The Five Minute Facial

Intro to Self

As mentioned in a previous post, I had always planned to make more content for us in 2025. But with the recent turns in DC (and world) events, it seeming to me like it’s even more the moment to do so. Recently AOC was answering some questions to followers about what to do in this moment if you are an introvert…”lean into your talents” is what she said. My talents are getting in the trenches with you and your skin, giving you a safe place to heal, and telling a story. I hope that’s of value to you…and if not at least it might give some context to who is behind our posting. Does it represent the office as a whole? I’m sure it doesn’t, but at least it makes clear the spirit of what we do that binds us together.

To this end seems like a good opportunity to introduce myself to any followers…I don’t think I ever have. I grew up in St Michael’s/Easton MD, which is a small town. I was a big theater nerd, and had acne. I moved to LA as a young adult to pursue a life in the arts and my dreams, and had acne. I sought all kinds of treatment from derms for that acne…nothing really worked. I struggled with it for over a decade before getting fully fed up and attempting to fix it myself. I did some research and managed to make progress…but years of frying and damaging my skin trying to kill the acne left me with really severe pigmentation scarring. And a lot of knowledge, mostly about what *not to do.

After LA I moved to London, in an attempt to try to move on with my life. LA was not my town…London was. At some point I did some real soul searching about what the next phase of my life was to hold, and the result was to study esthetics. LA and the entertainment industry is brutal, and I wanted something science based, a trade, and solitary. My own experience with acne had been its own education, and became a foundation to my formal training. Immediately after school I opened a solo practice in medical esthetics, and ran it for five years.

At a certain point it became clear to me it was time to move back to the US, to be closer to family. I chose DC as it was the closest city to home and wasn’t New York. I underestimated DC…I didn’t really have high hopes for a life here. To my surprise I found incredible communities, intelligent and caring people…most of whom were under immense stress trying to make our world better and had skin that was on fire due to their type A personalities and overly aggresive skin treatments. I could relate, as I had lived a lifetime of perfectionism and aggressive skin treatments.

Moving to DC was a time of personal healing for me, and opened my mind to new ways of practicing esthetics. And so I shifted my practice to better suit the skin I met here, and began to explore working from a holistic perspective. It struck a chord, and within a year I was hiring staff. Within two years I had a team of six. I didn’t aspire to have a business this size, I just rolled with the opportunities handed to me. The Universe has a plan, and it’s not often mine lol. I’ve learned to trust that.

When I opened my business in London fifteen years ago it didn’t have a name. It was just my name and then the descriptor of what I was hoping to do, “Bespoke Aesthetics”. The idea was really simple, I wanted to give people the kind of care I was looking for but could never find. A single person who was fully accountable, flexible, knowledgeable. Who knew many different facets of esthetics and could weave them together anew at every service. Prior to training in esthetics I was worried it would bore me, as I fancied myself an artist. Instead I found esthetics to be a place where I could exercise endless creativity, as well as innovative problem solving with science. Most of all I wanted to create a place that felt like home for the person visiting. Like “I am going to visit my friend who happens to know a lot about skin and she’s going to help me to fix mine”. A place with warmth. And I wanted a place of healing not only for you, but for me. Because through helping you heal I get to heal as well.

And life is good. I am a single mother by choice, having used a donor to have my boy. I am proud member of DC’s incredible recovery community…I mention this as it informs everything I do in the office and my philosophy of healing. If you have been with the business awhile you know that I thankfully attract many wonderful people to work with me, clients and estheticians alike. And most of all I love what I do. When you walk through our doors you are given the tools to heal yourself, I’m just with you on the ride. I wish you could sit where I sit and see what I see, because it’s beautiful. I want you to see yourself the way I see you.

Going forward I’m going to be writing and sharing more…a few years ago I wrote about burn out and people seemed to really connect with that. Connection is the most healing thing there is I think, so if I have to reveal a bit more to facilliate it in this moment I don’t mind. There is at times I think a misconception that I am some perfect skin, kale eating yoga doing (ok I love yoga) zen robot. The reality is I am very imperfect, often tired, I make mistakes…but it’s worth it if what I learn is useful to you.

