Par Exsalonce Salon & Day Spa

Spa Girl Olga made her way to Par Exsalonce for a head to toe nail transformation. Here's her glowing report!

I have a bad case of dry skin which I generally like to refer to as alligatoritis (it’s scaly, it’s itchy, it’s no fun at all!), so when Donna Parr, owner of the super luxurious Par Exsalonce Salon and Spa, suggested I get The Golden Touch treatment and pedicure I was all ears.

I am by no means new to Par Exsalonce, I’ve been there many times to see the super talented senior stylist Alfonso, who will soon be known as the co-owner of the brand new Par Exsalonce opening in at the City Scape in Phoenix. I was however new to the Spa section of the salon and I was itching (literally) to check it out.

Carol, a super friendly massage and body treatment therapist, came out to grab me for my Golden Touch treatment. She led me into a super plush locker room which contained a dual sink, bathroom, and shower. She then handed me a comfy robe and slippers, explaining that I would need to strip down, put on the robe and meet her in the hallway.

Once I was snuggled up nicely in my robe I opened the locker room door and found Carol waiting patiently for me. Carol then led me down the lush hallway to the Vichy room.

The Vichy room looked like a mix between a massage room and a very oversized, elaborate shower. It had a table in the middle with a long pole containing six shower heads stretching out from the end wall and over the table. The walls were very DC Ranch with natural stone tile complimented by tan paint on the ceiling that created a very relaxing atmosphere.

Carol was very professional about the “naked factor,” she held up a towel which shielded my bare body from her eyes while I unrobed and climbed on top of the treatment table. Carol then draped the towel over me and carefully replaced the large towel with two smaller towels to cover my naughty bits. This is where the fun began. Carol switched on the shower heads, covering my body with a soft stream of warm water. I love taking showers and I can’t think of a better feeling than lying on a comfy bed and having warm water rain over your body. I drifted off into oblivion.

All of the products used in the Golden Touch treatment contain a hint of gold, Carol told me that with advanced notice you could order Silver or Copper Touch treatment as well (this comes in handy for brides who have to match their body to their wedding theme).

The steps of the treatment were as follows:

1. Exfoliation with a golden apricot scrub
2. Rinse with cold water (to counteract the warm water)
3. Golden re-mineralizing gel wrap
4. Rinse
5. Application of golden touch lotion, bronzer oil and golden powder

The results were stunning, not only did I look like a sun goddess I also felt smooth, silky and relaxed.
After the treatment Carol whisked me back into the locker room where to my great pleasure I found all of the essentials needed to keep my day going: combs, Bumble and Bumble hair spray, deodorant, and even mouthwash!

I got dressed, used the mouthwash to kill the dragon in my mouth, fixed my hair and walked out ready for my next treatment, The Golden Touch Pedicure. Sandy, who I came to love and adore, met me outside the locker room and led me to the pedicure room, which in my past visits to Par I also had never had the pleasure of experiencing. To put it mildly I was amazed! The pedicure room had a long couch that stretched from wall to wall, complete with comfy throw pillows and all the perks. In front of this fabulous couch sat foot baths (which I later learned are really called Sanitubs because they don’t have tubes and are completely sanitary). The distance from me to the next person was enough to squeeze in at least three other people, which allowed for a nice amount of personal bubble space as well as a bit of privacy.

To preface this experience I have to share a bit of personal history. I am one of those odd people who likes my toe nails short, and that’s putting it mildly. I hack off my toenails the day before I’m scheduled for a pedicure to make sure they’re short enough, butchering my toes in the process. This day was no exception. The night before I butchered my toes to the point of bleeding with the big toe nail on my left foot angled at in very odd fashion which I had no hope of repairing (because it was too short).

Generally when I go in for a pedicure I have to endure a lecture which starts off with “why you cut your nail so short! This no good. Honey you give me nothing to work with!”. Although I despise this lecture I’ve grown accustomed to it through the years and accept it as a part of my toe beatification process.

To my bewilderment Sandy’s reaction to my butchered toes was far from what I’ve experienced in the past “I like my nails short too” she said “I always get lectures from the other nail techs, but hey, they hurt when they’re long!”. Oh my God, she understood. It was like I was seeing the light. It was at that exact moment that we bonded.

We bantered back and forth like school girls while Sandy created her masterpiece. I found out along the way that Sandy has been a nail tech for over 16 years, so I was definitely in good hands (not that I ever doubted her mad skills). I was so relaxed with my feet soaking in softening soap which gave off the fresh aroma of Artemisia flower that I almost checked out and forgot where I was.

Coming back to reality was far from a bad thing, let’s face it, I was in an elite pedicure room with a gorgeous mountain view, surrounded by comfy pillows and being worked on by a master of the trade, how much better could this get? Well it did get better, way better! Sandy paid meticulous attention to my feet, cutting my cuticles and fixing my busted toe nails (which to my great surprise she actually managed to do). She also used a stainless steel foot file with disposable pads to soften those rough areas that you get when wearing flip flops too often (guilty as charged).

I was then pampered with the Golden scrub (which made my legs feel nice and tingly) proceeded with a golden re-mineralizing gel wrap and a self heating marine mask. When I began thinking that this couldn’t get any better, Sandy gave me a nice, long foot and leg massage with golden lotion, topping it off with golden bronzer and gold powder so that my legs matched the rest of my body. She finished off the pedicure with super cute, hot pink polish and white polka dots.

I have to say, this was by far the BEST pedicure experience I have ever had. Sandy, you’ve not seen the last of me. I will hobble in with my busted nails the next change I get. I actually find myself looking forward to needing a pedicure just so I can go back and see Sandy. Now that’s awesome with a capitol A!

I left Par feeling refreshed, relaxed, pampered, golden, and most importantly, allegatoritis and busted toe nail free! I would certainly suggest these treatments to anyone in the mood for feeling and looking like a goddess. I was on Cloud 9 for the remainder of the day!