Home Spa Treatments Guide

Bathroom Design Tips for a Spa-like Feel

Design the bathroom to give you complete calmness to rejuvenate the entire body and mind.
Use earth tones by adding golds, yellows and taupes to the wall color, or in towels, rugs, pictures and bathroom accessories. Spa colors are serene, so stick to muted greens and blues, or light to medium earth tones. Keep the paint fairly light so it reflects the light. You can be a little creative by adding a pop of color with the rugs or a flower vase on the counter. Try a monochromatic look or at least go lighter/more subtle with your color variations. (Perhaps a tone on tone look?) This should help make your bath area feel more spacious.
Stone flooring. Natural stones make ideal floors for standing showers to give you a relaxing foot massage, says Toback, not to mention they give an instant spa feel to your space.
Make sure your spa has good ventilation system.
Glass shower doors. Switch out fabric curtains for a glass-enclosed panel to allow for steam options. They look more luxe and trap heat for a sauna-like experience.
Teak wood accessories give a Zen feel
Use halogen bulbs in the bathroom because they give the most white light, which will render skin tones most accurately.
Clean and simple fixtures work best for a relaxing, spa feeling. Keep things minimalistic and sleek.
Reduce clutter will make time spent in the bathroom more relaxing because clutter will only stress you out
Whirlpool tub
Rain Shower Heads - large, round shower head transforms your shower into a rain forest. Target has a shower head called Showerhead with 75 Jets for around $70
Heated Towel Racks
Tub caddies - these fit across the tub to hold books, drinks and bath products
Spa Robes - Suggested material for a spa robe is terry cotton, or cotton velour and terry.
Spa Robe Hook or Hanger
If you really want to go the extra distance in your spa room, don't forget some one-size fits all slippers to put on after moisturizing treatments, and some flip flops for pedicure nights. They’re made of terry cloth so they are easily laundered, and the bottoms should have rubberized traction for safety.
White towels create that crisp, clean spa feeling - 100% cotton towels
Clear jars with airtight lids. These keep everything dust free, on display and help promote that "professional spa, everything is here you could possibly want" feel. Some people suggest stainless steel.
Seating - Ottoman/Chair, or Laundry Hamper that Serves as Seating - great place to moisturize in comfort, paint your toe nails, etc.
Music is most essential in converting a bathroom to a spa.
Scented candles
Basket of spa goodies. Stock the room with your favorite soaking treatments like aromatherapy eye masks, sea salts, body masks, a neck pillow and tub bubbles, along with luxe post-bath luxuries like body lotions, foot creams and oils. They don’t have to cost a lot to make your tub time a true escape.

Creating a Soothing Home Spa Experience

If you're as busy and stressed as most of us, you may not take time out for self care very often. However, personal pampering has many stress relieving benefits, and should be incorporated as part of a low stress lifestyle. If you don't have the budget for a high end spa, you can create a relaxing home spa experience for yourself. The following are some basic elements to include in creating a home spa experience that will melt away stress and leave you feeling pampered and relaxed.

Privacy: Perhaps the most important part of the home spa experience is being sure you have some uninterrupted time for just you. If you have to hop out of the tub to circumvent a catastrophe with your toddler or answer a string of calls, you may end up feeling even more tense! So make arrangements for some uninterrupted solitude, let the phone go to voice mail, and prepare to indulge.
Music: If you can arrange to have music in your bathroom, you'll be glad you did. The right soothing melodies can help melt away the stress, make you feel more removed from reality, and, if you live with others, drown out the household sounds that may remind you of everything else going on, taking your attention away from the here and now of your home spa experience.
Lighting: You'd be surprised at how lighting can create a stress-relieving mood. Lighting the room with candles can fill the area with a soothing scent and create a very relaxing atmosphere.
Bath Products: You can go a long way in creating a luxurious bath with a few helpful products. Lavender-scented bubble bath, for example, uses the power of aromatherapy to soothe you. Body scrubs are used in spas to exfoliate skin, and can be used at home as well. There are also skin-moisturizing oils you can add to your bath to nourish your skin and make the pampered feeling last.
Beauty Treatments: While you're relaxing, you may as well get more beautiful! Putting a conditioning treatment in your hair and a purifying masque on your face can make your face and scalp feel good and leave you looking more beautiful afterward. Rubbing your dry skin with a loofah and scrubbing calloused feet with a pumice stone can be a little more work, but you'll love the results, and it'll only take a few minutes.
After Tub Care: You may want to follow up after you get out of the tub by applying a rich conditioning cream to your skin and a coat of nail polish to your toes. Again this will keep you feeling more pampered between spa treatments.
Massage: You may think a home spa treatment can't include a massage, but it can! If you can't enlist the soothing hands of a partner, you can use a self-massager to do the same job: loosen up tight muscles, promote circulation, and make you feel great. Or, if you're really in the mood to indulge, you can even hire a professional massage therapist to come to your house!