Bottom line is I - we - want you to be well. So if you need that, know it is here for you. I can’t control what happens outside our walls but when you are in it you are safe, and seen. You are a part of our community, all I ask is that we pay it forward.

Lash & Brow, Plus Hair Reduction!

You asked, and we listened.

New on the menu, lash and brow services with Paulina and Permanent Hair Reduction for the face and body with Kathy and Mikayla!

Paulina, in addition to being a gifted therapist for your skin, is also a very experienced lash and brow artist!  She will be performing lash lift and tint, brow shape and tint, and brow lamination.  You can even add a Glow and Go facial with her for $180, for a truly comprehensive service.

And then, in preparation for the spring and summer...we have added hair reduction services for the face and body!  Kathy and Mikayla will be performing treatment, with pricing starting from $120 for an add on.  What areas can you treat?  Any!  Underarms, bikini line (even brazilian) upper lip...you name it.

How to book?  You can book a standalone service online, or ask your therapist to book an add on to your regular facial with us and they can get it all done in one visit.  In fact, the add ons are not just for hair, but for spot treatment for pigment and vascular issues as well.  Ask your therapist if you are a candidate and she will help you book.

We will also be adding "Laser Days"...one Saturday per month each of them will be focusing on these services to get you in and out the door quickly.  This is the perfect opportunity to get spot treatment for skin issues, and squeak in a few sessions of hair reduction.  To book look under "Laser Promo Days", space is limited!

Books are open!  I'm so excited to expand our services, so we can care for you even more thoroughly.  See you in the office!

We are at peak revision season. Have you done the work yet?

What is that?  Think of it like a housecleaning.  A deep purge of old belongings, a deep clean in corners and crevices.  As we age, we accumulate damage in our skin.  This is both externally (environmental, like UV damage) or internal (inflammation, stress, dna damage).  It builds up over time, altering the way we age.

So once at least once a year, preferably when we are not outside in the sun, is the time to go deep and start to clear all that away.  To reverse it.  That's the work.

How do we reverse it?  Well we can't stop time.  But our bodies are designed to heal.  It wants to!  If we remove the things that damage it and give it a catalyst to heal it will reverse that damage to the best of it's ability.

What is the catalyst to healing?  Ironically it's typically a controlled wound of some sort.  A wound to heal a wound, really.  But to wound to the skin to set off that cascade of healing is not enough...we must support the healing process through proper nutrition and rest.  We kick off these miracle healing capabilities in your skin through something like IPL, Genesis, Microneedling or a Peel.  The trick is to walk the line of challenging your skin to a place it can recover from!  Then we support with homecare and Enzymes.

Think of it like a workout.  When we workout we challenge the body, our muscles and our respiratory system.  The body in response heals and makes us stronger.

It's a great metaphor.  And if you do the same workout all the time your body will adapt to it and cease to grow.  A useful hack therefor is to try different workouts...shake it up!  Then you can challenge the body to grow in new ways.  But once again, balance is key...to push just enough to incite change without wounding ourselves.

So the work is those deeper treatments...do two sessions of IPL minimum per year and to clear pigment and allow dna repair to occur.  Studies show those who get IPL every year age in a vastly superior way having done that yearly house cleaning!

Or do needling for collagen induction...every year our collagen production declines.  Needling (and Green Sea Peel, which is "liquid microneedling") is hands down the best treatment to combat that.  So though it's not "fun" and requires delayed gratification, I happily do it as I know it's money in the bank when it comes to my thinning skin.  And the pain and downtime are so low, it's an absolute winner.

Or do a series of peels.  Micropeel, Biorepeel, Green Sea Peel.  Micropeel best for texture and pigment, Biorepeel great for aging and those who need no pain or downtime, Green Sea Peel great for all of it!  Our peels are very targeted to give you the most result with the least discomfort or downtime.  And they have an incredible price point for those on a budget.

