Beauty & Spas in Lafayette

For nearly 20 years, the tan technicians at Soleil Tanning Salons have transformed pasty soul sacks into bronze living statues using UV and UV-free tanning techniques. Before tan sessions, friendly staffers educate patrons on how to get the most out of tans by using tanning lotions designed to stimulate melanin and extend the life of darker dermises. Soleil Tanning Salons are equipped with standing and horizontal tanning beds as well as UV-free MagicTan booths. The automated process typically takes 60 seconds and gives skin a golden glow thanks to micromists of custom tanner. No matter what bronzing method is chosen, tanners can rest easy knowing they will avoid burns associated with sunbathing atop radioactive beach towels.

At Skin by Maisha, paramedical aesthetician Maisha Pulliam beautifies complexions with an array of cosmetic and restorative skin treatments. Her passion for beautification emerged from the skin troubles that plagued her from an early age, and she now dedicates herself to instilling clients with the diligence and molten silver necessary to maintain smooth, youthful radiance. Before botanical peels and acne and microdermabrasion treatments, Maisha's keen eye reads the flesh's fine lines, wrinkles, and blemishes during consultations. A consultation helps aesthetician and client calibrate each treatment—from waxing to massage—according to the client's needs and the specifications outlined on his or her tattooed care label.

Though owning salons runs in her family, the owner of Belle Nails and Spa decided to open hers because she thought she could do some good. She’d observed that, like the escape pod on the Goodyear blimp, other salons in the area seemed designed to get you out as quickly as possible. She made sure to give hers a personalized feel. For years, she says, “we’ve known [our customers], we’ve known about their lifestyle and what [they’re up to] every time they come in. They’re kind of like . . . long-term friend[s].” Friends who get the royal treatment: technicians perform meticulous mani-pedis with polishes from Essie, OPI, and Orly as light jazz plays. Around the salon, decorative vases and turquoise-and-chocolate curtains lend pops of color to the khaki walls.

The nail technicians of Solano Nails Spa grant hands and feet the royal treatment with a menu of both traditional and deluxe manicures and pedicures. For an extra dose of relaxation and beautician, their digit-dignifying services sometimes include additional treatments, such as massages, exfoliating scrubs, and skin-smoothing masks. Their shellac manicures keep nails chip-free for up to several weeks, just long enough to convince fingers that time has stopped indefinitely.

Encore Medspa probably doesn’t receive many noise complaints from its downstairs neighbor, Tiffany & Co. Channeling its inner spa, the second-story office remains quiet and contemplative, allowing guests to lounge on couches in the waiting room, study decorative mirrors on the walls, and use a stove heater in the massage room to grill hot dogs. In this serene setting, medical director Dr. Julia Ankinding and registered nurses Adrianne Gonzalez and Cindy Grounds help restore youth to faces through Botox injections and facials. The medspa also offers advanced services such as Fraxel laser treatments as well as more advanced med spa services such as Fraxel laser treatments and micro laser peels.

Aqua Vitae Spa is at the intersection of holistic and conventional medicines, uniting the two philosophies inside one serene space. Plastic surgeon Dr. Nicholas Sewell is the man-sized glue holding the center together, and along with a staff of dedicated practitioners—including aesthetician Isabel Sutherland—he explores surgical and nonsurgical solutions to his patients' aesthetic quandaries. The center's repertoire includes traditional skincare such as facials, peels, massages, and microdermabrasion along with more novel methods, including the decadent gold caviar facial, which infuses 24-karat gold flakes into the skin and takes its inspiration from King Midas’s favorite meal. Every time the center adopts a new therapy the staff takes care to test them on themselves before using them on clients.