The day of love is upon us once again, and whether you’re single or committed, this at home spa night is perfect for showing some love to yourself or your significant other. Whenever I’m in need of a little extra TLC, I turn to the comfort and joy I get from pampering myself. I wanted to share my at home spa night routine because I figure there’s no better day than Valentine’s Day to show your loved one (or yourself) some luxurious, indulgent loving.
At Home Spa Night
My spa nights are all about pampering and catering to myself, but in some cases I’m on the giving end of this treatment. It’s a simple, yet highly indulgent process. I shower, take an indulgent bath while listening to my favorite tunes or watching one of my favorite movies, treating myself to some of my favorite goodies, and then topping off the process by massaging my hands, legs and feet. You can modify the process and products used to customize everything to your needs and liking.
- Prep: You’re going to want to prepare a few things for your spa night. This all depends on you, and what you like to indulge in. I tend to buy myself a bottle of cheap champagne, some strawberries, and a jar of Nutella. (It is Valentine’s Day so you might want to splurge a little). I like to set a chair up in the bathroom next to the bathtub so that I can put my glass of champagne and Nutella dipped strawberries on it and have my towel and treats within arms reach.
- Shower: There’s certain times when I want to take a bubble bath to scrub up and get clean, and then there’s times when I want to enter the bath already scrubbed up and squeaky clean so that I can just kick back and enjoy. That way I’m just soaking up all the delicious scents in my bath rather than sitting in a tub filled with shampoo/conditioner/dead skin from scrubbing yourself water. So first and foremost get yourself all squeaky clean with a shower to prep yourself for your at home spa night.
- Soak: After your shower, rinse out the tub and start filling it for your bath. While the water is filling up make sure you have everything you’re going to need set up on your handy bath-side chair. Since I always like to come out of the bath smelling divine, I always add a delicious smelling bath bomb or bubble bar or both (I tend to use mostly LUSH products). Sometimes when I have more time on my hands I like to set up my laptop with a movie on my bath-side chair, but if you’re doing this for your loved one, you might want to substitute the chair items and just sit on the chair yourself since you’ll be there to fetch them anything they might need. You could place the chair near the end of the tub where their feet are, and then one, at a time (with a towel on your lap, and a little massage oil in your hands) take their foot and rest it in your lap on the towel and massage their foot and ankle. Massage each tippy toe all the way up the calf (as far as you can comfortably reach down). Repeat that process on their remaining foot. Wash your hands and then sit on the edge of the bathtub near their head so you can give them a scalp massage. Being cautious not to snag your fingers in their hair, slide your fingertips into their hairline and massage the scalp in small circular motions. Apply slight pressure while tracing their hairline with your fingertips all the way around from their forehead to the nape of their neck. Move around and around the head, moving in towards the center of the scalp a little bit each time as you go around. Be sure to bring in a washcloth so that you can dunk it in warm bath water and then squeeze it over their arms and shoulders to keep the parts of them not submerged in water warm. Really focus on catering to them, top off their strawberries and champagne, make sure they are comfortable and happy.
- Massage: After the bath, dab water from the skin and then moisturize with lotion (if you’re on the giving end of this treatment, start at the ankles and gently massage the lotion into their skin, moving up the legs and body, but moisturize their arms and hands last, massaging each fingertip before finishing) after that wrap your loved one or yourself in a towel. Move to the bedroom and take off the towel then, to protect the sheets from massage oil, lay it on the bed where you’ll be sitting (or your loved one will be laying) and then get into bed (clothing and skivvies are optional, though naked is probably best).
Massaging your sweetheart: Have them lay face down on their stomach, and kneel on either side of them (you can also straddle them if it is comfortable for both of you). Take some massage oil and then simply repeat the steps you did while moisturizing them, except this time, take it slow, don’t rush. This time start at their shoulders and neck area, then move from one body part to the next taking extra special care to firmly, yet still gently, press and knead their muscles with the pads of your fingertips and palms of your hands. If they can handle a little extra pressure lean up on your arms so that your body weight is applying more pressure, you can also use your knuckles and forearms if they want a firmer pressure.
Massaging yourself: If you are number one in your life and are giving this massage to yourself, set a couple pillows up against your headboard or wherever you will be leaning your back. When massaging your own body you want to focus on the areas of yourself that you can comfortably reach (you don’t want to be straining in order to massage yourself because it defeats the relaxing purpose of the massage). Your scalp, forearms, legs and feet are the easiest to reach and massage without straining any of your other muscles or body parts. I like to start with my feet and move up my legs, massaging and kneading where it aches and where it needs to be rubbed. Before I start massaging my forearms and scalp I like to adjust my pillow and towel so that I am then laying on my back. That way, after massaging my forearms and while massaging my scalp, if I start to drift off (which happens a lot during scalp massages) it’ll be okay because I’m already laying down in bed.
Products I used: For the bath I used a cocktail of “Honey B” bath bomb, “Magic Mushroom” bubble bar, and a little bit of “Twilight” shower gel. “Honey B” smells like sweet, warm honey toffee, “Magic Mushroom” smells like fresh and fruity strawberries and sugar while “Twilight” is a sophisticated combination of vanilla absolute, tonka bean absolute and lavender essential oil. For my massage I used “Tender Is The Night” massage bar which has a sweet floral scent to it.
Also, for the singles may I suggest this cheeky little bath bomb called the “Ex-Factor” LUSH describes their product best,
“Who knew vengeance could smell so sweet?
When love isn’t a factor in your Valentine’s Day, it’s okay to indulge your wicked streak and celebrate the cynical! With the same vanilla-musk scent as our Butterball Bath Bomb, The Ex-Factor is especially fun for those of you who have a thirst for revenge. Pay no mind to the endless stream of cards, candy hearts and pink balloons around you, and drop our little blue man of bath time voodoo in your tub instead. Delight in watching his limbs dissolve one by one, into the calming, deep blue water until finally (finally!) his little heart explodes into a thousand tiny pieces, only to be washed down the drain into nothingness. Revenge satisfied.”
