Mendota Heights, MN Beauty and Salons

Being camera-ready means having a smooth and flawless façade, which is why public figures including Ann Carroll, the Emmy-winning host of Vikings Weekly, and the Minnesota Vikings cheerleaders swing by Expressions MD Medical Spa and Laser Center for regular treatments.

In a minimalist office with ivory carpeting and black accents, Dr. Glenn Detlefsen and his staff polish away fine lines and resurface skin with injectables, laser treatments, photofacials, and peels, which can bring a youthful glow to visages without permanently situating them over a birthday cake with five flickering candles. The center bases treatments on results from Visia digital skin analysis, which investigates six aspects contributing to the health and appearance of clients' facial features, including the depth and frequency of wrinkles, the size of pores, and the number of freckles feigned with magic marker.

Owner Angela Bastien—an 18-year veteran of the healthcare industry—runs Begin With Your Skin Medspa with a staff that includes a board-certified plastic surgeon who graduated from Duke University and a medical aesthetician who holds a diploma from the prestigious CIDESCO aesthetics program. With this lineup of talent, the clinic can offer cosmetic services that recapture youth by way of injectable, laser, and peel. Treatments such as Botox and Juvederm fill out wrinkles in the face, and photodynamic-therapy treatments tackle acne blemishes with advanced lights and photosensitizing agents. For clients who don't want embarrassing body hair ruining their nudist wedding ceremonies, certified laser technicians attack follicles with CoolGlide Xeo lasers that render the body smooth and hairless. Since skincare is so central to the med spa's offerings—the staff performs chemical peels, microdermabrasion, and 3-D skin rejuvenation, among other skin-centric treatments—it's convenient that it also carries products for maintaining your results, including clinically tested Skinceuticals formulas.

In David Raccuglia's "Modern Man Portrait Series," impeccably dressed models of masculinity such as Jack Nicholson, Gary Oldman, and Iggy Pop pose in stark black-and-white photographs. The series hangs on the wall of the MensDept. as a reminder of the significant difference proper grooming can make to a man's appearance. It's a difference founder Kurt Kueffner spent 15 years showcasing for salon owners as he toured the country demonstrating men's haircutting techniques to fellow stylists.

When he decided it was time to put that teaching into practice, he opened MensDept., an upscale salon staffed only by stylists who have received at least 60 hours of hands-on, one-on-one training from Kurt himself. They base each cut on the client's hair type and head shape, rather than on meeting the daily mohawk quota mandated by local law. Beyond blending grays naturally into darker strands, the team can rejuvenate hair with customized color or conduct cuts at the client's office on weekdays until 3 p.m.

Fresh Face Loftique's owners Ann Slanga and Kara Huelsmann know what it takes to look good. Ms. Slanga has spent the last decade as an aesthetician, during which time she's honed her craft in spa facilities around the world, from San Francisco to Saint-Malo, France. Similarly, Ms. Huelsmann has spent more than 20 years in the industry and has worked alongside dermatologists and plastic surgeons.

These experiences guide the aestheticians at Fresh Face Loftique. Just by looking at a client's face, they know the right blend of masks, toners, and cleansers that will give skin the youthful glow of a freshly picked light bulb. The duo might also recommend slimming body wraps or a full-body exfoliation, which uses seawater crystals to scrub away dead skin. Other standout services include massages with modalities such as hot-stone therapy.

Von's Nails' clients are greeted to large smorgasbords of color polishes. On the walls, large prints display sparkly toenails and a woman with tidily shaped brows. Amid these decorative accents, skilled nail technicians administer therapeutic mani-pedis, adorn digits with elegant French tips, and exile unwanted hair with specialty waxing. The nail salon also abides by strict health guidelines, using hospital-grade solvents and pedicure baths of hot chicken noodle soup.

Hannah and Jennifer dig deep into clients’ psyches to extract their innermost style desires, much like Freud, who double majored in fashion. Regardless of the individual client’s lifestyle and preferences, they can design a new look that suits them, since they’re trained in both current trends and classic techniques. That doesn't mean they use outdated products, though. They pour out Wella Professionals, Moroccanoil, Brocato, and Kaaral products to nurture tresses. The duo activates the power of these lock elixirs to render haircuts and coloring, but also transforms customers' appearances with waxing and tinting services—something hairy cars need, too.