Double cleanse, steam, manual extractions where they are needed, a mask chosen on the day, and fifteen minutes of genuine massage. Everything by hand, adjusted continuously to what your skin is doing under the therapist's fingers.
Expect some pinkness. Steam and manual extraction bring blood to the surface, and most people are mildly flushed for two to four hours afterwards. That is normal and it is exactly why we ask you to book five to seven days before an event rather than the day before.
Please tell us if you are taking or have recently finished oral isotretinoin, if you have had a laser treatment, peel or injectable in the last two weeks, if you have an active cold sore, sunburn or broken skin on the face, or if you are pregnant. Most of these change the treatment rather than cancel it, but we need to know at booking.
On This Page
Everything Done By Hand, Adjusted As It Goes
A classic facial is the oldest treatment on any salon menu and it is still the most adaptable. There is no device deciding the depth or the pressure. A trained pair of hands reads what your skin is doing minute by minute and changes what happens next, which is something no machine protocol can do.
That adaptability is why it remains the better treatment for two specific situations. First, stubborn congestion that has been sitting in the pore for months, which needs patient manual work rather than suction. Second, a compromised barrier, where the answer is nourishment and gentleness rather than more exfoliation.
It is also the appointment people book when they want the hour to actually feel like something. Fifteen minutes of massage is not a garnish here, it is a fixed part of the treatment, and a fair number of clients tell us it is the main reason they came.
A machine follows a protocol. A pair of hands follows your skin.
The sequence matters as much as the products. Two of these stages are the ones most often cut short elsewhere, and they are the two that decide the result.
An oil or balm cleanse to dissolve makeup, sun protection and the day's grime. This one is not cleaning your skin, it is clearing the way so the next one can.
A water based cleanse that now reaches actual skin. Almost everybody at home does one cleanse and wonders why their products underperform. This is the reason.
Only now, on properly clean skin, can congestion, dehydration, barrier damage and sensitivity be told apart. Several of them look identical from a normal distance.
Enzyme for sensitive skin, acid for congestion, gentle manual for texture. Chosen at this point from what the lamp showed, never decided in advance.
Warm vapour softens hardened sebum so it will release under light pressure. Extracting without this stage is how skin gets bruised and how scarring starts.
Cotton wrapped fingers, even pressure from beneath, and a hard stop at ten minutes. If something will not release, it is left for next time rather than forced today.
Fifteen minutes of face, neck and shoulder work while the skin settles, then a mask chosen from what extraction revealed rather than from your booking name.
Layered in the right order and finished with sun protection before you stand up. This stage is never skipped, whatever time the appointment is running to.
The same hands and the same standards. What changes is how much time there is for extraction and massage, which is what the price difference actually buys.
Double cleanse, exfoliation, a short mask and moisturiser. No steam, no extractions, no massage. It is a genuine reset for tired skin in thirty minutes, and it is honest about what it leaves out.
All eight stages, with up to ten minutes of manual extraction and a full fifteen minute massage. This is the standard appointment and the one most people should book first.
A longer appointment with extended steam, up to twenty minutes of extraction and high frequency afterwards to calm the area. For congestion that has been there for months and has not shifted.
The classic protocol applied to the back and shoulders, where congestion is common, awkward to reach and almost impossible to treat yourself. Booked most often before weddings, holidays and anything backless. From $105.
Adapted for shaving irritation, ingrown hairs and thicker skin texture, with extraction time weighted toward the nose and jawline. Same protocol, different emphasis. From $95.
The stage most often shortened when a salon is running late, and the one clients notice missing more than any other. Ours is timed and it does not move.
Light, directional strokes that move fluid toward the drainage points at the jaw and neck. This is what reduces morning puffiness and it is why faces look sharper afterwards.
Deeper pressure into the masseter and temples, where most people carry clenching tension without realising. Frequently the part that produces an audible sigh.
Included, not an upsell. Tension in the shoulders pulls on the neck, which pulls on the face, and treating the face alone ignores where the problem is coming from.
The massage medium is a treatment oil or serum rather than a slip product, so this stage is delivering ingredients as well as feeling good.
Not from your booking name and not before the appointment. What your skin shows after cleansing, exfoliation and extraction is different from what it showed on arrival, and the mask should respond to that.
For oily and congested skin after a heavy extraction. Draws out what remains and tightens the appearance of pores. Applied to the congested zones only rather than the whole face.
For dehydrated skin, and far more often the right answer than people expect. Very oily skin is frequently dehydrated at the same time, and clay alone would make that worse.
For redness, reactivity and skin that has had too many actives thrown at it. Chosen alongside a lighter exfoliation, and the mask we reach for most on new clients.
