I’ve walked into countless facials hoping for something different to the treatment I was served up. That’s not to say they’ve been bad, per se, but just that facialists often have an agenda and basically look at your skin and see the problems they think you have.*
It was a first, then, when Fere – one half of mother/daughter facialist duo Fere & Hasti – looked at my skin as I reclined on her bed in Neville Hair & Beauty and asked me what I’d like her to focus on. Given that my spots were abundant, I begged her to go to town on extractions. That she did, assiduously and thoroughly making her way across my skin with various implements (my eyes were squeezed shut so I missed what was going on but there were definitely tissues, some light needling for deep congestion, and a metal machine that seemed to run over my skin pushing out blockages).
After this the usual facial thing ensued: a nice, firm massage, moisturising mask by Matis (Fere favours the brand and has worked with them for 26 years), and a bit of machine action to kill any remaining bacteria in pores (Fere hastened to add that if clients want some seriously lifting and collagen stimulation courtesy of machines, they can – equally, she has hands that were in my opinion made for holistic work).
So there you have it – another one for your little black book and, if you’d like to categorise her, here goes: Fere is the kind of facialist you go to see when you’re having a skin emergency or want advice on how to deal with a problem sensibly over the long term (no mincing of words did happen during my hour with her). She’ll make your skin look great, sure, but, more importantly, she’ll listen to you and trust me, that’s a rarity.
* This is also why I’m excessively picky about letting anyone else do my make-up – it often results in someone else pouring their ‘vision’ onto your face. A good make-up artist is always collaborative.