San Jose Spa and Massage

After working at other beauty establishments, aesthetician Angelica McCoy wanted to create a space where she could both pamper her guests and pay homage to her Mexican heritage. She has accomplished both of those goals at La Choza Day Spa. As she told KRON 4 in 2009, La Choza—which translates to "the little hut"—is meant to recreate the ambience of a cozy, south-of-the-border village. In the reception area, red Spanish-tile accents and paintings of cacti and beachside scenes promote an atmosphere of rustic tranquility.

Besides offering facials, massages, nail services, and body treatments individually, McCoy and her team bundle them into spa packages; for example, the romance package for two includes spa pedicures and candlelit side-by-side massages on rose-petal-dappled treatment beds. And there are treatments for all ages here—together with her daughter, McCoy designed a menu of teen services specifically designed to combat issues such as stress or acne caused by thinking about algebra too much.

When Dr. Minh Le practiced as a medical doctor, he treated thousands of in-need patients for a mere $25 per visit. Nowadays, his focus has shifted towards cosmetic treatments, but his practice still prioritizes accessibility for all budgets. At Vienna Skin Clinic, he and his team use cost-effective, state-of-the-art treatments to help skin look its best, deploying Elos-powered skin rejuvenation and laser hair removal. Alternatively, visitors can opt for wrinkle-smoothing injectables, such as Botox and Restylane. During their noninvasive treatments, patients can relax by listening to music or gazing out the window at scenic views of Silicon Valley’s laptop gardens.

A community-concept salon, Lipstick & Bullets Beauty Bar is home to a network of salon professionals who perform high-end cut and color services. These stylists specialize in the latest color and texturizing trends and can smooth and strengthen hair with japanese thermal straightening treatments and keratin blowouts. In addition, they provide a specialty line of hair extensions, X-tensions, which lengthen hair more effectively than that time you spiked your mousse with Miracle-Gro.

While most dreams last until an alarm buzzes or someone pulls your blankets off, Mariola Javorski’s dream of running her own spa has lasted 22 years. As owner of Amazing Face Spa European Skin Care Studio, she leads a team of beauty professionals who use natural products from Europe to improve the skin’s appearance and health with facials, microdermabrasion, and body wraps for men and women. Nail services keep keratin well manicured and massages knead out tension, chronic aches, and stubborn knots that refuse to untie even for master magicians.

Master aesthetician Suzette Christine doesn’t believe in a one-size-fits-all approach to skincare. Instead, she believes in beginning each service with a careful skin analysis to determine the correct treatment and products for each client. All of her facials are powered by professional DermaQuest products, which can be tailored to dry, aging, sensitive, or diamond-encrusted skin. And, since she has a background in clinical skincare, Suzette can enhance the brightening power of any facial by adding a light-, medium-, or high-intensity chemical peel.

Scattered throughout the peninsula, Natalie Salon Inc.'s five locations each house a team of specialists who pamper and beautify guests during nail, waxing, hair, and facial services. Staffers make over bodies from head to toe, rejuvenating faces with facials and treating dull talons to manicures and pedicures. They hone in on hair all over the body, waxing away unwanted fur, arranging lackluster strands into stylish coiffures, and tinting eyebrows to match recently dyed locks or recently dry-cleaned banana suits.