Santa Barbara, CA Spa and Massage

Spa Escape lives up to its name six days a week. And not only because of its well-hidden location—it’s tucked behind a nondescript, two-story home—but also because of the relaxing skin and body treatments it provides. In a private treatment room filled with flickering candles, clients can be found resting atop memory-foam tables as trained therapists work out aches and pains with more than eight massage modalities and Epicuren Discovery lotions. Aestheticians also rely on Epicuren's enzyme-rich products to enhance treatments, such as the pumpkin-apple-spice peel, which exfoliates dead skin cells with an acidic formula and attracts scarecrows with an aromatic smell. Skilled cosmetologists also enhance appearances through traditional make-up applications.

At Treat, aestheticians employ the skincare boutique's large assortment of all-natural and difficult-to-find products to rejuvenate clients' bodies and minds. To combat signs of aging, aestheticians nourish skin during all-natural facials using formulas from a choice of five different lines, including Darphin, Éminence Organic Skin Care, and Arcona. When patrons enter the store for waxing, tinting services, or a relaxing Swedish massage, they are greeted with scents such as the lily and jasmine home fragrances by kai, each reminiscent of a morning walk through the garden or a leisurely childhood as a Cabbage Patch Kid.

At her eponymous spa, skincare expert Colleen Elizabeth takes a holistic approach to beauty, favoring long-term solutions over one-time treatments. Her recommendations during a complimentary consultation can range from minor changes to an at-home skincare regimen to a series of medical-grade services at the spa. Either way, clients will be in good hands. Colleen Elizabeth personally selects all of her spa's skincare products from top-quality lines such as GloMinerals and Ayur-Medic, and many others are custom-made, like the stamps doctors use to give each newborn baby its fingerprints. In-spa services include advanced treatments such as electrotherapy facials and full-body chemical peels, as well as standard facials, plus makeup, waxing, and massages. Relaxing therapies can come to you during on-location spa parties that allow clients to enjoy staffers' expertise in their own living rooms.

For the past seven years, The B Boutique's owner, Jamie, has been traveling to Brazil in search of bikinis. Lately, she's been kicking through the sands and surf of Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana and Ipanema beaches or hanging around in São Paulo's Santos district. In these hot spots of South American beach fashion, she scopes out the latest trends, taking the best with her to hang from knotted driftwood racks at her boutique in Isla Vista. These colorful, skimpy bikinis bridge the gap between The B Boutique's retail and spa dimensions—in order to strut the bikinis with confidence, one must have a smooth, stubble-free body.

In private rooms, Jamie removes hair with a "no-scream cream" that minimizes discomfort for very sensitive skin that always cries at the end of Bambi. To give clients a midsummer glow, she mists them with Bronze Biologic's tanning solution—an organic formula derived from beet and sugar-cane extract and aloe vera. To round out her spa menu, Jamie spruces up fingers and toes with luxurious mani-pedis, submerging feet in aromatic whirlpool baths and massaging hands before lacquering nails with professional polishes.

Aside from being ingested by a toddler at some point, mud, clay, ink, and 24-karat gold don’t have much else in common⎯except for helping skin look better. Spa Botanica uses these unlikely ingredients, along with MD Care skincare products, during its roster of facials, body treatments, and henna-tattoo services. A 24-karat gold facial uses a mask made of the rare metal to instantly lift the skin and help prevent wrinkles from settling in. An infrared detoxifying body wrap detoxifies from head to toe, helps reduce the appearance of cellulite, and improves circulation to the skin. Ornate designs temporarily decorate the skin with henna art that can last up to three weeks.

A certified prenatal massage therapist working towards getting her massage doula license, Jodi Emdy earned her massage-therapy license in 2007 and remains an enthusiastic practitioner dedicated to massage as a means of holistic wellness. Her repertoire of five modalities expressly links mental and physical health, including reflexology and prenatal massages that assuage stress to help regulate hormone levels.