Ok so all of you know that I am a local at the Topanga Mall, and I can’t WAIT until the Neiman-Marcus store opens September 5 (that’s right around the corner!!). I’ve seen a new Jimmy Choo store in the works, and a new Tiffany’s store located right on the corner outside of the new Neiman’s which has a cute corner-like appeal and is right across the way from Salvator Ferragamo. It’s kind of weird that if you go down that corrider of the mall you will end up at Sears but whatev. Who goes down that corridor anyway?

Anyway, My favorite time of the year is around the corner…I’ve seen Bath and Body Works prepping to put the pumpkin scented candles on the shelves and before you know it, Fall will be in full swing - WOOT!

Here are the lists of Fall events at the Topanga Nordstrom - but don’t forget for all you Ventura County fashionistas that the NEW Nordstrom’s is going to be having a grand opening at The Thousand Oaks Mall too this fall! That will have to be it’s own post later. Ok here we go with August’s Events in Woodland Hills:

Clarins Skin Care 40 Minute Complementary Facial
August 12-14, 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM
818.884.7900 Cosmetics

Dr. Zein Obagi Personal Appearance
Friday, August 15, 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday, August 16, 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Space is limited, so book your appointment today.
818.884.7900
Cosmetics

MAC Cult of Cherry Collection Launch
August 22-24
818.884.7900
Cosmetics

Technorati Tags Clarins, fall fashion 2008, MAC Cult of Cherry collection, nordstrom, obagi

Ok so if you live anywhere in the LA area and still haven’t stopped by to visit PinkBerry, you just aren’t really an Angelino. period. Again with the multi-tasking snack options, beauty starts from the inside out and at 30-something, Coldstone just isn’t worth it…right? Not so fast glamgirl… Why not superfood a tasty snack? Here’s the lowdown so your not leaving the trendy dessert hot spot believing everything you read in the tabloids:

PinkBerry Lowdown: from pinkberry.com
Serving size is 1 ounce. Keep in mind that a medium has 8.5 oz so let’s say approx 210 calories plus whatever toppings you get - ( I always go for fruit so let’s give or take 80 calories for that - they do have candy toppings & other not too great choices so keep that in mind if you are counting calories). At that rate, I’m getting close to 300 calories for a medium dessert, plus close to 40 grams of sugar and 8 grams of protein (based on pinkberry’s nutritional guide which states 5 grams of sugar per ounce & 1 gram of protein).

ColdStone Lowdown: based on Coldstone.com’s website
Vanilla Light Ice Cream - medium size will run you approx 227 calories, 45 grams of sugar & 11 grams of protein. Add your toppings, which you can get a yummy combo of peanuts & fresh fruit to mix in your antioxidants & add to the fiber content and even if you are nowhere near a pinkberry, you can always get a small size and do even better for your bod than a medium pinkberry!

Technorati Tags Directory, Everything-Else, Product-Reviews, superfoods

I think I have finally begun to successfully process the entire experience from our last Girl’s Weekend Out to the Glen Ivy for a day of rest, girltime & relaxation. The best way to sum up the vast sections of the grounds, I think that we should break it up and allow everyone to kind of talk about what thier most memorable exeperiences where, and make it a few entries with tag words as the naviagion of finding the info you may want to read. For instance, I think that the tag split up should be : Glen Ivy shop, Glen Ivy pools, Glen Ivy mudbath, Glen Ivy grotto, Glen Ivy Shower & Steam rooms, eateries, service and treatment areas. It truley is a spa-themed disneyland with each “treatment’ having a specialty…as you will soon find out with the next couple of weeks with everyone writing in thier personal experiences. More later!!

