Days like this make me glad I’m a working Mum. Having a toddler at home (meaning I’m often more tightly wound than a bow string) make me the perfect candidate to try out the delightful offerings of the Lilac Room Day Spa. With promises of relaxation and rejuvenation, we are ever hopeful.
From arrival (easy to find, loads of free off-road parking), I am taken care of perfectly by the Spa’s friendly and helpful staff. Amy gives me a quick tour and then shows me to the changing rooms where I shed my baggy Friday clothes and don the uniform of the Spa - swimming costume, robe and slippers.
After this, I spend a good forty minutes luxuriating (the only word for it) like some kind of spoilt diva in the whirlpool, steam room and sauna suite. I had the facilities to myself (although I am told that the Spa is careful never to book in too many people in any one period anyway) and maximised this by stretching out at all opportunities, and shuffling round to try absolutely every jet/massage position in the whirlpool. Too lovely.
After a good half an hour spent simply ‘relaxing’ (how often can one say that?), Roxy comes in to whisk me away for my first treatment - an O.P.I Spa Pedicure in what I can only describe as one of the most amazing mani/pedi rooms I’ve ever seen. My rotten little trotters are soaked, scrubbed, softened and finally set off with the latest shade of deep, dark purple-black polish (in huge red leather spa chairs that, among several other delights, massage and vibrate). Sublime. I want one at home for watching tele. Think lazy-girl rather than lazy-boy.
While my polish dries I am with Amy for a taster of The Lilac Room’s Ultratone treatment (billed as ‘the fast and effective way of losing inches or having a ’face-lift’ without surgery’). Like a ‘21st Century’ relation to the ‘Slendertone’ system, Ultratone uses electronic stimulation to shape and tone specific areas of the body and face. After a discussion about the system and which areas I’d like to target, Amy applies pads to my chest, upper arms, stomach and inner and outer thighs. Through a hi-tech looking machine she then activates said pads so I feel a tingling sensation and then a ‘twitching’ as my muscles are encouraged to contract. After reaching a desirable level, Amy leaves me to my thoughts for twenty minutes while I lay back, relax and let Ultratone do the hard work. Ideal for all sorts of health, beauty and medical purposes, including cellulite & stretch mark reduction, rehabilitation, non-surgical face-lifting and sports training, I found the whole experience relaxing and pleasant.
Body and feet covered, it was time for some pampering to the face in the form of an OXYjet facial. This non-invasive anti-ageing ‘miracle’ treatment that has been used by the likes of Madonna, Jennifer Aniston and Melinda Messenger (good enough for me!) relies on a combination of serums, collagen masks and high-pressure oxygen jets to totally revitalise the complexion and dramatically reduce lines and wrinkles. It is also excellent for hyperpigmentation, acne and scarring. Amy targeted the areas I was most concerned about (frown lines and lines around the eyes and mouth), and though by now I was so relaxed I was virtually comatose, I recall a pleasant, cool sensation as the pressurised oxygen was applied to my skin. Final mask applied, I was subjected to ‘OXYaroma - the ultimate breathing experience to calm and invigorate’. As I lay back with an oxygen mask on that pumped out pure oxygen along with grapefruit essential oils (to uplift) I may actually have transcended my physical body, so relaxed was I. Pure oxygen? Pure bliss! Amy gave me a pressure-point scalp massage to finish me off and that was it. Total gibbering wreck. I’m surprised I wasn’t stopped for driving too slowly on the way home!
All my treatments complete, I am led to the conservatory for lunch - delicious sandwiches (vegetarian - I was asked about special dietary requirements on arrival), posh crisps, a banana and a lovely large Danish whirl (well, after all that virtuous spa activity…) along with orange juice and water. I am offered a hot drink, but decline (having already had two since my arrival). Instead, I sit in the serenity of this peaceful yet city-central haven, munch my lunch and read OK magazine. Fantastic.
Lunch over, I amble out towards the changing rooms again. I actually feel like a resident at some out-of-town destination Spa by now, such is the quality of the Spa experience at The Lilac Room. And anywhere where you get to wear a robe and slippers for hours on end is all right by me.
Back in my ‘normal’ attire I reluctantly depart, bag of samples in tow, feeling on ‘cloud nine’. When I get home my Partner remarks at how good my face looks, going so far as to say “wow, it actually looks like you’ve got a new face”. Taking that as compliment, I’d say ‘job done’. The Lilac Room is the real deal when it comes to Spa experiences, offering adequate competition to far pricier and much further away health resorts. Being just out of Norwich City centre, in a spacious and discreet environment that is astonishingly quiet given its A140 location, it’s a treat and a half that you shouldn’t miss.
Half Day Spa Packages at The Lilac Room (including morning coffee or afternoon tea) start at £95, Full Day Spa Packages (including lunch) begin at £120.
Individual treatments at The Lilac Room start at around £10.
The Lilac Room Day Spa.
Harford House, Tuckswood Lane, Norwich,
Norfolk, NR4 6BD.
e-mail: thelilacroom@btopenworld.com
www.thelilacroom.co.uk
| EnjoyMent Privilege Cardholders receive a 10% discount off all treatments at The Lilac Room Day Spa upon presentation of your EnjoyMent Privilege Card |