We are in late January...revision season last until Memorial Day in my eyes.  I encourage you to take this opportunity to dig deep and make strides in your skin before then...and then we can coast through the summer months.

To this end I've put together an offer:  Book a course of 3 peels with Mikayla, Paulina or Kathy to be performed on a Tuesday Wednesday or Thursday and receive a FREE homecare support kit of a $300 value.  Products by DMK, you get a full size Betagel, Foamy Lift mask kit, mini Melanotech Drops, Milk Cleanser and Solar Damage Gel.  The perfect products to help you get the most out of your hard work.  You can even mix and match your peel sessions and get one of each if you like!  

This is an incredible value as the package is priced at $720.  Please be aware that our prices go up end of February, so this is a great opportunity to lock in treatment at our 2024 price!  All treatment must be completed within 90 days to be redeemed.

You may purchase your package through the website, or ask you esthetician about it when you see her!  We will run sale of this offer through end of February.

Commit to yourself and  your progress this winter, and give yourself the gift of beautiful skin with us.  We love to do the work with you.

Time for that Mad Dash to the Finish Line

Let the holiday shopping begin.

I don’t know about you, but this year I’m going to make an effort to shop smaller.  It just means more… Right? I also want to support our clients in this, and to thank you for your continued business.

With this in mind I have designed our Black Friday and Small Business Saturday offers this year.  That’s right!

For the first time ever I will be hosting a Small Business Saturday event here in the office, from 12 to 2pm on Nov 30. Just me, nibbles, drinks. . . helping you to purchase gifts for loved ones or yourself, and doing short consults to find you the optimal laser treatment package!

RESTORATIVE EYE TREATMENT

What’s on offer:

Gifts with Product Purchases…

• BUY $300 in DMK products, and get a gift set worth $150! Includes mini Deep Pore or Milk cleanser, Herb & Mineral Mist, Melanotech Drops, Seba E, Super Serum, Biogen C or AcuCreme, head and wristbands and travel bag.

• Exclusive DMK Holiday kits: Bright Eyes Kit for $160 (DMK Eye Tone, Super Serum, occlusive under eye patch sleep mask) and Foamy Lift Kit for $180 (Foamy Lift Kit, Milk Cleanser, Seba E, Herb & Mineral Mist, Betagel).

• BUY $250 in SkinBetter products and choose one of two gifts ($135 Value): Option A: Travel size Alpharet Overnight (15 ml), travel size Trio Moisturizer (15 ml), 3 Alpharet Peel Pads, headband and travel bag OR Option B: Mini Cleansing Gel (2 oz), mini Alpharet Overnight Cream (5 ml), mini Alpharet Overnight Body Cream (5 ml), mini Trio Moisturizer (5 ml), mini Interfuse Eye Treatment (5 ml) plus a headband and travel bag.

• BUY $350 in SkinBetter products and receive a gift set valued at $180:
Gift set includes travel size Alpharet Overnight Cream (15 ml), travel size Trio (15 ml), and 3 Alpharet Peel Pads OR travel size Alpharet Overnight Cream (15 ml), travel size Alto Advanced Serum (15 ml).

• BUY $150/$175 in Osmosis Product get a mini home facial gift set ($60 value): Osmosis gift set includes mini Purify (5 ml), mini Tropical Mango Mask (5 ml), mini Rescue MD (5 ml), mini Quench (5 ml), & Pure Lip Balm.

Gift Cards…

• PURCHASE a GIFT CARD with a value of $300 or more and GET A FREE Deluxe mini home facial set from Osmosis (value $120). Gift includes mini Purify, mini Lift Away, mini Enrich, mini Tropical Mango Mask, mini Polish MD, mini Rescue MD, mini Remedy MD, and mini Stemfactor MD, (all mini's are 5ml).

And then as requested...We will be

OFFERING PACKAGES on LASER & NEEDLING!  Buy a course of treatments, and you will receive a gift worth $300 in supporting homecare.

