At the end of the session, she gave me a verbal prescription for Shani-approved products to use at home: IS Clinical Hydra-Cool Serum, $90 and IS Clinical Pro-Heal Serum Advance+, $148, Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Extra Strength Daily Peel, $150, her own Shani Darden Texture Reform Gentle Resurfacing Serum, $95 (a cult-favorite product that people are ob-sessed with) and Garnier SkinActive Super Purifying Charcoal Facial Mask, $2.49. “It’s a great way to detox the skin,” she told me.
As I got dressed in the adjacent Spanish-tiled bathroom, I briefly stressed when I realized I had forgotten my concealer. (I usually stash one in my purse to cover up that inevitable post-facial redness.) But when I looked in the mirror, I realized I really didn’t need it. I wasn’t red at all, and my skin looked glowy and—dare I say it—good. I actually felt okay without my armor of concealer, so I put on my shades and stepped out into the L.A. sunshine.
My phone buzzed with a text the next morning and when I looked down, I realized it was Shani checking up on my skin. (She does this with all of her clients, apparently. Not trying to claim that I’m going to be showing up sandwiched between Shani and Jessica on Instagram anytime soon!)
I texted back the truth: “It feels so plump and amazing!” And it did. My skin was so plump, in fact, that I wondered if I had previously been walking around in a constant state of dehydration. (Probably.)
So…I think I’m a facial person now? I know, I know—that’s kind of like a person who doesn’t eat sushi trying it at the fanciest, most expensive sushi restaurant in town and then declaring they’re suddenly a sushi person. But whether or not I’m only a facial person after having the Rolls Royce of facials, I feel like I’ve seen the (red and blue LED) light. I’m going to try to maintain my results by getting at least semi-regular treatments from someone closer to home, and I’m going to use my IS Clinical, Dr. Gross and Garnier products religiously. And next time I’m in L.A., I’m going to try to drum up the nerve to see if I can schedule another treatment with Shani.
I’ve got her number now, after all.
Image via Alyssa Hertzig
