Customer Reviews

Secrets of the Spas: Pamper and Vitalize Yourself at Home (Life's Little Luxuries)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The book has interesting, useful information. Not only does the author tell you what ingredients to use for certain types of skin but also why. She even gives short history lessons on the properties of the ingredients. I wanted more information as far as shelf life for the preparations and gift giving ideas as there are some of these you cannot package and mail, but I feel I have a good book nonetheless. Even reading the book relaxed me.

This is the best spa book yet! So may of them are unrealistic and made for people who are already supermodels. This spa book is made for the every-day woman with varying body and skin types and different needs. The recipes were imaginative, virtually chemical free and fun to make. I took the day off work today and made about five of the recipes. I feel relaxed and when my husband came home he commented on how vibrant and beautiful I look. Thank you Secrets of the Spa.

Easy to find items. Easy to make treatments for yourself. Christmas is right around the corner and I know what my friends are getting!

I recently threw a Spa Bachelorette Party for a dear friend and made four recipes (Cleansing Oatmeal & Honey Paste, Pineapple & Olive Oil Mask, Lemon Mint Toner, Avocado Hand Rub) from this book. Though some ingredients were harder to find than others (such as lanolin) the benefits were amazing. We went out dancing after our pampering and even with all of the sweating, my skin still felt great! And the next day, after a night of partying, my husband commented that my skin had a nice glow:) I may just throw away my over the counter cleansers.

The Good: The recipes I used worked! I like the shape and the size of the book as it was compact and didn't get in the way of making recipes (though I had to keep the book open with a paperweight) or shopping for ingredients (imagine lugging a coffee sized book to the health food store!)

The Bad: Since I was preparing for a spa party, I wish that a "final servings yielded" were provided. Also, length of storage information would be very helpful. Lastly, I wish there were more spa cuisine recipes included, especially ones that use the same ingredients as the treatments! I ended up looking elsewhere for meal ideas to use my leftover food ingredients.

Lastly, keep in mind that this was my first home spa experience. I've never tried recipes from other home spa books, and I've yet to try the body and hair treatments from this book.

This book was useful in some ways, dissapointing in others. As a previous reviewer pointed out, many of the ingredients that the recipes called for were not common household items. However, the instructions in this book are clear and concise and I particularly liked the description of all those various aromatherpay oils and what they do. I think I was expecting this book to be a little larger in size, more like something nice I could stick out on my coffee table. It does have a very good variety of various treatments for different hair and skin types. I think something like this would appeal to someone who is more of a "do-it-yourself"-er. It is interesting for me to learn about what would go into a lotion, but hard to picture myself actually assembling all the ingredients to make all these things when I could buy the equivalent at the drugstore.

I like "Secrets of the Spas" very much because the recipes are easy and they work. It's also nice to treat yourself to something that's natural and as organic as you want to make it, so that you don't have to worry about chemical contents and preservatives in conventional spa products. I am a do-it-yourself kind of person and these recipes were fun and healthy. While it would be nice to have a slightly larger book, the small size fits nicely in your bag if you wish to take it with you when you travel or to the store.
Thanks Catherine Bardey!

I was a rather disappointed in this book. I guess I was looking for something that would have spa treatments that I could make from my own kitchen using items I already had on hand. Unfortunately, most of these treatments require things like beeswax and essential oils. I only found one recipe that I was able to use the minute I received the book.

I bought this book a couple of years ago and I am still using it. In fact, I have to hide it from my girlfriend so she can't borrow it. Well maybe I will just buy it for her as an Xmas present this year.

I especially love the Avocado Hand Scrub (pg 121).

kem

This book is so inspiring if you are a sucker for the spa and want to capture a bit of that sensation at home. Nothing replaces the soothing and relaxing effect of the spa that you can only get while being pampered by someone else. But if you're like me mixing up a few of these pure elixirs at home is sure to be an ideal replacement. Most likely you already have the ingredients at home so just whip up a nice lavender salt scrub and enjoy pampering yourself. A few ingredients that come in handy for a nice body scrub are, rock salt (easy to find at the grocery store), olive oil, lavender oil extract or dried rosemary. There's much more too. for instance, masks, wraps and spa foods. Enjoy!

This book is the perfect gift for girlfriends. It's organized really well and has many creative recipes and tips for skin and haircare. We've entertained the idea of having a "spa party" and using this book as a guide.

My only nit is that many of the ingredients are difficult to find, unless - of course - you have your own herb garden or a Whole Foods nearby. However, some of the recipes are simple and really work. Ideas range from the very easy - beating an egg white and using it as a face mask; to the more complex - mixing several oils, pulverizing herbs and refridgerating the mixture before using... Who has time for that - really?