I was thinking of Angie this afternoon as I embarked on the first facial of my life. (I tried it partly because Angie has mentioned previously that she swears by them, and partly because I got a Groupon recently for a nearby salon.)

It was a great experience - incredibly relaxing, pain-free, and my skin is just glowing. We did some treatments with essential oils and a liquid & steam exfoliator, followed by an extremely gentle manual extraction process on my blocked pores, a short treatment around my eye area to minimize puffiness, and a brief massage of my neck and shoulder area where I get very tender and sore after work. Stress-free and relaxing.
I also learned a few things from the aesthetician who worked with me: apparently I may be over-drying my skin and exfoliating a bit too roughly, causing some minimal broken capillaries, and at this time of year I need to really moisturize a bit more. She gave me some more effective suggestions to treat my problem areas (large pores that are prone to getting blocked or breakouts.) I came home with a couple new products to try out: an herbal clay mask and botanical exfoliant, both by Aveda.

Depending on how my skin reacts in the next month or so, I'm pretty sure I will return for another facial, probably before summer. I just wanted to mention my very positive experience in case any of you have contemplated getting a facial & haven't done so. (For all I know, I'm probably the only one left on the forum who has never tried a facial before.) If any of you in the Seattle area would like a recommendation for the place I went to, feel free to shoot me a private message.

This was much better than my first and only pedicure a few years back. (I learned the hard way that my feet are way too ticklish and sensitive to go through that process ever again!)