For dullness and uneven tone, working gently on the surface. Effective across a course rather than in one appointment, and only alongside daily sun protection.
Six situations where this is genuinely the better treatment, and honest notes on how much it will do.
Blackheads that have been sitting for months and do not shift with suction. Patient manual work with softened skin gets further, and the deep cleansing option gives it twenty minutes.
Stinging, tightness and reacting to old favourites. The exfoliation is dialled right down, the mask is calming and the massage supports circulation. Doing less is the treatment here.
Fifteen minutes of jaw, temple and shoulder work does something no device protocol can. Plenty of clients book this appointment for that reason first and their skin second.
Lymphatic drainage moves fluid toward the jaw and neck. The effect is immediate and lasts a day or two, which makes the timing before an event worth planning.
The gentlest introduction and the cheapest way to find out what your skin actually needs. The consultation alone tells most people something they did not know.
Nourishing rather than stripping, with a hydrating mask and treatment oil worked in during the massage. Considerably kinder than an aggressive resurfacing treatment.
Not Sure Which To Book
The question we are asked most. They are not better and worse versions of each other, they solve different problems.
| Point Of Difference | Classic Facial | Hydrafacial |
|---|---|---|
| Method | Steam and manual technique | Vacuum tip, machine assisted |
| Extractions | Manual, more thorough on stubborn areas | Suction, gentler and faster |
| Massage | Fifteen minutes, face, neck and shoulders | Brief |
| Adaptability | Changed continuously as skin responds | Set protocol with adjustable settings |
| Redness After | Mild, two to four hours | Little to none |
| Makeup Same Day | Better to wait until the evening | Yes |
| Before An Event | Five to seven days ahead | Two to three days ahead |
| Barrier Repair | The stronger option | Good with a calming booster |
| From | $85 | $175 |
What hands do that a machine cannot, and what we add on top of the technique.
Pressure, exfoliation strength and mask are all decided during the appointment based on what your skin is doing, not set in advance by a booking name.
A person knows when to stop. Ten minutes maximum, and anything that will not release is left for next time rather than forced until it bruises.
Fifteen minutes, not whatever is left over. If the diary is running behind you are told at the start rather than quietly given ten.
For a damaged barrier or very reactive skin, this is the treatment that does least harm while still doing something useful. Doing less is often the right answer.
Under half the price of a hydrafacial. The cheapest sensible way to find out what your skin actually needs before committing to anything.
The analysis is free, sun protection goes on before you leave, and the home plan is written down. Nothing appears as an extra at the desk.
Six things clients describe about a facial they had somewhere else, before they describe their skin.
Persistent squeezing on congestion that was never going to release without more softening. It bruises, it can scar, and it leaves clients red for two days for very little gain.
Here InsteadSteam first, even pressure from beneath, and a hard stop at ten minutes. What will not release is left for next time.Straight in with a water based cleanser over a full face of makeup and sun protection. Everything after that is happening through a layer of residue.
Here InsteadAn oil cleanse to dissolve, then a second cleanse that actually reaches skin. Both are standard.Five minutes instead of fifteen because the diary is behind. Clients rarely complain about it at the time. They simply never rebook, and nobody connects the two.
Here InsteadTimed at fifteen minutes. If we are running late you are told at the start of your appointment, not at the end.Chosen from the booking name before anyone has looked at the skin. So a dehydrated combination face gets clay across the whole thing and leaves tighter than it arrived.
Here InsteadChosen at the basin from what extraction revealed, and multi masked across different zones where that is correct.Freshly exfoliated skin sent out with nothing on it. It is the fastest way to turn a good treatment into a pigmentation problem, and it is extremely common.
Here InsteadApplied before you stand up, every time, and included in the price.A first facial the day before a wedding. Extraction brings blood to the surface and can bring congestion up with it, and that timing is precisely when it will show.
Here InsteadWe will move your booking rather than take it. Five to seven days ahead, and never a first ever facial that week.Where this treatment falls short, and when something else is the better answer.
Mild flushing for two to four hours after steam and extraction. Not dramatic, but it is why makeup is better left until the evening and why event timing matters.
Never unbearable, and it is over in minutes, but the nose is genuinely tender for some people. Say so at the time and the pressure is reduced immediately.
The glow is immediate, the change in congestion and texture is not. Four to six treatments across four months is what shifts those, and a single appointment will not.
Cystic acne, rosacea flares, melasma and scarring all need a doctor. We will say so at the consultation rather than sell you a course that was never going to work.
