Today I went back to a place that I reviewed on 11/7/10: Foot Fitness on 86th and Michigan. This time I got the foot massage. This place is almost identical to one of my favorite places, Foot Finesse. They have about 15 recliner chairs with ottomans set up in one room, and you keep all your clothes on for this massage. The room is dim with soothing music. The only thing I didn't like about the atmosphere was that the waiting area had a couch with several lap top computers left on the table in front of it. This is clearly the area where the massage therapists hang out when there are no customers.
When I got to Foot Fitness today, I had a 20 minute wait, which is unusual for this place. They must be gaining in popularity. Also, although Foot Fitness has a lot of chairs, there seems to be only 4 or 5 massage therapists. The receptionist gave me a bottle of water while I waited. After 20 minutes I was led back to a recliner chair which was set upright, and my feet where placed in a tub of hot water. The massage therapist started with my hands while I sat up in the chair. Then the chair was lowered back, and he massaged my head, face, and feet and legs. Finally, I turned over and he massaged my back. The quality of the massage was good, the pressure was just right. He did spend more time on my feet and legs rather than my back, which was a nice change from other massages.
This massage was a great deal at $25 for an hour, plus tip. Like I said, Foot Fitness is comparable to Foot Finesse in price and service, and I would rate them fairly equally.
Service Quality Rating: 4 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 2.5 stars out of 5
Price: $
Price Guide
$ = less than $1 per minute (very budget friendly!)
$$ = about $1 per minute (reasonable)
$$$ = more than $1 per minute (an occasional treat)
$$$$ = about $1.50 per minute (only if I get a gift certificate or great coupon)
$$$$$ = more than $1.50 per minute (I'll be surprised if I ever get to go to one of these)
I am an Indianapolis native and I have frequented Indianapolis area spas for the past six years. Although I love a good massage, pedicure, or facial, I can't afford to spend loads of money on such things. That's why this blog will focus on reviews of moderately-priced spas and services, as well as feature sources for great spa deals. I have also added a Spa Tips feature. I hope my experiences will help you to find a spa you love!
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Spa Tip #3
When you get a pedicure, bring your own flip-flops. That way you can leave without putting on close-toe shoes and messing up your nails. (They will take several hours to firmly dry no matter what the pedicurist says).
If you are getting a pedicure when it's cold out, make your pedicure the last place you go before going home, and put your flip-flops on at the end. You can survive a walk from the building to your car, and your toes will stay nice. Or, if you want to make sure to stay warm, I guess you could do something like this, found on Etsy.com. ;)
If you are getting a pedicure when it's cold out, make your pedicure the last place you go before going home, and put your flip-flops on at the end. You can survive a walk from the building to your car, and your toes will stay nice. Or, if you want to make sure to stay warm, I guess you could do something like this, found on Etsy.com. ;)
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Spa Tip #2
Hi everybody! I hope everyone has been safe during the ice/snow storm. Here is my spa tip for the week.
If you are using a coupon or gift certificate for a spa service, make sure you still tip based on the original price of the service. Tipping for a spa service should be the equivalent of tipping in a restaurant, usually 15-20%, which can be adjusted based on the quality of the service.
If you are using a coupon or gift certificate for a spa service, make sure you still tip based on the original price of the service. Tipping for a spa service should be the equivalent of tipping in a restaurant, usually 15-20%, which can be adjusted based on the quality of the service.
Sunday, January 30, 2011
Comfort Zone - Chair Massage
Yesterday I was out at Castleton Mall and decided to ease the stress of shopping by getting a massage! I stopped at Comfort Zone, the kiosk set up in the middle of the mall, for a chair massage. The appeal of this place is the ability to drop right in without plans and have a massage to ease your muscles after carrying around all your bags.
Comfort Zone has four massage chairs set up literally right in the middle of the mall hallway. You have a choice of 12 minutes for $12, 22 minutes for $20, or 35 minutes for $30. I chose the 22 minutes for $20. I really enjoy chair massages and don't get them very often. My massage at Comfort Zone was very good. My massage therapist massaged my head, neck, back, arms, and a little bit of my legs. The massage is Chinese acupressure, so the pressure can be pretty strong. My massage yesterday was just right. The downside of this place is of course that you are in the middle of the mall in full sight of anyone walking by, and you can hear all the mall noise. I don't mind this but some people do. They also take care to make sure your purse and bags are on or under the massage chair so you don't have to worry about anyone stealing them.
