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Waterfall Spa
Who and What are Waterfall Spa?
Waterfall Spa is a stylish women-only spa in Leeds. It opened in 2005, and offers a range of over 40 spa treatments. We thought that Waterfall was perfect for busy, hard working, women who need some "me time" away from work or family responsibilities.
Waterfall Spa lunched their own range of spa products in January 2008, "allowing you to recreate the same feel good factor you experience with a Waterfall treatment in your own home".
They Say:
"As featured in all of Waterfall's unique treatments, our extensive range offers all the benefits of professional quality spa products for use in the home and as part of everyday skincare regimes. Each one of our specially designed products combines a fusion of the purest, natural ingredients to protect and nourish skin with delicate fragrances that awaken senses and give you a spiritual lift for the perfect mind, body and soul experience. Our products are suitable for all skin types and are so gentle that they can be used on "Mums-to-Be" and children."
We Say:
"We like the way that these are the same products used in Waterfall's own spa treatments. Perfect for fans of Waterfall's spa therapies who want to take a little bit of Waterfall home with them. If you like your spa goodies on the sweet-smelling and girly side, you'll like the Waterfall Spa range. Could have done with less paraben preservatives and paraffin oil, though."
Waterfall products - What have we tried?
Waterfall Hydrating Body Mist 250ml, RRP £18.00
Sweet Spy:
I have become rather partial to body oils since I discovered that they absorb much better than I had imagined. This oil was easy to apply, as the spray bottle dispensed just the right amount, and you can spray directly onto your skin instead of dripping oil through your fingers! The soft scent of the sweet almond oil was lovely, and not too overpowering. This Hydrating Body Mist would be fine to use with another perfume.
The oil left my skin silky soft without any greasiness, too. Pretty good all-in-all, but maybe some more glamorous packaging is in order to do this product justice!
Waterfall Super Hydration Seaweed eye gel 30ml, RRP £30.00
Single Spy:
I can't say I was too fond of the packaging: a white tube with a maroon lid that, despite the little heart next to the Waterfall Spa logo, didn't make me love it. Even the little gold band round the lid made me think Avon rather than La Prairie.
The gel itself is clear and aromatic rather than brown and seaweedy. As instructed via the tiny writing on the back of the tube, I pressed out "a fingertip of gel" and patted it over my upper and lower eye area. Take care not to get it in the middle eye area (the bit that actually contains your eye), as it will sting and you will cry. As I allowed the gel to absorb, there was a definite tightening in my eye area, though I am not sure this effect was visible. Without wrinkle-o-meters, it is difficult to be certain.
I would have liked more of a seaweed feel, to be honest, and more of a marine element to the packaging, to feel this gel was nourishing rather than lifting my skin. However, it does make your eyes feel brighter. The gel contains cucumber extract "to completely awaken tired eyes" and aloe vera to calm and moisturise. The ingredients list on the tube was so small, I had difficulty reading it. I am no further on in my quest for an eye gel that actually improves vision, then.
The tube also says: "Keep in the fridge for extra coolness." I did. Am I now so officially cool, I am up there with The Fonz?
Waterfall Mallow and Ginkgo Body Wash 250ml, RRP £15.00
Sensitive Spy:
First impressions were, well, not impressive. A plain white plastic tube with a lid straight out of the "Champneys burgundy" end of the colour spectrum. And they'd spelt Ginkgo wrong on the label. Second impressions weren't that great either. A pale pink body wash, strongly scented with a sweetly artificial parfum. It was a bit in-your-face, in a Superdrug type way.
However, once I'd lathered up a cautious squirt of this body wash, I was pleasantly surprised by the results. It cleansed, it didn't irritate my sensitive skin, and the parfum quickly settled down to a pleasantly mellow, warm scent that lingered all day.
More information about the active ingredients would have been nice. The packaging was rather vague. I know that mallow has skin-softening properties but isn't Ginkgo Biloba supposed to boost your memory? Maybe this wash will stop me mislaying my house keys every morning if I keep using it.
Waterfall Coconut Sugar Body Scrub 250ml, RRP £26.00
Shy Spy:
The premise of this scrub sounded pretty good -- coconut oil, shea butter, Demerara sugar and nothing much else. The natural ingredients were appealing, and the smell was almost like a lovely sweet dessert. Always a good thing in my book. On testing this for the first time, I was surprised by the consistency of the body scrub -- more akin to a thick hair wax than a gloopy cream -- but this made the scrub quite easy to apply as it didn't run off the skin easily.
The only quibble I would have is that it takes a bit of practice to find the right balance between sandpapering violence and no scrubbing at all. If you use the scrub on dry skin, it is a bit too scratchy, and if you use it on wet skin, the sugar dissolves. You need to apply the scrub to damp or "just steamed" skin to get it right, then you'll get the best of both the scrub and the rich moisturising oils.
Waterfall Perfect Peppermint Foot Scrub 200ml, RRP £14.00
Single Spy:
This peppermint foot scrub is creamier than many foot scrubs I have experienced, and the ground olive pips are a definite winner. Applied to dry skin, the cream is a treat for feet, as the olive stones exfoliate, peppermint oil cools, and moisturisers soften.
The cream hasn't made much of a dent on the hard skin on the soles of my feet yet, but it comes in a large enough tub for me to keep at it. My tootsies will smell permanently of toothpaste at this rate.
A good one to try if you're after party feet.
Waterfall Gentle Body Polish 250ml, RRP £18.00
Sensitive Spy:
I swear that this is a tub of pink Boots hair gel circa 1985. It's pale pink and wobbly like 1980s hair gel, and it has the sort of brisk aroma I associate with those Big Hair years.
However, Waterfall have added a generous serving of tiny exfoliating "micro particles" to this gloop and are telling me that it's a gentle body scrub and so I must believe them. My sensitive skin can react badly to over-zealous scrubbing so I enjoyed the gentle buffing effect of this product. Just scrubby enough without being aggressive. However, I did find the gel base too harsh for my sensitive hide. It dried my skin and left it quite irritated, so I won't be using this one again. Perhaps I'll use the rest of the pot for a Bananarama hair-do this weekend...
Where can I try Waterfall Spa products?
You can try Waterfall Spa products at these spas:
Where can I buy Waterfall products?
See also:
* Spa Spy Review of Waterfall Spa
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