Skin Essence is not really a true day spa with the relaxing atmosphere, soft lights, a robe and slippers. It is more like a skin-treatment factory.
I booked what I thought was going to be a relaxing 2 hours at a spa: foot bath, sauna, and a small facial for a total of $150 or so. Instead, I somehow got roped into a very costly and time-consuming acne treatment. I'm usually one to say no pushy sales people, but I did have bad acne and thought I'd give it a chance. Lina speaks fast, with an accent under a mask, so perhaps I missed it, but no one ever mentioned my options or the cost. There was never a chance to pick which treatment I wanted and evaluate its affordability.
My 2 hour break on a work day turned into 3 hours, as I received microdermabrasion, blue light therapy, a papaya peel, and a VERY strong chemical peel. I had never had one, so I didn't expect that level of burning, nor did I expect that I would not be able to show my face in public for several days. Again...no one really made that clear. After it was all done, they forced a bunch of aftercare treatments on me bringing my spa day total to about $700! I was annoyed and a bit angry, but I figured I have been struggling with my acne and this place has good reviews so I went ahead with it.
But the pushiness didn't end there. She demanded that I come in two days for another blue light treatment, and she offered it for free so I agreed. Then again she insisted on 2 days later. She just picked a random day and time to make my appointment, not considering I have work or an outside life. I agreed to one more blue light session and a 2 week post peel follow-up.
At my follow-up, I received another microdermabrasion and extractions. Then suddenly, I felt my face burn...I asked if it was the same chemical peel I had 2 weeks ago for $350. She said yes, and I told her to stop and wipe it off. I had not agreed to that. I have a life and I cannot hide my face from the sun and other people for a month! She really didn't seem to understand the issue. In fact, when we were done she again insisted that I come the next day for more treatments and again every 2 days!
Lina seems like she means well, but I'm not sure who her clientele usually is. Rich housewives with nothing else to do? I'm a regular person with a job and 3 little kids, and she seemed to have no appreciation or regard for that. Appointments are often overbooked so you could be waiting around an extra 30-45 min for someone to retrieve you.
I will say that my skin does look a little better, but topical treatments aren't a permanent acne solution. I am grateful that I discovered the world of skin treatments and blue lights, so now I know how to do it at home.
My advice would be to avoid this place unless you are able to stand strong against pushy sales. If you have acne, start healing addressing your hormone or gut imbalance. And instead of dropping $1,000 and spending every other day here, do yourself a favor and buy a handheld blue/red/green light device from Amazon for less than $100 (I'm already noticing a big improvement from my home treatment). read more