 Packages on offer…

• Three sessions of IPL,  $1350

• Three sessions of Genesis, $1200

• Three sessions of Microneedling, $1200

• Two sessions of Secret RF Microneedling, $1300


PLUS YOUR GIFT:  The VERY BEST supports for ANY REVISION-focused treatment are DMK Betagel, Foamy Lift Mask Kit and Melanotech Drops.Betagel boosts your skin’s immunity and ability to repair, making it vital for proper healing.  Melanotech drops work to help reduce and prevent the appearance of red and brown pigmentation.  AND, DMK's Foamy Lift Mask is the homecare version of our beloved DMK Enzyme Mask Treatment.  This mask speeds healing immeasurably and visibly improves results.

Been wanting to try laser with us, but not sure what to book? That’s what the open house Saturday November 30th is for! Drop by, let me take a look and we will help you get scheduled.  Or, if you prefer to book online go ahead...your free gift can be collected at the time of your first session.

Black Friday offers open Nov 29, and they will run through Dec 2, Cyber Monday.  Our store will have limited in-person hours on Black Friday (open for product pick up 10am-2pm) to give our staff some well-deserved time off.  

Product orders can be placed at orders@adrienneshostak.com.  

Stay tuned, we are looking forward to helping you put your best face forward in 2025!

Missing Sculptural FaceLift with Gabi? Good news!

Andrea honing her NeoLifting Technique!

Andrea has recently trained in NeoLifting massage, which is extremely similar.  Neolifting is a worldwide famous technique for lifting and defining the face through using gloved hands to massage inside the mouth and jaw. You've never felt anything like it! The ultimate holistic facial treatment, promoting deep relaxation on both a physical and emotional level. Ninety minutes of hands-on treatment. Double cleanse, exfoliation and extractions, serums and mask, Forty-five minutes of massage for chest, neck and shoulders, face and jaw. 

Andrea is new to the technique, so for the rest of the month of October we are offering $50 off, for a price of $240.  Use code NEOLIFTING in you booking notes to receive your discount upon checkout.  Don't miss this, you will be hooked!

With Love,

Adrienne

Your Skin Bootcamp has Arrived!

Did you notice? We’ve quietly brought in a new brand specifically for acne…FaceReality.

In fact we’ve carried a few key pieces of the line for years, but recently we’ve decided to fully commit to learning the philosophy and treatments. The success rate for Facereality and acne is unparelled…they boast a 90% clearance success rate!

How does it work? Biweekly bootcamp sessions with extractions, high frequency to kill bacteria, and a tca peel in varying strength. Short and sweet! Session are typically 30 to 45 min hands on, and priced at $180. Eight sessions over a 4 month period is recommended.

Homecare is equally well priced, which was so key to me in bringing this line in. Many people who have acne are young…I was one once! And the products need to be affordable as they are so necessary to success. Products range in price from $30 to $60! How incredible is that??

To get started book an Initial bootcamp session with consult, so we can have extra time to get you started. From there your therapist will do your first treatment, and get the necessary homecare in your hands.

If you have peristant acne…this is our gift to you. Straight forward, affordable acne care…that really works.

Let’s Talk About Green Sea Peel

If you have been with us for awhile you have probably noticed...we have a pretty extensive

menu. Really I can’t help myself. If I see it and I see results and like the technology I gotta have it. So

really...we have so many different ways to acheive your goals in the office that we can really

tailor your experience to your taste. There are so many ways to give you the results you want,

the art it is in doing it to fit your budget, your timeline, and your temperment.

Enter: Green Sea Peel. Full disclosure, I’m in love with it. I’ve been doing a bit of a dive

recently into Korean skincare methods, Green Sea Peel is the first additon in that vein but

definitely not the last!

Also called “Liquid Microneedling”, Green Sea Peel drives tiny spicules (sea sponge

exoskeletons! 800,00 ppm!) into the skin. This stimulates collagen, exfoliates, pulls pigment...

all while delivering a polypharmacy of vitamins and nutrients into the skin, which helps improve

numerous concerns. It is a low downtime treatment that is natural, safe for all skin tones and

helps address texture, pigmentation, aging and acne from the inside out.