Comfort Zone is kind of fun to go to for a break when you are in the midst of a shopping trip. It is pretty economical, however now that places like Foot Finesse have started popping up, you can get a better deal there. They do have a punch card where after ten 12-minute sessions you get a free one. The massage is definitely high quality, but you are sacrificing all of the "spa experience" factor.
Service Quality Rating: 4 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 0 stars out of 5
Price: $ to $$ depending on the amount of time you get
Price Guide
$ = less than $1 per minute (very budget friendly!)
$$ = about $1 per minute (reasonable)
$$$ = more than $1 per minute (an occasional treat)
$$$$ = about $1.50 per minute (only if I get a gift certificate or great coupon)
$$$$$ = more than $1.50 per minute (I'll be surprised if I ever get to go to one of these)
Comfort Zone has four massage chairs set up literally right in the middle of the mall hallway. You have a choice of 12 minutes for $12, 22 minutes for $20, or 35 minutes for $30. I chose the 22 minutes for $20. I really enjoy chair massages and don't get them very often. My massage at Comfort Zone was very good. My massage therapist massaged my head, neck, back, arms, and a little bit of my legs. The massage is Chinese acupressure, so the pressure can be pretty strong. My massage yesterday was just right. The downside of this place is of course that you are in the middle of the mall in full sight of anyone walking by, and you can hear all the mall noise. I don't mind this but some people do. They also take care to make sure your purse and bags are on or under the massage chair so you don't have to worry about anyone stealing them.
Comfort Zone is kind of fun to go to for a break when you are in the midst of a shopping trip. It is pretty economical, however now that places like Foot Finesse have started popping up, you can get a better deal there. They do have a punch card where after ten 12-minute sessions you get a free one. The massage is definitely high quality, but you are sacrificing all of the "spa experience" factor.
Service Quality Rating: 4 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 0 stars out of 5
Price: $ to $$ depending on the amount of time you get
Price Guide
$ = less than $1 per minute (very budget friendly!)
$$ = about $1 per minute (reasonable)
$$$ = more than $1 per minute (an occasional treat)
$$$$ = about $1.50 per minute (only if I get a gift certificate or great coupon)
$$$$$ = more than $1.50 per minute (I'll be surprised if I ever get to go to one of these)
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Spa Tip #1
Hey everybody! I have decided to add a new feature to my blog. In between spa visits, I am going to post a spa tip. So here is today's tip.
When going to a nail salon, shave your legs the day before you go. If you shave the day of, you may get red bumps and irritation from the lotion or scrub.
When going to a nail salon, shave your legs the day before you go. If you shave the day of, you may get red bumps and irritation from the lotion or scrub.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
LaDolce Salon & Spa - Deep Conditioning Treatment & Dolce Pedicure
Happy MLK Weekend! For this long weekend I of course booked myself some spa services. I still had the rest of my LaDolce gift card to use by the end of January, so I set up my last two appointments. The services I had left were the deep conditioning treatment and the mini-mani, which I upgraded to the Dolce pedicure. I reviewed this salon and spa on September 18th, 2010, when I used my massage and facial appointments, so you can refer to that post for more details.
My first service was the deep conditioning treatment. I wouldn't normally consider this a spa treatment, but it did involve a scalp massage, so I will include it. My stylist first asked me some questions about how I wear my hair and what products I use, and then took me over to the sink. She shampooed my hair and massaged my scalp. The massage was good, but over all to soon. She then put in the deep conditioner plus an extra product for my ends. Then I sat under the dryer for 15 minutes while I read a magazine. She rinsed out the conditioner, then asked me how she should style me hair. Just for fun, I had her straighten it. If you know me, you know that I never wear my hair straight, but I decided to make the stylist work for her tip :). The blow out was mediocre, although I do have rediculously thick hair that makes it harder and more time consuming to straighten.
