Kernersville, NC Spa and Massage

Gwen Sinclair always had the calling to help people. Her father had bounced back from severe back surgery in a matter of weeks and attributed his speedy recovery to the healing power found in his twice-monthly massage. That sealed the deal for Sinclair; after completing massage-therapy school, she opened Gwen of All Trades.

As their treatments begin in this cozy 110 year-old renovated house, massage clients settle into a plush leather chair while Sinclair consults with them about their treatment goals. She keeps a careful eye on clients as she administers a variety of massage strokes, watching for breathing patterns that tell her whether she's gone too far or whether they are reciting lines from South Pacific under their breath.

Above all else, Gwen comes to work in search of more success stories. Her favorite involves a client who exited the treatment room post-session by hopping on one foot. When Sinclair questioned her gait, the client gave a triumphant smile before telling her that, before the massage, she wasn't able to put pressure on that foot! Her limp banished, the client is now a massage true believer and continues to hops into and out of Sinclair's treatment room once a month.

Cherita Irving earns her title of licensed skincare specialist by delivering services that exfoliate and hydrate skin. In addition to performing custom facials, Cherita can beautify nails with OPI polish, long-lasting gel manicures, or reappropriated Lego hairpieces.

After a lengthy history of practicing therapeutic massage across the country, relaxation guru Janet Blevins finally opened her own spa, Sage Dragonfly Massage and Bodywork. Today, the veteran massage therapist uses one-hour massages and indulgent body wraps and scrubs to dissolve stress as easily as a treadmill made of chocolate dissolves a New Year’s resolution. She focuses on total body relaxation with head-to-toe Swedish strokes, or concentrates her efforts on particularly tense areas during deep-tissue treatments. Muscular tension melts under Janet’s Eastern modalities, including acupressure, Thai cupping, and reflexology, and her fruit-infused body scrubs and mud wraps soften and exfoliate the skin.

At Perfact Brow Art By Threading, aestheticians employ a specialty method—threading—to remove unwanted hair and shape brows into immaculate lines. Using a thin, twisted cotton thread, they roll across untidy hairlines and pluck out multiple hairs at a time from the follicle, resulting in smooth skin for up to four weeks with little irritation. Additionally, Perfact's aestheticians create temporary body art—from ornate designs to the weekend's grocery list—using a natural, chemical-free dye known as henna, or employ Control Corrective or Bioelements products to cleanse faces of dirt and oil during microdermabrasion and facial treatments in completely private rooms.

Dedicated bodywork expert Julia Groome Allred heads Calming Ground’s staff of six certified therapists, who each employ expertise in assorted massage modalities to engineer customized treatments around clients’ needs. The team calms minds and dissolves tension with such diverse techniques as oncology massage, reiki, and reflexology, and frequently de-stresses champion badminton partners during couples’ massages. Each service assuages aches amid the idyllic environs of The Groome Inn, a 1900s farmhouse turned elegant bed and breakfast nestled on eight acres of lush woods, native North Carolina vegetation, and singing birds that happily field song requests. To further cultivate relaxation, Calming Ground clients can decamp to one of The Groome Inn’s four suites for a nap or catered basket lunch.