Taking ten weeks to shed your old skin – and bad habits
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I’m running late for an appointment at Jindii Eco Spa.
As I zoom up the Australian National Botanic Gardens driveway, my body is tense and I don’t need to look in the mirror to imagine the grim frown on my face.
Yet as I trot through the entry to the gardens and pass over a small valley of tree ferns, I catch a waft of rainforest-fresh air and start to relax.
I go deeper into the gardens, past more greenery and water and finally arrive at Jindii—already considerably less stressed by simply walking through nature. I arrive sans frown.
When Bianca Prichard decided to rebrand and relocate her then well-established business Floressence Day Spa in Braddon, she knew the hustle and bustle of Lonsdale Street was not conducive to the day spa experience.
She had an open mind about where to relocate, but decided to think out of the box when she wrote to Parks Australia to ask if she could set up a day spa on site at the Australian National Botanic Gardens.
They got back to her with a happy ‘yes’. That was more than four years ago. Now it feels like Jindii is as much a part of the established flora as the giant trees which shade it.
The botanical theme runs strong once you walk through the wooden doors, and everything from the essential oils to the relaxation music evokes a connection to an Australian bushland setting.
I’m here to experience the introduction to Jindii’s premier winter spa program—the 10-week Skin Fitness Program.
While they say that summer bodies are made in winter, it’s just as apt to apply that theory to skin.
The program aims to help participants unveil a healthier, more beautiful skin by the time summer rolls around again.
But it goes further than the epidermis. The program looks at lifestyle, prioritising self-care and encourages forming new skin-friendly habits to promote an inner glow.
“We’ve devised a way to instil new habits that promote skin health, as well as giving women the tools to put in place a simple but sustainable regime at home,” says Bianca
This includes state-of-art LED Light Therapy which participants can undertake in their own time at home, thanks to each one receiving a portable LightStim machine.
But first—the facial.
At the start of the program, it’s important to discuss existing skin issues, general health and wellbeing and areas of concern.
I’ll be frank and say on this particular day I was feeling a little ripped off that I needed to be concerned about breakouts on my chin while simultaneously freaking out about the advance of wrinkles…
My therapist Tori works out a treatment plan which targets different areas of my face and I slide onto a heated bed while she gets to work.
A mist of daily essential vitamins (smells like heaven) rains down on me, and using Alpha-H Products, Tori does a double cleanse using an oil-based and a gel cleanser.
She then applies two masks—one a cult beauty product I’ve read about in magazines—the Alpha-H Liquid Gold Glycolic Acid. It tingles and I like it.
While my old skin cells are getting enzymatically dissolved, Tori performs a head, hand and arm massage. I’m like putty in her hands. Then it is time for a moisturising mask with a clay section reserved for my blotchy chin. And a foot massage. It really doesn’t get much better.
The most miraculous bit seems to be the LED light mask I go under, which, while sounding über-high tech, actually fits right in with Jindii’s eco ethos and works on the same basis as the plants surrounding us.
Just as leaves absorb sunlight into cellular building blocks, LightStim produces red and infrared light to kickstart my skin cells into a regeneration cycle.
I can’t say I truly understand how it works, but I know that when I finally emerge from my cocoon, my skin is clearer, more even in tone (even my chin!) and feels plumper. The results are immediate and despite the acid mask, there is no irritation or redness.
Participants on the 10-week program will be sent home with their own LightStim machine, the Alpha-H products they require and, in much the same way you sign up to a gym program, ongoing tracking goals and contact from Jindii.
At the six-week mark, it is time to come back in for a second round of facials and to further assess treatment.
Along the way, Bianca has devised a gentle and supportive guide that puts skincare into a broader well-being framework. Are you drinking enough water (there’s an app to sign up to if you are one of those who never finds the time) and are you eating the foods that lead to glowing skin?
“Women are busy, they don’t have time for elaborate skincare regimes, but we gently remind them of small habits they can embed which will make a difference to how they look and how they feel.”
The hand-held LightStim can be used at any time of day or night, while reading, watching TV or depending on how coordinated you are, doing other things with your free hand.
At the end of the 10 weeks there should be noticeable changes to skin, and a sense of achievement in completing the program.
Then it’s time—once you have liberally applied your sunscreen—to enjoy the onset of warmer weather and unveil all that beautiful work.
the essentials
What: Jindii Eco Spa 10-Week Skin Fitness Program ($649)
Where: Australian National Botanic Gardens, Clunies Ross Street, Acton
When: Monday – Saturday 8 am-5 pm, open ’til 8 pm on Thursdays and closed Sundays.
Phone: 02 6257 8777
Web: jindii.com.au
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