“You look like a million dollars,” my husband said when I walked into the room following my Regal By Valmont facial at Lake Austin Spa Resort’s LakeHouse Spa. Coyly, I looked up at him, wondering whether or not to be truthful. “Actually, darling, it wasn’t that expensive. It only cost a thousand dollars.”
To prepare for a very special event, I’d allowed myself the luxury ministrations of La Maison Valmont, a family-owned, Swiss beauty company, known for their penchant for quality. Valmont partners with only a handful of spas on earth, and Spa aficionados can partake in locations as far-flung as Paris and as close to home as Miami, New York, and Sonoma County. In the case of The Regal, I received five masks, two cleanings, an enzyme peel, a half-hour of HydraFacial, an LED light treatment, a variety of Valmont creams (one called Creme Merveilleuse which utilizes sturgeon DNA), and four types of transformative massage. The grand finale readied me for the outdoors with an endpoint slathering of Valmont’s newest sunscreen Daily Veil SPF30, a formula that protects, as well as hydrates.
But, what to do when the treatment has ended, and I’m back at home? There’s only one surefire answer: a DIY mask. Ready to look like a million dollars? Here are some we love.
Franz Skincare’s Jet Plus Microcurrent Facial Dual Mask
Try micro current technology without the pesky device. Created with Tissue X® microcurrent intelligence,Franz Skincare’s Jet Plus Microcurrent Facial Dual Mask manages to hydrate, firm and de-puff with a treatment set of two masks and a boosting essence. Science-driven, the mask ritual uses water not electrical currents to lift and tighten. Light weight and easily absorbed, the mask takes advantage of technology proven to tone, soothe sunburn and reduce pore size.
Omorovicza Ultramoor Mud Mask and Deep Cleansing Mask
Renowned for its mineral spring baths, Budapest has long been a place for healing and repose. It’s rich mineral largesse hails from its thermal waters and healing mud. Enjoy that bounty at home with the Omoroovicza mask, which harnesses the powers of colloidal gold and a patented bio fermented concentrate to purify and restore the skin in formula designed by a Nobel-prize winning laboratory team. Naturally clean and cruelty free, the masks are Leaping Bunny certified.
Masked Out French Green Clay Mask
From Provence Beauty, this prodigious pore cleaner gently exfoliates with curative green clay—a long acclaimed French beauty secret. Created as a modern French skincare brand by Jeremy Abesera (born in Paris but raised in Los Angeles),the formula brims with caffeine, willowbark BHA and niacinamide to refine skin and absorb excess oil. With clean ingredients, the fragrance free product proudly eschews parabens, sulfates, phthalates, silicones, gluten and petrolatum.
Linda Ross Colostrum Mask
A celebrity esthetician whose appointments are by client referral only, Ross shares her expert techniques and deeply researched, house-made products with only a few beauty venues beyond her own LA-based clinic. Enjoy her facials at El Encanto, A Belmond Hotel in Santa Barbara. Or, try the masks at home. Refresh with her uncannily effective Colostrum Mask, a toning and brightening ritual safe for every day use. Made from the highest quality food grade colostrum from grass fed cows, free of hormones and antibiotics, the creamy concoction benefits sensitive skin, heals pimples and sunburn, evens out skin tone and makes the epidermis glow.
SIO Eye &Smile Lift and Mid-Brow 11’s Lift
Medical grade silicone comes to the rescue with SIO’s range of seemingly magic patches Multi-tasking, they smooth and erase lines, while plumping skin in just a few hours. Ideal for overnight quick fixes, each patch can be used up to ten times. Complementing SIO Beauty’s Cryo-Therapy Collection, the patches can be used in conjunction with other SIO spa quality products for party ready countenances (and overall body firming). We love the Cryodrop, a stainless steel facial massage tool that reinvigorates and enlivens complexions via cold therapy, facial massage, and diamagnetic technology.
Vitabrid C12 Dual Masks
Leaving on a jet plane? Flying takes a toll on the skin. To combat its drying effects, pack Vitabrid’s exclusive box set of five age defying, firming and hydrating masks from Seoul. Designed for in flight moisturizing and post flight de-stressing, each mask, composed of multiple, essence-saturated layers delivers oodles of vitamin C, peptides, a six layer hyaluronic acid blend and a stem cell complex. Firming, replenishing and brightening, the masks ensure you arrive to your destination with radiance in tact. Clean, Vitabrid boasts paraben-free, sulfate-free, phthalate-free, silicone-free, mineral oil-free and synthetic fragrance-free ingredients.