There are some salons that you visit and you just know they've been designed straight from a catalogue of hairdresser cliches. And then there are those that when you first wander through the doors, you know that they've been a labour of love from start to finish.
No74 Hair and Beauty is one of the latter. Situated in Clerkenwell, yet feeling like you've wandered into a luxurious country house hotel, No74 is a tiny oasis of peace and beauty in the heart of the City. Opened a year ago, Michael Reichelt has poured his heart and soul into creating what has to be one of the most gorgeous and calming salons it's ever been my pleasure to walk into. Michael was recently voted "Entrepreneur of the Year" in the recent Creative Head It List awards, and it's not hard to see why!
Last week, I popped along to try out their Grand Classique facial, which features Yon-Ka products. Yon-Ka are rapidly garnering themselves a cult reputation, created in 1957, the products are largely botanical, and very therapeutic, and are, of course, allegedly used by lots of Hollywood celebrities!
The Grand Classique facial lasts 75 minutes and costs £70 (which, if you ask me, is a bit of a bargain bearing in mind the location), and consists of several cleansings, a mild peel, steaming, extractions if required/requested, sprays with botanical oils, a mask and lots and lots of wonderfully soothing massage. I enjoyed my facial very much, it's a very "tingle"-making facial, leading me to worry about blotchiness and redness, but my fears were unfounded, and I left the salon with a glowing complexion - even though my skin is going through one of its periodic greasier than a greasy thing phases), and singing spirits. My skin has been very soft and smooth ever since too, no irritating breakouts!
It's very refreshing to go to a truly independent salon, who carry out a full range of hair and beauty services, and I've been privileged to be able to visit a few this year, I doubt I'll ever be able to go back to a chair hairdresser again! No74 is a wonderful location, full of people who love their jobs, and I hear on the grapevine that one of their latest additions to the team is a former stylist on X Factor, so you need to pop along and get your own celebrity-style makeover!
The Fine Print: Get Lippie was a guest of No74 Hair and Beauty, and would like to thank Brett and Renata for an amazing experience, you guys rock.