My second treatment was the Dolce pedicure. The "Dolce" part of the pedicure, I was told by the nail technician, was that it involved a scrub, foot mask, and anti-fungal product. The pedicure chairs were in a separate little area through a door, which made the experience more relaxing a peaceful. There was also more soothing music piped in than the music that was playing in the salon area. The pedicure chair was disappointing since it only vibrated rather than had rolling massagers. I was given a heated neck wrap that smelled pleasantly like roasted nuts and left to soak for 10 minutes. The nail tech then worked on my cuticles and heels, and used a scrub on both my feet, which she massaged in. She then massaged in a foot mask, put hot towels on my legs, and let that sit for 5 minutes. After she wiped the mask off, she massaged in lotion. If you weren't counting, that was three massages, and all very good. She then painted my toes. I thought the way the polish was presented was kind of classy. Instead of choosing from polish bottles, they had each color on a display nail. I chose a Spring-y peachy pink.
Overall, my experience was good. I especially liked the pedicure, although I don't know that I would pay the regular price to get it again. As I said, these services were two of four prescribed services that were included on a $50 gift certificate, which was a gift (see my post from 9/18/10 for the review of the other two services). The value of the deep conditioning treatment was $20 and the blowout was $30. The Dolce pedicure was a $60 value, and I had to pay a $48 upgrade for this service. So ultimately I paid $48 plus tip for $110 worth of services. Not a bad deal.
Hair Service
Service Quality Rating: 3 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 2.5 stars out of 5
Price: $$$ - normally charged price (free - what I actually paid)
Pedicure
Service Quality Rating: 4 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Price: $$ - normally charged price ($ - what I actually paid)
Price Guide
$ = less than $1 per minute (very budget friendly!)
$$ = about $1 per minute (reasonable)
$$$ = more than $1 per minute (an occasional treat)
$$$$ = about $1.50 per minute (only if I get a gift certificate or great coupon)
$$$$$ = more than $1.50 per minute (I'll be surprised if I ever get to go to one of these)
My first service was the deep conditioning treatment. I wouldn't normally consider this a spa treatment, but it did involve a scalp massage, so I will include it. My stylist first asked me some questions about how I wear my hair and what products I use, and then took me over to the sink. She shampooed my hair and massaged my scalp. The massage was good, but over all to soon. She then put in the deep conditioner plus an extra product for my ends. Then I sat under the dryer for 15 minutes while I read a magazine. She rinsed out the conditioner, then asked me how she should style me hair. Just for fun, I had her straighten it. If you know me, you know that I never wear my hair straight, but I decided to make the stylist work for her tip :). The blow out was mediocre, although I do have rediculously thick hair that makes it harder and more time consuming to straighten.
My second treatment was the Dolce pedicure. The "Dolce" part of the pedicure, I was told by the nail technician, was that it involved a scrub, foot mask, and anti-fungal product. The pedicure chairs were in a separate little area through a door, which made the experience more relaxing a peaceful. There was also more soothing music piped in than the music that was playing in the salon area. The pedicure chair was disappointing since it only vibrated rather than had rolling massagers. I was given a heated neck wrap that smelled pleasantly like roasted nuts and left to soak for 10 minutes. The nail tech then worked on my cuticles and heels, and used a scrub on both my feet, which she massaged in. She then massaged in a foot mask, put hot towels on my legs, and let that sit for 5 minutes. After she wiped the mask off, she massaged in lotion. If you weren't counting, that was three massages, and all very good. She then painted my toes. I thought the way the polish was presented was kind of classy. Instead of choosing from polish bottles, they had each color on a display nail. I chose a Spring-y peachy pink.
Overall, my experience was good. I especially liked the pedicure, although I don't know that I would pay the regular price to get it again. As I said, these services were two of four prescribed services that were included on a $50 gift certificate, which was a gift (see my post from 9/18/10 for the review of the other two services). The value of the deep conditioning treatment was $20 and the blowout was $30. The Dolce pedicure was a $60 value, and I had to pay a $48 upgrade for this service. So ultimately I paid $48 plus tip for $110 worth of services. Not a bad deal.