Technorati Tags AromaTherapy, best-spa-in-california, day-spa, destination-spa, Directory, girl-day, girl-time, glen_ivy, grotto-spa-treatment, mudbath, spa, Spa Treatments, spa-mineral-bath, Spa-reView, SpaBlog, top-destination-spa

Spa Destinations :Highly Recommended by Spa-View.com
Bella Mani - Ventura - Fav! - review coming soon!
Summer Breeze - Camarillo -Fav! for airbrush tan
Flirt Salon - Burbank - Fav!
Saint’s Studio - Santa Monica - Fav!
Salon Pasion - Camarillo - Fav!
Beauty Gallery - Chatsworth - Fav! review coming soon!
Valley View Cosmetics Center - MediSpa Fav!
Massage Envy - Camarillo - Fav!
NailSpaLA - Chatsworth- Fav!
Valley Day Spa - Korean Style Spa in Reseda - Fav!
Touch Therapy Massage - Encino
Aromalistic Day Spa - Augora Hills
Burke Williams Spa - Sherman Oaks - Fav!
Nail Forum - Porter Ranch - Fav!
Rudy’s Barbershop in Silverlake
Spa Sanctuary - Granada Hills
Spa Escape - Nordstrom
Ultimate Skin Spa - Calabasas
Janna K Spa - Oxnard
MGM Spa - Las Vegas
Bliss Spa - NYC

stay tuned while we figure out a nice comprehensive method of streamlining all of the entries into this directory list. If you would like to contribute to spa-view PLEASE do so by going to the contact & contribute page and post your submission. one of us will probably be back to your within 24 hour window. thanks….let’s get good!

Technorati Tags Directory, los-angeles-area-spa-directory

I finally had a saturday free of mom-duty…so off I went to Spa Sanctuary in Granada Hills I had meaning to visit this particular place for over a year, or rather, ever since I was getting their snail-mail spam. And I am SO glad I went! It sits on the corner of a grocery store market with super easy parking and a nice little get away right in the valley. There’s a salon which takes up half of the space, and the spa area is actually behind closed doors so it truly is quiet.

Although getting a facial is probably my least favorite spa experience, I DO realize that it probably is one of the more important ones, especially as I get (just a little bit) older. My esthetician was cute and bubbly and did a fabulous job …and without any product pushing or pressure buying like the chick at Burke Williams put me through…so yea. Spa Sanctuary kicks ass.

Oh yea, and did I mention that they have a small boutique adjacent to the reception area selling “Designer Inspired” handbags…? Funny!

Check them out in the Valley woot woot!

Spa Sanctuary
18000 Chatsworth Street
Granada Hills, CA 91344

Technorati Tags AromaTherapy, Directory, granada-hills-spa, Spa Treatments, Spa-reView, spa-sanctuary-granada-hills, SpaLinks

Just an FYI for any of you looking for super great massage therapist referrals in the Camarillo area: Massage Envy has the best deals & the best therapists there are Gianna and Albert. These are two people whom I am SO glad are in my life!!!

Technorati Tags Directory, Faves, Massage, Spa-reView

Ok. I think I have waited almost a year for this review, and in the search for the perfect pedicure, I have mixed feelings about Spa Escape Nordstrom. On a high note, I was able to mix a pedi, a super good lunch, some shopping, some boutique visiting and free parking - so thusfar it seems like a good situation. Here is the breakdown:

Raw Earth Spa Pedicure (60 minutes) $65 (not including 20% gratuity)
A collection of earth-derived pedicure products filled with natural ingredients rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and essential oils to moisturize, soothe and polish the skin.

The real deal: the pedicurist was super sweet, the spa itself reminded me of some swanky bar one might visit on the west side of Hollywood, and very sanitary and clean utilities & products, i.e. the basin was actually a stainless steel kitchen sink (I kid you not) which was built into the lower part of the club-arranged seating, a really nice exfoliator & individually wrapped parafin treatments (the wax is melted into individualized disposable plastic foot-sock thingies) and an ok massage. Here is where it gets pretty out of control - I left there paying a clean $80 for what I would overall describe as an average pedicure. I mean I guess it was ok, but between me you and a thousand or so clicks, I would have been probably much more happy going to a neighborhood nailshop and getting a $15 pedi and even added a ‘flower’ to celebrate the discounted pricing.

