Winter at the Spa

Q: Hey Nadine! Tell me about your time at Mohonk.

A: I’ve just celebrated my nine years at Mohonk, my anniversary is on Halloween day, so I’ll never forget it. I’ve been an esthetician for around eight years, and it’s been a fun experience. I actually had no idea this place even existed; I live on the other side of the river, so I had no idea Mohonk existed until I needed to find a job. It’s been cool, I’ve met really awesome friends and acquaintances working here and it feels like a family.

Q: I heard we have a new Winter Wellness Facial debuting this season. Can you tell me a bit about that?

A: Yeah, so, we wanted to coincide the Winter Wellness Facial with the Seasonal Herbal Wrap, which is like a winter berry vibe. It’s a lot of different hydrating ingredients, also brightening; most of the ingredients help with barrier function to anything that’s sensitizing during the wintertime, Things like hot showers that we love, lack of humidity because of having the forced hot air on; This facial is really going to help with that. This treatment is going to really help with more aspects of pulling in more moisture, keeping the moisture in longer, and having a lot of different antioxidants from the different berries that can help protect the skin throughout the day.

Q: What are some of the most common skin concerns that people face in winter, and how would you address them?

A: The number one complaint is typically dryness, whether it be chronic dehydration because people are just naturally dry or seasonal dryness where they get more dehydration on top of the skin. Other times, people get increasingly sensitive. Especially with the lack of humidity, things that can be more irritating can cause eczema flares and psoriasis. That’s where focusing on the barrier function and going to the source of healing the skin comes in.

Q: How does the colder weather affect the skin’s barrier, and what steps should individuals take to protect it?

A: Having things like probiotics and things that go deeper into the skin, like hyaluronic acid and peptides, really help to not only moisturize the skin, but go deeper and lock in moisture for longer periods of time to make the skin nice and happy. People mostly complain about dullness, so it’s a fine line of finding a good exfoliation without further drying the skin out. More low-level exfoliants will give that needed glow to the skin and help with that dull texture.

Q: The Winter can be a challenging time for supporting the body’s immunity. How does this facial promote this season’s wellness incentive?

A: With microcirculation, it increases the lymphatic flow. Internally, it can help with kickstarting that lymphatic system. It’s going to flush out excess fluid and bring more oxygenated blood to the skin’s surface, which helps that recovery response to be stimulated in the skin too. That can definitely help with immunity boosting too, because we do a little bit of contrast therapy with that. After we increase that micro-circulation and you get a little bit of flushing from the cupping, we bring in the cooling globes. This is so it creates your own inner glow to come out too!

Q: What are some of your favorite winter skincare products to boost hydration and firmness?

A: My favorite ones would have to be the Kombucha Microbiome Essence. For people who are in their 20s, I would say the Strawberry Hydrator. If people are starting in their 30s, I really like the Marine Flower Peptide Concentrate. I really love the Monoi Age Corrective Night Cream, as far as Eminence goes. If I were to pick anything from the Swissline, it would be their Essential Serum and their Luxe Lift Rich Cream. The different amino acids and stem cells and things like that really replenish the skin for this time of year.