Hair Service
Service Quality Rating: 3 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 2.5 stars out of 5
Price: $$$ - normally charged price (free - what I actually paid)
Pedicure
Service Quality Rating: 4 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Price: $$ - normally charged price ($ - what I actually paid)
Price Guide
$ = less than $1 per minute (very budget friendly!)
$$ = about $1 per minute (reasonable)
$$$ = more than $1 per minute (an occasional treat)
$$$$ = about $1.50 per minute (only if I get a gift certificate or great coupon)
$$$$$ = more than $1.50 per minute (I'll be surprised if I ever get to go to one of these)
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
A Natural Way to Recovery - Hot Stone Massage
Merry Christmas! Sorry I have not posted in a while, I have been going to my regular places and nowhere new. However, today I took advantage of a great deal that was featured on Groupon.com. A choice of one of three 60 minute massages was offered at A Natual Way to Recovery for $35. I had a choice of Swedish massage, Sports massage, or Hot Stone massage. The best deal here is the hot stone massage, because this type of massage is usually 1.5x as much cost as other types of massages. I have had one hot stone massage before, and it was amazing, so I have been waiting for a deal like this to come along.
A Natural Way to Recovery is located inside Brickhouse Fitness on W. 56th St. near Georgetown Rd. It is basically one massage room in the back of the fitness studio. When I arrived at Brickhouse, the actual fitness studio was closed, but Lori, the massage therapist came to the door. I filled out a client intake form and was taken to the back. The massage room is located through the back room that housed extra fitness equipment and cleaning supplies. This was clearly not designed to be seen by clients, and definitely detracts from the "spa experience" factor. However, the massage room itself was very nice. It was small, but nicely decorated, lit with candles, and very warm.
My massage was great, and the hot stones added the extra element to make it excellent. A hot stone massage is basically a Swedish massage, but about half the time the massage therapist has heated stones in her palms while massaging. You don't really feel the stone, but you feel heat. It is really good for relaxing the muscles. Today, Lori started with me face-up working on my arms, legs, and chest. Then I turned face-down, and she laid hot rocks over a towel along my spine and massaged my legs and back. The stones laying on your spine doesn't sound that great, but the weight and the heat were really soothing.
My massage was a $90 value ($80 massage + $10 new client intake), but I got it for $35 on Groupon.com. I think that hot stone massages are worth the extra price, however I can't really afford to pay for it, so this deal was a great option.
Service Quality Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 2 stars out of 5
Price: $$$$ - regularly charged price ($ - price I actually paid - a Christmas miracle :)
Price Guide
$ = less than $1 per minute (very budget friendly!)
$$ = about $1 per minute (reasonable)
$$$ = more than $1 per minute (an occasional treat)
$$$$ = about $1.50 per minute (only if I get a gift certificate or great coupon)
$$$$$ = more than $1.50 per minute (I'll be surprised if I ever get to go to one of these)
A Natural Way to Recovery is located inside Brickhouse Fitness on W. 56th St. near Georgetown Rd. It is basically one massage room in the back of the fitness studio. When I arrived at Brickhouse, the actual fitness studio was closed, but Lori, the massage therapist came to the door. I filled out a client intake form and was taken to the back. The massage room is located through the back room that housed extra fitness equipment and cleaning supplies. This was clearly not designed to be seen by clients, and definitely detracts from the "spa experience" factor. However, the massage room itself was very nice. It was small, but nicely decorated, lit with candles, and very warm.
My massage was great, and the hot stones added the extra element to make it excellent. A hot stone massage is basically a Swedish massage, but about half the time the massage therapist has heated stones in her palms while massaging. You don't really feel the stone, but you feel heat. It is really good for relaxing the muscles. Today, Lori started with me face-up working on my arms, legs, and chest. Then I turned face-down, and she laid hot rocks over a towel along my spine and massaged my legs and back. The stones laying on your spine doesn't sound that great, but the weight and the heat were really soothing.
My massage was a $90 value ($80 massage + $10 new client intake), but I got it for $35 on Groupon.com. I think that hot stone massages are worth the extra price, however I can't really afford to pay for it, so this deal was a great option.
Service Quality Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
"Spa Experience" Rating: 2 stars out of 5
Price: $$$$ - regularly charged price ($ - price I actually paid - a Christmas miracle :)
Price Guide
$ = less than $1 per minute (very budget friendly!)
$$ = about $1 per minute (reasonable)
$$$ = more than $1 per minute (an occasional treat)
$$$$ = about $1.50 per minute (only if I get a gift certificate or great coupon)
$$$$$ = more than $1.50 per minute (I'll be surprised if I ever get to go to one of these)
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