The Blurb:
Sandie Duncan’s personal struggle to find products suitable for her super sensitive skin inspired her to launch her own range of all-natural spa products, Tia & Anda (named after her kids) 10 years ago. Her range – a mixture of French sea salt, Fairtrade brown sugar from Malawi and sweet-scented blended essential oils – have been handmade by Sandie and tested on herself so you can be confident they’re suitable for sensitive skin. She also has over 10 years’ experience as a therapist (Jemma Kidd and Irina Abramovitch have been previous regular clients before they moved out of the area). I headed to London’s oldest spa, Porchester Spa, for her signature body scrub followed by a massage.
The Process:
After a 10-minute steam, Sandie led me to a large room with two marble slab tables. This was old school, but the table was surprisingly comfortable and the water temperature was just right. My exfoliation, using the Tia & Anda Rub Me Brown Sugar Body Polish, felt fantastic – almost like a massage in itself. This was followed by a 10-minute steam before my deep tissue/aromatherapy body massage.
With classical music (none of that annoying whale sound or pan pipes) playing in a softly lit room, Sandie used her exotic-scented Stroke Me Body Oil (ylang ylang, orange and jasmine essential oils plus sweet almond oil) during a fabulous massage. She particularly concentrated on my ‘congested’ shoulders.
The Result:
Not only did my skin feel really soft and nourished following my treatments, but I felt more relaxed and the massage, in particular, had also cleared my sinuses. I took away a bottle of Stroke Me Body Oil (£28 for 100ml) and the boyfriend has since been chased by his therapist with special price offers to try to get him back. I also have a jar of Melt Me Luscious Body Butter packed with organic shea butter among other fab moisturising ingredients (£12 for 30g; £28 for 200g) to keep my skin super soft and nourished.
