net keyword: Mala

Skincare company Naturopathica is expanding into therapeutic ingestibles for the first time by introducing 13 teas, tinctures and fortified honeys.

Created by founder and CEO Barbara Close, who is also a master herbalist, the new arrivals are designed to work with the body’s natural processes to boost health and vitality from the inside out.

“Herbal remedies play an essential role in bringing wellness full-circle as we continue to educate our community about ways they can live better and take charge of their health,” says Close. “With the rise of chronic imbalances due to the stress of our 24/7 lifestyles, consumers now want a more holistic approach to wellness, rather than relying on symptom management.”

Four new remedy teas focus on specific needs such as muscle and joint pain, skin health, stress and vitality. Naturopathica herbal tinctures are said to assimilate more quickly into the bloodstream than capsules.

The company’s raw, organic wildflower honeys are infused with adaptogenic herbs and are used to increase the body’s resistance to stress and disease.

Spa-kit.net keyword: Naturopathica

Skincare brand Comfort Zone has launched a new massage created in conjunction with neuroscientist and skin expert Dr Claudia Aguirre (see SB16/2 p58) that’s designed to help produce better sleep.

The Tranquillity Pro-Sleep Massage uses Comfort Zone’s re-released Tranquility range and targets three senses – smell, hearing and touch – to clear the mind and create a deep level of relaxation.

Using the principles of aromatherapy, the Pro-Sleep Massage stimulates the limbic system with both oil and massage cream. A Tranquillity soundtrack, specifically created for the ritual, provides a slow, hypnotic rhythm.

“This repetitiveness immediately becomes familiar to our brain and enables the mind to disconnect, since there is nothing new to process and disturb it,” Dr Aguirre explains. “With the level of attention decreasing, anxiety and distracted thoughts are also banished. Sounds merge with the slowness of movements, creating a reconciling and protective atmosphere.”

The massage draws inspiration from ayurvedic medicine and Malay massage. Kneading movements are replaced by more gentle touches and geometrical techniques, mainly with overlapping hands. Wide movements are created with specially designed flat, soft brushes to induce relaxation.

“The gentle touch and the alternated and combined use of two extremely soft brushes stimulate special nerve fibres called C fibres that have been recently identified for conveying a pleasant sensation to the brain,” says Aguirre. “They’re only stimulated by gentle, warm caresses, and thus deliver a pleasant emotional signal to the brain.”

Spa-kit keywords: Comfort Zone

The SolTec Lounge, developed by neurologist Dan Cohen, uses synchronised sound and vibration to produce a state of relaxation by causing the areas of the brain responsible for maintaining stress to be inhibited.

“Sometimes, we’re a lot better off when we can turn off our brain,” says Dr Cohen. “The brain is the seat of the ego, not the soul, and it is the major – if not sole – contributor to stress in our lives.”

The chair, with its one-piece seat, puts clients in a zero-gravity position and features an amplifier and transducers that vibrate. It uses layered music with multiple soundtracks playing simultaneously – designed to be pleasant, but random enough that the brain stops trying to make sense of it and relaxes instead.

Typical sessions are 25 or 50 minutes and can be done on their own, or before deep tissue or alignment therapies for added relaxation and benefit.

During initial sessions, the company says most people drift between wakefulness and a very relaxed state of drowsiness, but are able to quickly resume normal activities afterwards. Later sessions are said to create greater levels of awareness and deep physical, emotional and mental relaxation as the brain gets used to the experience.

Spa-kit keyword: SolTec

Spa linen supplier Comphy has launched a selection of towels that include organic, cotton and bamboo, in addition to blankets for professional spa use.

“It’s a big year for Comphy with all of our product releases and we couldn’t be more excited to be able to offer our clients a full range that will meet all of their linen needs,” says Mia Richardson, founder and CEO. “Whether it’s sheets, towels or beautiful knits for guest areas, our new lines offer the same famous Comphy softness we’re known for and come in a wide selection of sizes, colours, designs and fabrics.”

Comphy’s new towel lines include the superior quality Bamboo, highly absorbent Essential, eco-friendly cotton Simply Organic, dual-textured Serenity, and premium cotton Opulent, as well as salon, make-up and fitness towels.

Comphy has also debuted a luxury range of soft, thick, lush knits for spa treatment rooms and relaxation areas. The UV resistant Bubble Cable Throws and Damask Blankets are for indoor or outdoor use and are available in a variety of neutral colours and patterns. The fabric is warm but lightweight, as well as anti-microbial, anti-bacterial, stain-resistant, and has been designed to not lose shape, pill or shrink.

Spa-kit.net keyword: Comphy

As part of its 70th anniversary, Sothys reveals a significant new product – La Crème 128 Secrets de Sothys premium cream – supported by a 2.5 hour, 11-stage face and body treatment.

The cream is formulated with stem cells from a specially developed Bernard Mas Sothys Rose and porcelain flower oil, with packaging by French porcelain house, Bernardaud.

Sothys CEO Christian Mas says: “When my father [chair of Sothys] turned 70 we offered him a specially designed rose bearing his name to be planted in the Sothys botanical garden. He brought this rose to the lab, which extracted the stem cells.

“So by its formula and actives this cream is unique. It is also unique for its packaging, a Bernardaud porcelain jar – which tells a story of French refinement and lifestyle – and of course by its results on the skin.”

La Crème 128 is only available in Sothys premium spas and salons. Mas adds: “We hope it will make them [the facilities] stand out... This treatment is state of the art, our premium signature, with instant results in terms of anti ageing.”

Spa-kit.net keyword: Sothys