How does it compare to microneedling? More channels, less redness. Better for acne...great

for texture and scarring! Needling is also great for these things but I’d use it for deeper

scarring and for thinner skin. As mentioned very little actual peeling from this! Pain level...

medium lol. Not great but not horrible, it feels kind of like having your skin rubbed with sand

paper. There is a prickly sensation when applying...the solution is rubbed into your skin for

about 5 minutes, until dry. It sits for 20 minutes, then we wipe away. You feel that prickly

feeling for about 24 hours as the spicules dissolve and create that collagen induction.

Once that is done...magic begins! Pores are smaller, acne wanes, skin glows!

Everyone who gets itwants it again...including myself. I have even started

doing it on my body to combat crepey skin.

So yes feels weird, works wonderfully! And a great price point, at $240 this is a steal really!

Homecare wise I’d recommend Betagel and Melanotech drops to go with it to enhance results.

Get to know the Green Sea Peel, its an easy tool for revision that we are loving and hope you

Summer is Here

Here we are, officially in the dog days of summer.
Pools, barbeques, travel, beaches.

But what treatments are summer safe? The short answer is … all of them!

If you wear sunscreen diligently, we can still perform revision-based treatments. That being said, there are common issues that come up in the summer, such as dehydrated skin from tanning and sunburns (even if you wear SPF) and congestion (from wearing SPF).

To this end I’ve put together a limited summer menu of treatments to help address common concerns of the season. Each includes a 20-minute full facial massage. Because I get it … in the summer we just want to feel good.

I’m putting this menu on special for purchase in July and August. Buy two facials as a set for $400 and save $60! Available with Kathy, Andrea and Gabi for weekday appointments only, both treatments need to be completed by Sept. 21, 2024.

Summer Menu

• Summer Quench Facial: Light, hydrating products and massage to combat dryness from the sun or a tan! A gentle exfoliant and vitamin infusion, double masking with cucumber mint, peppermint lifting or mango butter masks. Massage and cold therapy to finish.

• Sunburn Soother Facial: Literally a facial to help your sunburn heal faster! No exfoliation, healing vitamin infusion, mango butter mask and massage, cooling alginate mask. Finish with cold therapy.

• Sunscreen Detox: Feeling congested from SPF, sweat and city living? Then this one is for you. Physical exfoliant and clay-based mask, extractions. High Frequency to create holistic oxygen in the skin and kill bacteria. Cucumber mint mask with massage.

Nuture yourself this summer. Your skin and your soul will thank you!

Burn out, and what I am doing about it

When Jacinda Ardern, prime minister of New Zealand, announced she would not be seeking re election I was (like many) shocked. Shocked…here is a woman I idolize. Who was doing it all, handling all the challenges a woman could handle and masterfully, with seeming ease and deep compassion. I was sad…the world needs more women like her, I thought! What will we do without her example?? Also shocked because women like that…the ones we can depend on, well their job is to run themselves straight into the ground and exhaustion right? That’s what capable women do right?! I couldn’t believe she didn’t receive the memo.

I was shocked…and then I cried. Cried tears of relief and appreciation. A leader still. Not giving up, at all. Showing us how it is done. Her tank is empty she said. Time to refill. Time to walk her child to school and pick her up. The ultimate act of unselfishness…to hand over the role without ego to someone who could pour from a full cup. She is burnt out.

When my child was three months and I returned from materinity leave and entered a seemingly never ending period of staff turnover that was truly shocking, as well as the challenges of moving into our new building. Then covid hit when he was eleven months old, so going into it I was already stressed and exhausted.

Covid took that exhaustion to an exponential level. I was managing mask mandates, more turnover, more parenting, financial issues. Endless staff training and hiring. I ate poorly, hardly slept, never worked out. I had physicial issues owing to my pregnancy (a hip replacement and two kinds of pelvic prolapse) which needed surgeries. Every time I had one I relished the two days of recovery in the hospital I was afforded. Somehow I got through it all, and survived.

