Absolutely reviews the highly-renowned Hollywood Facial at Young LDN
Words Helen BrownÂ
Young LDN is the salon shaking up the beauty sphere. It’s a space created specifically with Gen Z and Millennials in mind and is split into various treatment areas including the Peel Bar, the Nail Lounge and the Men’s Grooming Lounge.
The salon is distinctly urban in its decor – there’s a lot of exposed brick and wall art – but each space has its own aesthetic. One treatment room has a ceiling painted as the sky while another has had pink paint poured in a drip effect down the walls.
I’m downstairs in the Skincare Lab for a Hollywood Peel. Otherwise known as the Spectra Carbon Peel, the treatment gets its name from its fanbase of A-Listers; Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Aniston and Kim Kardashian are all said to swear by the treatment before hitting the red carpet. It’s said to leave your skin refreshed, revitalised and red carpet-ready with no downtime. It’s a non-invasive peel that can be performed in a lunch break, but it can remove up to 80 microns of skin.
How does this compare to other treatments? My therapist, Gigi tells me that typical exfoliating treatments remove just 10 microns. Gigi starts by thoroughly cleansing my skin before applying a layer of liquid carbon over my face. This black, viscous product acts as a photo-enhancer while a state-of-the-art laser delivers targeted, high-intensity pulses of light to the skin. Highly-attracted to the carbon particles, the laser blasts away the carbon, taking with it the top layers of the epidermis and the dead skin cells, impurities and dirt that cause congestion.
It’s not the most relaxing of facials, but it’s completely pain-free. There’s a burning smell as the laser is applied (I’m assured this is the product burning off and not my face), a mild heat and a loud popping and crackling as the carbon is blasted away.
It’s over fairly quickly and immediately there’s a noticeable glow to my complexion. Even a few days later I’m told by observant friends that my skin looks noticeably clearer and blemish-free. With no recovery time, no uncomfortable sensations and immediate results, I’m sold.