Tips:

Block off a specific amount of time for yourself. Sometimes busy people have a hard time just doing nothing because we can think of so many other things that need doing. If this break is scheduled to be a specific length, you may feel more entitled to just enjoy it.
Try to do this on a regular schedule, like once a week or twice a month. With repetition, you may see your spa time making a significant impact on your overall stress level!
Don't feel guilty for taking some time for yourself—you deserve it!

At Home Spa Guide

Being a pampered princess need not cost a king's ransom. Find out how to relax and rejuvenate your body for pennies — from the comfort of your own home.

Step 1: Beautify your body
Exfoliate with a body scrub. Simply mix oatmeal with water (use the fine-grain kind — it's called colloidal — so it doesn't clog your drain). In the shower, rub it all over your body, and afterward, slick on some baby oil for moisture. Here are recipes for making other Body Scrubs.

Step 2: Pamper your feet
Pour warm chamomile tea over an old towel. Squeeze out the excess liquid and wrap it around your feet. Then, cover the towel with plastic wrap to hold in the heat. While your tootsies are warm, give yourself a facial (Step 3). After 20 minutes, remove the compress. By letting your feet know that you love them, they'll give you relief. Also see Pamper Your Feet for other techniques.

Step 3: Feel-good facial
Drape a warm, damp towel on your face. Leave it on for two minutes. Next, smooth on a gentle cleanser, using circular motions. Rinse with tepid water. Use a commercial cleanser or make your own using this recipe from Making Aromatherapy Creams and Lotions by Donna Maria (Storey Books, 2000). It's good for any skin type:

Easy Cleanser

Mix together:

1 Tbsp kaolin clay (available in health-food stores)
1 Tbsp powdered oats
2 Tbsp whole milk
1 drop lavender essential oil

Massage cleanser into face and neck; rinse well. To remove dead skin cells, rub a paste of baking soda and water onto the skin and rinse thoroughly.

Make-it-yourself mask

Next, rejuvenate your face with a mask treatment. Use a commercial mask or make one of your own. Choose from these recipes if you have a special skin type:

For Sensitive Skin: Eggsciting Mix

Mix a tablespoon of honey with either one egg yolk or two tablespoons of milk. Apply to face, avoiding eye area. Leave on for 5 minutes; rinse.

For Dry Skin: Peach Perfect Purée

Purée one pitted peach (including the skin) and one egg yolk to form a paste. Apply to face, avoiding eye area. Leave on for 15 minutes. Rinse. Apply moisturizer.

For Oily/Acne-Prone Skin: Strawberry Delights

Mash 20 strawberries with the back of a small spoon. Using your fingers, gently pat the pulp onto your clean skin. Wait until it dries and feels tight. Rinse. Apply moisturizer.

Step 4: Give yourself a manicure: See Home Manicure for further tips and techniques

For a fine finale to a perfect at-home spa, follow these six steps to perfect nails:

Remove all nail polish and wash your hands

File your nails with an emery board

Soak your hands for 5 minutes or so in a bowl of warm water softened with a few drops of rosewater

Using an orangewood stick, clean under your nails, and push back your cuticles with a towel

Apply moisturizer: Let it penetrate before applying any nail polish

To soften cuticles, take a Vitamin E capsule, poke it with a pin and massage droplets of the oil into your cuticle area

A Home Spa Day OR Shorter Spa Experiences

Not many people can take a whole day to give themselves a pampered spa experience at home, but this doesn't mean you can't enjoy some shorter spa treatments when time allows. These are some things you can do for yourself to help you relax and feel good about yourself:

Facials can be very relaxing. Try using special lotions and gentle massage and give yourself the full treatment: cleanse your skin, then exfoliate with a facial scrub. Follow this with a facial mask to help condition your skin, then a moisturizer or night serum to keep skin soft and supple.
See How To Give Yourself a Facial at Home
For one home spa treatment, focus on pampering your hair by applying a hair mask. Hair masks, which give hair a deep conditioning treatment, are one of the hottest trends in hair care. The treatment is applied to the hair, which is then wrapped with a warm wet towel or Saran Wrap for 20 minutes so that it penetrates the hair. Spend this time relaxing, perhaps with either cooled steeped tea bags or cucumber slices over your eyes to give your eyes the spa treatment, too. Using hair masks once a month will keep your hair silky smooth and manageable.
Recipes for Hair Masks
Schedule extra bath time to include a nice long soak, and use herbs, oils or soap that moisturize and condition the skin.
See Herbal Bath Infusions for recipes using herbs
Give yourself a salt or sugar body scrub. The salt or sugar in the scrub exfoliates the skin and added oil hydrates your skin. The scrub is followed with a shower and an application of body lotion. Relax for a few minutes after the scrub by lying on the bed with eyes closed to fully appreciate the treatment. Place cooled steeped tea bags or cucumber slices over your eyes to add to the experience.
Body Scrubs
A manicure or pedicure can help to relieve stress if you give yourself the full treatment as they do in spas.
See Home Manicure for tips and techniques