We are now a year past covid. I have a stable team. The business has nearly fully recovered. And I am fully burnt out.

It started in December. I started having terrible brain fog. Blinding and ever present headaches. My short term memory was completely shot. I started having dizzy spells. No amount of sleep nightly or vacations can replenish my energy. I was diagnosed with depression. And then suddenly terrible TMJ, so bad I can hardly eat. Why is this happening now, when we are in the clear? Why not while I was going through it all?

I’ve gone to all kinds of specialists for answers, both allopathic and holistic. Everyone has a different answer. All the answers might be true at the same time. But what am I going to do about it? It seems to me at the root of all of the physical symptoms is one thing: depletion of energy coupled with trauma, which manifests as blockages of energy in the body. And why now? Because I am now safe to heal it.

The body is a miraculous and divinely intelligent set of systems. The pain in my jaw I have come to realise is actually related to those pelvic surgeries. And the pelvic issues? Owing to my pregnancy. Anyone who has had a child knows post partum care is seriously lacking in our current system. It has taken all my energy over the last four years to get any care in that regard at all, with every advantage on my side.

Regardless, the symptom is rarely the root cause. This is what I find so fascinating about healing work…it is mirrored throughout nature. The chiropractic and body work care I have started receiving to treat my joint pain mirrors the skin care we offer. The body, the soul, the brain all follow similar rules healing. And the more healing I experience the better I can offer it to our clients.

I have been told in working with various acupuncturists that I “spend tomorrow’s energy today”, which was part of the reason I get those headaches. I reach past my energy reserves for today and into tomorrow’s consistently, without replenishing my energy. I am sugar addicted. I scroll for hours each night. Every moment of my day is attached to responsibility and acheivement. I have consistently - for years - been depleting my energy. And have been operating at about 20 - 10% energetically. This is burn out.

But how to replenish my energy and thus cure that burn out?? It’s not culturally popular is it? We love our instant gratifciation and quick fixes. How to learn how to build and cultivate energy?

Here’s what i have come up with, through speaking with experts.

Regular yoga with the intention of building energy but not going overboard. A consistent challenging practice that makes me sweat but doesn’t exhaust me. And if I need to rest in my practice to gather energy, I do.

Removing “blockages” in my body caused by traumas. What is a blockage? A protective mechanism that corresponds and balances the actual root injury. In my case I have minute scar tissue throughout all my joints owing to hypermobility. I also have a wildly tight psoas muscle in my pelvis protecting my hip. To heal them I will need to reinjure them through bodywork by a professional, so that they can realign and heal properly.

Meditation of course. I practice transcendental meditation which I love because it is “foolproof”. Most people think that meditation is about emptying your mind…TM says that’s impossible so say a mantra in your head instead. Same effect.

More nourishing food with actual nutritional value. I don’t have time to cook so I order a subscription.

Being more present in my body…just the actual sensations of it. Breathing. I am also focusing on become more receptive and less active. Accepting more, battling less.

And finally…I will be changing my schedule from about July onward, to spend more time with my child. This will likely look like my only seeing clients on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and ending earlier in the day. The other weekdays will be dedicated to the back end of the office. My hope is this will keep me from spinning a dozen plates every day…every day should have it’s own small set of plates to keep my brain present in what I am actually doing.

And most importantly, I want to take my boy to Pre K and I want to pick him up. He is on the verge of not being so little anymore. He is on the verge of becoming fully conscious. And I want us to have this time together. I want to fully share this time with him, and put him first. It won’t be forever…in a few years he won’t have this time for me. So I am going to make sure I don’t miss it, now.

I would love to share with you in the upcoming months this journey of healing, and the practioners and changes I am working with to this end. We are all on a journey of healing all the time, and my hope would be that even if you don’t have the same issues we might learn something about how to heal ourselves, together.