Mission Bend, TX Beauty and Salons

At Amerejuve, brand-name cosmetic treatments take precedence over surgical enhancements. Radio frequencies and light energy are the center’s weapons of choice against the effects of aging, encouraging collagen production in IPL photofacials and discouraging dimpled skin during VelaShape anticellulite treatments. Injections take one of two approaches to ridding faces of creases: Botox protein solutions block signals to the nerves that cause frown lines to form, and Restylane and Juvéderm gels puff up dermal tissue so that clients don’t have to keep their skin taut by living inside a wind tunnel.

Amerejuve boasts eight Houston-area locations, including a recently opened location on South Voss Road, and Kingswood and The Woodlands locations opened over the summer.

The Medispa Institute is led by not one, but two professionals who are experts in their fields: medical director Dr. Ban A. Vu and aesthetic director Bich Ngoc Nguyen. Dr. Vu has been practicing cosmetic surgery in the Houston area for more than 20 years and specializes in procedures for the Asian face and body.

The duo helms a team rounded out by highly trained laser technicians who are all members of the American Society of Laser Medicine and Surgery, including Certified Medical Laser Safety Operator Mai Pham. Pham and her fellow staffers are particularly skilled in the treatment of Asian and ethnic skin and offer services ranging from permanent makeup and facials to blue-light therapy. They can address virtually any skin issue with laser technology, including unwanted hair, veins, or age spots—all within a clean, white-on-white facility.

At Metropolitan Laser Institute, highly trained technicians elicit the healing power of laser technology during innovative cosmetic treatments to deliver aesthetically pleasing results. Patients hoping to enhance external surfaces can opt for any number of laser-led procedures, from restorative photofacials and wrinkle reduction to vein therapy and tattoo removal. The institute's specialists are also equipped to administer Botox injections and teeth-whitening treatments. A comfortable, professional atmosphere accompanies each visit, enabling patients to relax without having to store favorite comfort foods in their cheeks.

The steady-handed professionals at Lash Studio enhance the natural beauty of their clients with innovative, high-quality products. The studio’s signature eyelash-extension treatments add length and thickness to everyday lashes using handmade JB Lashes. Lightweight, high-gloss, and synthetic by design, JB Lashes add both length and curl. When they’re not prettifying eyelashes, Lash Studio’s staff is available for hair-removal services such as threading, waxing, and elective duct taping.

North Cypress Family Practice & Laser Center’s resident physician Dr. Amrit Thandi has experienced the evolution of lasers over the past decade by serving as a Luminary Advisor for Alma Lasers Inc.⎯the brand she still relies on to tighten slack skin, remove hair, and rejuvenate damaged complexions. The technology helps her maintain a practice that avoids invasive procedures, although she can perform minor surgeries at her office or refer patients to other specialists within the North Cypress Medical Center.

A graduate of Dayanand Medical College in Punjab, India, Dr. Thandi completed her residency in family practice at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Today, she practices general medicine and performs cosmetic enhancements with equal care aided by an aesthetician and a medical assistant. Dr. Thandi meets with each of her patients and has a hand in every procedure, from cosmetic injections to preventative care exams. The two aspects of the practice seem to balance out. Gentle body-sculpting treatments can be incorporated into a weight management regime, and up-to-date medical acuity can address dermatological concerns such as psoriasis or an embarrassing tattoo of the Pythagorean theorem.

While taking a walk, it's not unusual for residents of Tucson to see others out for a stroll, although it might be unusual to see someone stooping to collect leaves from a low-lying plant. But that's exactly what staff members at Natural Way Wellness Spa do to create their seasonal herbal wraps and infusions. They select their local gatherings based on their "wide working knowledge of herbology," says the owner, who supplements her own herbal findings with trips to local herb stores and enchanted forests.

"Tucson [is] such a wonderful community that cares about sustainable foods, that cares about [being green]," the owner says. "Our mission, really, is to bring affordable, safe, and natural services to Tucson." Massage therapists and aestheticians employ organic American-made products to cleanse complexions or detoxify bodies during wraps. Treatments are outlined on a whimsical chalkboard menu, which presides over the spa's comfortable atmosphere with ceilings of exposed wooden beams and pastel walls.