Whenever I need to kill an hour or two (and spend far more than I should) I tend to head for Harvey Nichols’ Beauty Bazaar. Occupying a good chunk of the ground level of the Edinburgh store, it’s a one stop shop for pretty much every brand you can imagine, and now there’s a new member of the gang in the form of cult Hungarian skincare brand Omorovicza.
So, to celebrate this new addition to the already stellar line-up, Harvey Nichols and Omorovicza teamed up to offer facials for £50, with the price being redeemable against products bought on the day. I’m a big fan of this type of facial, as it really lets you get a feel for a whole host of products, and having an expert really take time to look at your skin and recommend what would work best for you is pretty much priceless.
So, on Friday afternoon, I was shown up to a treatment room tucked upstairs behind the shoe section, to enjoy one of the best facials of my life! I feel awful, as I can’t remember my therapist’s name, but she had been hand-picked from Omorovicza founders, and as we discussed my skincare routine, she explained that she thought a slightly tweaked Refining and Purifying facial would be best for me and my sensitive skin, and I whole heartedly agreed.
Snuggled up in the fluffiest of white towels, I was cleansed using the brand’s iconic balm (I’ve reviewed it here) and then I got to try out the rather impressive looking Copper Peel. The product is a two-part one, with the green mask applied first, then the activator applied on top. After the gentlest of tingles, I got to enjoy an arm scrub and moisturise. By this point I was close to falling asleep thanks to the mix of pampering and Debussy music, and I was pretty much in heaven. Then, the facial went from great to amazing – the Hungarian facial massage began.
I have no idea what the therapist was doing, but for a good 10-15 minutes, she drummed her fingers all over my face in a way I have never come across before. It was incredible! Apparently it’s a modernised take on a traditional Hungarian technique, and it warms up the skin so the products use penetrate deeply and really get to work. It also works as a lymphatic drainage technique, depuffing the skin and making it just glow in general. After a good amount of drumming, my skin felt silky smooth, and reluctantly, it was time to go. I go to try out Omorovicza’s BB Cream and I have to say – it’s on my wish list. The combination of the most heavenly of facials with the skincare-filled base, meant my skin was absolutely glowing by the time I left, clutching my goodie bag of samples. In the days since my facial (in addition to dreaming about that massage technique) my skin has felt so soft and so smooth!
Thank you so much to Harvey Nichols Edinburgh and Omorovicza
