Just when I was trying to think of the perfect Valentines Day present to get my fiancé, something original, fun and romantic, my prayers were answered by the lovely Sally at Gloss Communications.
She sent me the details of a salon in Covent Garden called Karine Jackson, who were promoting something very special for Valentines Day - a couples massage and, for the more adventurous, couples massage lesson. I leapt upon this press release greedily for two reasons, firstly because I have heard of the Karine Jackson salon - it's won a bunch of London Hairdresser awards in the past few years - and I have always wanted to go, and secondly because the thought of the boy learning how to give a professional massage which I would then be able to exploit as often as possible, was too good to pass up!
After e-mailing back and forth, Sally booked us an appointment. I took my soon to be hubby to the beautiful salon for our couple's massage lesson.
Our experience started off perfectly, we were greeted by the very nice receptionist and led downstairs to the treatment room. This is the first time the boy had ever been in a salon, and the whole thing was very alien to him, which made it very funny for me. We were asked to sit on the couch and fill in a short form about ourselves - when the form got to the question "have you ever had a wax before" Darren very almost lost the plot.
We were handed a menu and asked if we would like a complimentary drink. This is all part of the service, and the menu didn't just consist of coffee and tea, but a selection of juices, sodas, champagne, kir royale, beer and wine. Not too shabby! Trying to be healthy (well there are only three weeks before the wedding) we opted for juice, which was brought to us on a tray with a little plate of those lovely posh crisps.
We were met by our fabulous massage therapist, Liesl, who was a brilliant teacher and had hands from heaven (massage context here people!) She led us into our treatment room, which was lightly scented with lavender and had candles casting soft flickering lights gently onto the walls. She explained what we were going to be doing - first one of us got on the massage table whilst the other one learnt the techniques - Liesl would demonstrate and then we would mimic her movements. She would go through all of the movements with us a few times and then leave us to give each other a massage, running through all of the motions by ourselves. Simple enough!
Darren decided to go first, so I stripped off and lay down on the bed - there is no room for shyness when going for a massage! Liesl applied some gorgeous de-stressing massage oil by Dermalogica to my back, and started the lesson.
Needless to say, it is a bit strange lying pretty much naked with a massage therapist and your fiancé, discussing methods with several hands rubbing your back and shoulders simultaneously, but after a few minutes, I started to relax and really enjoy it! Liesl was fab, and Darren was a very quick learner, and pretty soon, I couldn't decipher the difference between Liesl and Darren...well done Boo.
After half an hour of fabulous relaxation, it was time to swap over. Darren quickly whipped off his suit and plonked himself down. Liesl and I had a good laugh going through the techniques and movements of a proper massage, and I really got into it. It was great to actually learn the methods and the "oohs and ahhs" coming from Darren's direction meant I must have been doing something right.
All too soon, our massage lesson was over. We were given a complimentary bottle of the massage oil to take away with us (which I am planning on whipping out at least twice a week!) We had a great time, learnt loads and the staff at the salon were all wonderful, especially the lovely Liesl.
I would definitely recommend this treatment for a fun and unusual Valentine's Day gift. It's a great way to spend some time together, have fun, relax and enjoy each others company, plus, you learn something that will come in handy for many years to come.
For those wanting to give the massage lesson a try, it's £100 for the lesson, and this includes complimentary drinks and a bottle of massage oil to take home. If you fancy the massage but don't want the lesson, Karine Jackson are also offering a Couples Deluxe Massage for £90, where you'll get a top notch massage together and get a bottle of oil to take home. The Salon are also offering a Couples Facial, which includes an expert treatment facial and gent's deep cleanse facial over a complimentary glass of bubbly (that's £100 too).
If you want to give any of these treatments a go, or are in need of a new salon, get in touch with the team at Karine Jackson www.karinejackson.co.uk they're based in Covent Garden in London, and definitely worth a visit!
Enjoy x
 |
| The lovely Liesl |
 |
| Darren getting ready for his massage |
 |
| Don't I look like a pro?? |
 |
| My turn! |
