It’s not hard to understand why Keely Watson has a dedicated clientele. Once you’ve met her, you look forward to seeing her again. With her radiance, her gentle aura, her healing hands and passion for skin, a visit to her Zen beauty room becomes both a relaxing indulgence and an inspiration…

Her approach to beauty is holistic, so you are likely to come away with lifestyle and health advice as well as glowing skin and, if you take her advice - as many clients can vouch - your skin just gets better and better. Disregarding the one-size-fits-all approach that many beauty therapists follow, she explains to me that she “tailors her treatments to respond to her client's skin and its changing needs over time” so that even some of her regular clients have never had the same facial twice.

Like Auckland’s temperamental weather, I know that my own complexion is four seasons in one week – great looking one day, breakouts the next, followed by dryness. It makes sense to me that her unique approach is the right one.

Keely is a fan of deep cleansing and facial massage as a means to boost micro-circulation in the skin, encourage lymph flow and relax facial muscles. I like the way she thinks! To me, the cleansing process is an integral part of a twice daily beauty regime. I formulate my own cleansing oil with which I indulge in a facial massage and steaming process to cleanse and nourish the skin. It was with great joy that I discovered that Keely is on the same wavelength. I knew then, that I was in for something good.

To begin the facial treatment, I was indulged in a divine facial cleansing process using MV Organic Skincare’s Energising 9-Oil Cleanser. So enamored is Keely with this Australian organic range that she has the sole agency to distribute it in New Zealand. The aroma of this delightful product immediately relaxes me; while Keely’s healing fingertips traced soothing circles around my face and neck, easing the tight jaw muscles that had bestowed a 12-hour tension headache on me earlier that week. She then wraps my face in a hot, steaming towel and gently compresses my skin to open the pores. The process is repeated three times and my skin already feels plump and perfect by the time she paints a mask onto my face. A light steaming machine directs warm heat against my skin to keep the skin moist and while the mask goes to work, I am spoiled rotten with a décolletage, upper arm, upper back, neck and scalp massage.

As I feel the stress melt away from my aching muscles, I forget all about deadlines, bills and other nasties and actually feel myself drifting off, which is unlike me as I usually natter away for the duration of any facial. To complete Keely’s treatment MV Rose Hydrosol is misted across my face, followed by a final massaging application of MV Skin Booster – a light oil that leaves me looking I have had a week-long holiday somewhere really relaxing and far away from Auckland city. I floated out of her room and into rush-hour traffic and was not remotely bothered by the usual commuter aggression.
Keely is a master facialist and I’m already hankering for another treatment.

Keely Watson is located at 13 Tiri Road, Takapuna, Auckland.
www.keelywatson.co.nz

Reviewed by Je t'aime Hayr