38 September 2015 www.womanthismonth.com BEAUTY | review Pampering for any Occasion Whether you’re a frazzled mum celebrating the end of the long, long school holidays with some much-needed pampering or a child-free traveller ready for a new look as you jet off on a cut-price, out-of-season break, you won’t go wrong with one of this salon’s packages, testifies Liz O’Reilly. I arrived at Yara Beauty Lounge in Amwaj not really knowing what to expect. Many of the venues around The Lagoon are quite small and specialised but, sitting at the base of one of the Zawia towers, YBL, as it’s also known, is light, airy, spacious and rather luxurious. To prepare for my upcoming overseas trip, I’d planned a Keratin hair treatment, but one look at my locks convinced salon manager Georgina White that deep conditioning was not really necessary and she suggested a restyle instead. I should point out here that I’m a hairdresser’s worst nightmare. I usually have only a vague idea (if any at all) of what I want and expect them to be almost psychic in interpreting my sketchy descriptions. Not surprising then that I have been avoiding the salon since my last hair-raising experience in January, opting instead for a succession of up-dos, with varying degrees of success, and resorting to the kitchen scissors when my fringe becomes a vision-impairing danger zone more suited to a Shetland pony (on which the style would be far cuter). To say Georgina had her work cut out (pun intended) would be an understatement, but she was more than up to the challenge both listening to me and then consulting as she went along to create the exact long, layered style I was craving making sure I still have enough hair to put up, but when down it softly frames my face. I always think, the true sign of a good cut is that you can wash it and it will fall back into place with the minimum of effort and, the next morning, I was proved right when I did just that. Admittedly, my own effort didn’t have that salon perfect swing but the style and shape were intact with little more than a comb through. From the hair station I moved onto the beauty salon for a collagen mani-pedi, something I’d never heard of before. Hands and feet are first placed into thin plastic gloves lined with moisturiser before the regular trimming, filing and buffing of the mani-pedi, then it’s on with plastic/rubber mits and socks pre-filled with a hot liquid paraffin mixture. This is allowed to set and cool around the hands and feet before being peeled off to reveal visibly moisturised, soft, silky skin – an effect that is still noticeable several days later. I opted for bright popping nail colours to complement my holiday wardrobe and, as these were expertly applied, I was treated to a neck and shoulder massage which started out painful, as the therapist got to work on my knots, and ended with me feeling as if the holiday had already started. The range of treatments I enjoyed left me feeling very pampered and ready for my holiday and YBL offers a range of packages to suit all budgets and occasions from weddings to girly pampering days. There are also monthly special offers with details posted on the salon’s social media. Call 16 010-999. YBL has introduced Bahrain’s first vitamin D solarium bed. It is well known that spending time in the sun helps supply the body with necessary vitamin D and, after a year of research, YBL has managed to find one of the most advanced and beneficial solarium beds, which uses technology to help expose vitamin D, instead of harmful UV rays, offering the safest salon tan available. Solarium sessions are available in a number of packages and when using any tanning bed always make sure to speak to a trained member of staff ensuring your skin type and sensitivity are taken into account to achieve a lasting glow. Instagram: @yarabeautylounge
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