Beauty & Spas in New Orleans

Peppermint and pure sugar cane are on the menu, but they're not for eating. The peppermint fragrances a warm footbath, and the pure sugar cane acts as scrub for lips or tongues with no self-control. These indulgent ingredients appear in various services at Serenity Day Spa and Gifts, where guests can spend up to a full day relaxing and beautifying with spa packages that combine mani-pedis, facials, and massages. Body-contouring wraps detoxify while they tighten and tone skin, and specially designed facials address the common skincare concerns of men, women, and teens.

The expert technicians at SUITE Boutique use a high-energy laser that will safely pass through epidermises of all types to directly target follicles, effectively removing unwanted locks. Unlike giant lasers used to sear one's initials onto the moon, these friendly beams are comfortable, fast, and sized appropriately for human use. Customers are invited to choose one area for lazing from the following: chin ($900), upper lip ($900), both underarms ($1,800), and bikini line ($1,200). You can also upgrade by applying the Groupon's value to one of three higher-priced services—including the back ($2,400 up to $3,300, including shoulders), legs ($4,200+ for full legs)‚ and a Brazilian ($2,700)—and paying the difference. Once you've chosen a body region, you must use all six treatments for that area.

For a gentle, non-intrusive cleansing above the neck, try the ancient Egyptian practice of ear candling ($47). Ancient pyramid builders used them to remove earwax—as the Q-tip was still in its three-millennia R&D stage—and also to treat symptoms such as sinus pressure, allergies, and vertigo. Eminent physician Jessica Simpson, for example, uses them to update her Twitter feed.

About Face is a makeup boutique stocked to the rafters with quality products and a staff of experienced makeup artists. Today's deal lets you into About Face's calming environment of subtle décor and brightly hued pigments. Whether prepping for a special occasion, such as a high-school reunion or a Civil War reenactment, or simply hoping to pick up some tips on how to look your best, a professional makeup application (a $40 value) will leave your skin smooth, your pucker pinked, your cheeks flushed, and your peepers all the better to see wolves with. Put a cherry atop your face sundae with a lash application (a $15 value) for a dramatic, darkened fringe ideal for winking across great distances and protecting your eye sockets from incoming sparrows. Between About Face’s skilled facial artisans and quality products from Bare Escentuals, Smashbox, Revitalash, and more, you'll leave with a spring in your step and a glimmer in your gullet.

After honing her skills on the East Coast at the academies of Vidal Sassoon, Goldwell, Bumble and bumble, and Redken, master stylist Brenda McField found herself pulled south, to New Orleans. In addition to rejoining her husband’s family, Brenda wanted to help rebuild the city after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. In 2007, just two years after the hurricane tore through the city, she opened Mariposa Salon & Spa, a Paul Mitchell Focus salon. Since then, Brenda and her team of hair artists have styled locks for the glossy pages of New Orleans Bride magazine and CUE magazine, as well as the runways of a Guess fashion show and a Chloe Dao fashion show.

Mariposa's bilingual stylists also craft sophisticated looks for clients walking down sidewalks instead of runways. Celeb-inspired styles let clients ask for The Beyoncé and walk out with sleek, smooth, and straight locks, or The Gisele, which translates to the loose, beachy waves usually only achieved by supermodels living in sandcastles. The stylists also battle the New Orleans humidity with blow-drying techniques and GKhair hair straightening. Mariposa’s nail artists brighten fingertips with chip-resistant Shellac polish, and aestheticians craft custom facials and wax away body hair with tea-tree cream wax.

The dedicated team of stylists at The Arthur Hutton Salon shears locks into impressionable cuts and shifts shades with vivid color treatments. In addition to snipping blunt bobs and deftly razoring crew cuts, practiced hands weave braids, employ Simply Smooth keratin treatments to subdue frizz and curls, and enliven tresses with feather extensions that will convince the robins in your backyard to let you join their innermost circle. The salon also stocks hair products from brands such as Redken, Joico, and Nioxin so patrons can maintain their manes at home.