Technorati Tags Directory, feet, nordstrom, Spa Treatments, Spa-reView

Ok so this visit to the Woodland Hill’s Nordstrom Anastasia Boutique saved my eyebrows!! A few weeks ago, I had purchased the big whoop-di-do stencils from Anastasia Beverly Hills and actually butchered my eyebrows to infinity. I figured that since the Anastasia stencils led me to this massacre, it was only right to go right back to the source to try to salvage my 1.5 brow that I now had. And omg she did! I now am the proud owner of two FABULOUS perfect Kim Kardashian-esque eyebrows, even tho O says that they look like Frida Khalo’s because he is used to seeing me with uber-thin brows methinks. I am going to take before and after pics to share the glory. Thanks SO much to Carly at the Anastasia Boutique at Nordstroms’ for being my salvation. I do suggest that if any of you attempt to ‘do’ your brows with the DIY method - totally book an appointment at either the actual spa, or your local boutique (nordstroms) and fork out the $25 bucks for the actual shaping, grooming, wax, application & tutorial with one of these skilled ladies before you end up with 1.5 brow like I did. word up.

Technorati Tags brows, Directory, DIY, Everything-Hair, Home Spa, Spa-reView, waxing

I wanted to make this whole review a big heart surrounded by glitter, but that doesn’t really translate to prose.

Rudy’s in Silverlake - they have a bunch of other locations in LA, Seattle, and Portland - is a giant warehouse space where you walk in and for $26 (+ $5 for a wash) whoever’s got an open chair is who chops your cabeza. They do color, too. Rudy’s is hipster ground zero where pretty much anything goes; I am never the only one in there with unnaturally colored hair, and there is always somebody getting their fauxhawk topiaried. So many folks work here that it’s a great way to test out stylists. The pricetag may be cheap, but the products (Bumble + Bumble) and workmanship are quality. I have been getting my hairs did chez Rudy the whole time I’ve been living in LA…nearly four years…and every time, I’ve gotten a decent cut, though I’ve been unable to commit to a new stylist while secretly mourning the loss of my regular (Emily Howard of Moxie in San Francisco. HOLLA! She’s still there, but now I’m here. *sniff*).

Things have changed, though, from the decent to the EXTRA AWESOME, ever since I found my keppe getting clipped by Shawn. (I hope I’m spelling her name correctly.) Here is where the hearts and glitter are important. I plopped myself in her chair mumbling need a change, whatever looks okay with my glasses, just something exciting…and she saw my long-snoozing inner rocker chick longing to once again fly free and she gave me a fantastic cut that I can’t even describe because I don’t have the specialized hairsnippers’ vocabulary but trust me when I say it’s art, right here on my head, cutely showing off my dark blue and bleached chunks to maximum capacity.

Eight weeks later I went back on a day I knew she’d be there and she did it again.

As an added bonus to her scissor skills, Shawn is smart and funny and easygoing and fun to chit-chat with about crazy city life and gnarly retail customers and taking little kids to Disneyland, and she explained what she was doing with the blowdryer and styling products so I could attempt to reproduce the magic at home.

Hearts! Glitter! Jazz Hands!

Rudy’s Barbershop

http://rudysbarbershop.com

4451 W. Sunset Blvd., LA 90029

323-661-6535

Technorati Tags chaia, Directory, Everything-Hair, hair, silverlake, Spa-reView

Located at “The Palms” which actually is the retail center for out of date “Outlets” (not to be confused with Camarillo’s Premium Outlets) The Massage Place is best described as the “Supercuts’ of massage centers. I don’t know this for sure, but I totally think the therapists there are students who are studying massage or recently graduated, which isn’t totally a bad thing, but after two visits and 1 referral, the entire experience was just sort of ‘beginner-like”. Still, at around $45 per visit, it still is less than 50% than you would pay at a more upscale day spa. Sometimes I am more concerned with the bottom dollar than the ambiance, so I will definitely keep this number in the PDA.

