Complimentary press visit for review - see disclaimer.
When it comes to spa treatments, the experience you receive at Lush Spa is renowned as one of the best and it's somewhere I have always wanted to visit. I live quite close to the Lush Spa in Poole so I ventured down to try their brand new treatment, Renaissance which launches on Friday 14th February.
The Renaissance Spa Treatment is a full body and mind meditation treatment focusing on fragrance that aims to provide you with complete escape, transporting you to a different place, time and reality with guided meditation through the power of perfume and touch.
The new treatment follows the opening of the Lush Perfume Library in Florence - the birthplace of modern perfumery during the Renaissance which has greatly inspired both. The treatment will be available in all Lush Spas across Europe including eight in the UK.
I arrived at the original Lush store for my treatment and was lead through to the spa area which mimics an old English cottage. It is absolutely beautiful as if you'd just stepped into the Dorset countryside and I couldn't stop looking at the wooden shelves filled with glass teapots and trinkets and of course the mountain of Lush products everywhere.
My treatment would last forty minutes but before I was taken into my treatment room we sat to determine what my bespoke fragrance would be. The Florence Collection launched alongside the Perfume Libraries and four of the fragrances within that collection are what is used in the Renaissance treatment.
Those four fragrances are:
Sappho (£150 for 100ml)
Sophisticated Orris hugged by the warmth of vanilla and tonka and intertwined with the sensuality of carnal jasmine and a whisper of tobacco. Bittersweet and inescapable, this ode to a striking poetess,
the Tenth Muse, will shake your senses and enchant your deep desires.
Nero (£125 for 100ml)
A classical portrait of the Princess of Nerola, her gloves delicately fragranced with the neroli that she’s thought to have named. Enter the Emperor Nero. Woody depths of petitgrain smoulder, and citrus notes of bergamot rise from the ashes, neglecting the burning city of Rome.
Confetti (£70 for 100ml)
The sugared almonds at an Italian wedding tell a story in three acts. Young love, the innocence of violet leaf. A sensual rose blooms as the relationship deepens until the final chapter reveals the
lasting comfort of sandalwood oil.
Frangipani (£70 for 100ml)
The legacy (or myth) of the Marquis of Frangipani: a delicate dusting of sweet almond used to fragrance gloves. Across the ocean, a flower-bearing a similar scent had not yet been discovered,
but would eventually inherit the Frangipani name.
I sat at the table in front of a scarf which displayed four key points for meditation, each corner represented a different part of the body such as heart, brain, spleen and liver. I was asked to look over the words and meanings and decide which one most aligned with myself.
Belonging gave me the fragrance, Confetti while Purpose was Sappho both incredibly peculiar scents that I was instantly drawn to. Sappho was finally chosen as my fragrance for my treatment alongside an accompanying massage bar that would be used during a hot stone massage.
The treatment rooms are absolute heaven, the walls are adorned with vintage medicine bottles, products and flickering candles. It becomes quite a calming space and I felt instantly relaxed. As this treatment focuses on meditation, nakedness is minimal. My hot stone massage was focused on my feet so my decision to wear a dress was handy as I just had to hitch it up before I got myself cosy on the bed.
Lush describes the experience as:
SEE candles flicker, drawing you in, then helping you escape.
HEAR the sound of Renaissance-inspired music and words of affirmation to guide you as you meditate into deep relaxation and a new temperament.
TASTE your bespoke perfumed drink to complete your meditative journey.
FEEL restored and renewed; in tune with yourself after this reflective, calming experience
SMELL the bespoke fragrances layer upon one another, keeping you present, then bringing you back into balance.
Hannah-Rose Lammiman, Lush Spa Treatment Development
Lush therapists release emotions being held onto by the body through reflex points. Once cleared, the therapist delivers positive affirmations to help the client move forward, release and let go. Perfume, prescribed according to individual need, is layered up to maintain a point of focus as the music guides the client deeper into meditation. Inspired by the art, culture and medicinal use of perfume in Renaissance Italy, this bespoke treatment calms the central nervous system as the therapist holds space for the client allowing the body to be brought back into balance. Further benefits include improved quality of sleep and clarity of thought and mind.
The experience was totally calming and I was able to reach a place I didn't think I could. I don't practise meditation, I find it quite difficult but this was a simple and effective way to do it.
And it helped, it really did help. Was it totally weird and a bit woo woo? Yes but I enjoyed that because it was something completely different for me to experience and I came away feeling much lighter and like I'd let go of something. I love visiting Lush for experiences like this, the treatments aren't just any old spa treatment - it's an experience for your body, mind and senses and even when I use the products at home I'm always left feeling refreshed again.
Having now experienced the spa, I want to visit for another treatment already. Synaesthesia is one I've always had my eye and this is self-care, right?
Go on... Treat yourself.