Starting prices including the free consultation, the analysis, sun protection and a written home plan. Add ons are quoted before your treatment begins, never afterwards.
| Treatment | From | Time | Extraction Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skin Consultation And Analysis | Free | 20 minutes | None |
| Express Facial | $55 | 30 minutes | None |
| Classic Facial | $85 | 60 to 75 minutes | Up to 10 minutes |
| Gentleman's Facial | $95 | 60 minutes | Up to 10 minutes |
| Back Facial | $105 | 60 minutes | Up to 15 minutes |
| Deep Cleansing Facial | $110 | 75 minutes | Up to 20 minutes |
| LED Light Therapy Add On | $40 | Adds 20 minutes | Not applicable |
| Dermaplaning Add On | $45 | Adds 20 minutes | Not applicable |
Seven things that genuinely change what we can do in the hour.
Six rules. Most of what a facial achieves is either protected or thrown away in the three days afterwards.
Give freshly extracted skin an evening to close up. Makeup the same day is not a disaster, but skin recovers noticeably faster without it.
Not just on sunny days. Freshly exfoliated skin pigments far more easily, and UV now is what turns a cleared breakout into a mark lasting months.
No retinol, acids, vitamin C or scrubs. Your skin has had its exfoliation for the week, and adding more is how a good facial becomes a reaction.
No sauna, steam room, hot yoga or heavy gym session for twenty four hours. Recently opened pores plus heat and sweat leads straight back to congestion.
Anything that surfaces over the next few days will settle if left alone and will scar if it is not. This is the hardest rule and the most important one.
Cleanser, moisturiser, sun protection. That is the entire routine for seven days. Simplicity lets the treatment settle rather than compete with your shelf.
You can request a therapist by name when you book. If they are unavailable on your date we will tell you rather than quietly reassign you.
Amara runs the skincare side of the salon and carries out every facial. She is unusually disciplined about the ten minute extraction limit, which sounds like a small thing until you have been treated by somebody who is not. She is also the person most likely to tell you to stop using three of your products for a month, which fixes more faces than anything she could sell you.
Tia founded Erothots seven years ago and is fully qualified and insured. She does not carry out facials herself, but she set the rules the skincare team works to: a free consultation with no obligation, a massage that is timed rather than trimmed, sun protection before anyone leaves, and no package selling at the desk. If something is not right, she wants to hear it directly.
An eight stage hands on treatment. Double cleanse, analysis under magnification, exfoliation, steam, manual extractions, fifteen minutes of massage, a mask chosen at the basin, then serum, barrier support and sun protection. Everything is done by hand and adjusted as your skin responds.
The consultation is free. An express facial starts at $55, a classic facial at $85, a gentleman's facial at $95, a back facial at $105 and a deep cleansing facial at $110. LED and dermaplaning add ons are $40 and $45. Sun protection and a written home plan are included in every treatment.
Thirty minutes for express, sixty to seventy five for a classic facial and seventy five for deep cleansing. Add twenty minutes for the free consultation if it is your first visit.
Uncomfortable rather than painful, and over in minutes. The nose is the tender area for most people. Because the skin is steamed first, congestion releases under light pressure rather than being forced. Say the word at any point and the pressure is reduced immediately.
Mildly, for around two to four hours. Steam and extraction bring blood to the surface, which is normal and settles on its own. It is why we suggest leaving makeup until the evening and booking five to seven days before an event.
Every four to six weeks, which follows the skin's natural renewal cycle. For congestion or texture, four to six treatments spaced four weeks apart will do considerably more than the same money spent on one appointment.
Five to seven days, and never a first ever facial in the same week. Redness settles within hours, but extraction can bring congestion that was already forming up to the surface over the following days.
It is often the best choice for sensitive skin. The exfoliation is dialled right down, extractions are frequently skipped entirely, and the mask is calming. For a damaged barrier, doing less is genuinely the treatment.
Neither, they solve different problems. Classic facial for thorough manual extraction, barrier repair and a restful hour, at under half the price. Hydrafacial for visible results with no downtime when you cannot afford to look treated tomorrow. The free consultation will tell you which your skin needs today.
No. If your barrier is compromised, your skin is very reactive, or there is inflammation present, extraction would do more harm than good and it is skipped. You still get the full treatment and the full massage, with the time spent on what your skin actually needs.
In most cases yes, with certain actives left out and the treatment adjusted. Tell us at booking rather than on the day so the protocol can be planned properly. Anything you are unsure about is a conversation for you and your doctor rather than for us.
Yes, and it is timed. It covers lymphatic drainage, jaw and temple work, and neck and shoulders. If the diary is running behind you will be told at the start of your appointment rather than quietly given ten minutes instead.
Tell us what your skin is doing, what you are currently using and whether you have a date in mind. The consultation is free, takes twenty minutes and comes with a written plan whether or not you book a treatment.
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