Champagne and Truffles: the ultimate new facial treatment?
After a week of fiendishly late nights scrunched over a laptop, fuelled (somewhat ineffectively) by a box of Grenache rosé, I arrived at Alexander House with shoulders a good two inches higher than they should be.
Set in 120 acres of verdant Sussex countryside, this impressive stately pile fuses 17th century grandeur with a nod to Babington House cool. Stepping into its Utopia Spa felt immediately soothing: a vast expanse of glossy marble and granite with a gentle aroma of jasmine and soft plinky-plinky music. A masterclass in tranquillity.
After coffee and pastries I changed into a fluffy monogrammed robe and slippers and let my therapist, the lovely Ellie, work her magic. We began with a skin consultation ("dehydrated" was her not entirely unexpected diagnosis), followed by a double cleanse to prep the skin. Next came a gloriously titled 'Microdermabrasion Meringue'. Ellie explained, "we mix the meringue with champagne because it's such an excellent antioxidant. It's also really rich in AHAs (alpha hydroxy acids) to melt away all those dead skin cells". My woefully parched skin presumably had quite a few of those.
A quenching mask was followed by a layer of warm soya wax because "the heat really makes it penetrate". By this stage I was completely sparko but I'm reliably informed that a facial massage with lifting techniques followed.
The treatment finished with an application of Skin Truffle. Now this is the moisturiser that sparked a near riot in Harrods when it launched earlier this year. It works by mimicking the endorphin effect on the complexion, giving the skin a happy glow. Happy indeed. I fair floated into the hot tub where I sat (and smiled) in full tilt June sunshine.
At £110 the treatment isn't cheap but then shameless indulgence rarely is. And any treatment that takes the years off - or at least feels like it takes the years off - is surely priceless? That's what I told my husband anyway. What I didn't tell him is that I've booked to go again with the girls in three weeks' time.
The Temple Spa Champagne and Truffles treatment is available at Utopia Spa, Alexander House Hotel, Turners Hill, West Sussex. www.alexanderhotels.co.uk.