The Massage Place
2100 Outlet Center Dr # 360
Oxnard, CA 93036
(805) 485-0568

Technorati Tags Directory, discount-massage, Massage, Spa-reView

I have gotten sooooo many emails about shared negative Janna K experiences - somuchso that I didn’t want to edit them and delete actual names, so if you don’t see your comment posted, that is probably why. I think that it’s great that we can use a blog board for open and honest feedback. I personally have had more than a couple bad experiences with JannaK so I would give my overall advice of simply not going!

Technorati Tags Directory, dont-do-it, Everything-Hair, honest_feedback, janna-k, oxnard, Spa Treatments, Spa-reView

Ok so does anyone know the downlow on what is going on with the Total Woman gym franchise? The last time I checked, there were locations in Camarillo, Oxnard & Ventura, but after thinking I would join so that I can go to various locations, I see these pretty bad articles reporting that the Ventura County facilities were sold and members were still contractually obligated to pay thier annual dues.

Technorati Tags camarillo, Directory, Fitness, oxnard, total-woman-day-spa-gym, wellness

I got this message on myspace and thought it a fabulous idea, so share and share alike!

Hey SylviaG,
We noticed that you live in the Sherman Oaks area and we would like to invite you to join us with a free Yoga class or our 14 Days of Unlimited Yoga for $25.00 offer. Just print this email and bring it with you to:

Rising Lotus Yoga
13357 Ventura Blvd
Sherman Oaks, CA 91423

Use it for yourself or send this to your friends!

This offer is only good for 1st time visitors. We hope to see you and have a great day!

Best,
Rising Lotus Yoga
818-990-0282

Technorati Tags Coupon Codes, Directory, Fitness, yoga

I’m a pretty happy camper right now - I just subscribed to Massage Envy’s 6 month massage plan. Check it out - it’s $59.00 a month, which is good towards a 1 hour massage, and then every massage after that is discounted member pricing at $39.00 for a 1 hour or $21.00 for a 30 minute massage. Can you believe it?? And…check this out - the facilities are actually super nice, with heated beds and lovely aromatic scented massage lotion. Fabulous!

Technorati Tags AromaTherapy, Directory, Massage, Spa-reView

To my fellow Californians and touristas of Los Angeles…

I received this info. from an email regarding a lovely spa in LA on Robertson Blvd. The menu sounds delish and offers a wide variety in services when it comes to your “everyday run of the mill” manis and pedis. The spa even features a signature homemade organic scrub which contains Indian sugar crystals-snazzy! From mint soaks, walnut scrubs, and to even a microdermabrasion treatment…your hands and feet will feel well pampered. If not, it’s a perfect excuse to stop by the candy store, the MAC pro-store and treat yourself to some goodies-which is down the street! Enjoy:

Bella of the Ball Little things in life cheer us up: black and white cookies, new strappy wedges, shiny manicures. Little things can also piss us off: dried out biscuits, excruciating heels, bloody cuticles. So when in need of a little pick-me-up, it’s important to indulge properly. Bellacures has long been a safe haven for luxury-seekers. Now the hot manicure spot has expanded their service menu for hands and feet to include an Intense Moisture treatment with rich butter cream, Exfoliating Walnut Scrub, Microdermabrasion Mani/Pedi, Dry Hand & Nail Therapy with hot oil, plus Winter, Minty Clean, Softer Soles and Callus Repair Pedicures. Bellacures is even offering treatments with their new homemade organic scrub with Indian sugar crystals, Dead Sea salt and grape seed oils, available for purchase at the salon. $9-$55, 239 N. Robertson Blvd., (310) 550-5822, bellacures.com

PS…syl, this may help your quest in searching for the perfect “pedi-cure”

HAPPY beautifying everyone-Chastity

Technorati Tags Directory, Manicure, Spa-reView