OK. All right.
So, today I'm going to the new Equinox Spa
in Hudson Yards, New York City.
Let me tell you, I have seen
a lot of facials for this job,
but this one is four layers of seaweed products
applied all at once on top of the face.
It's supposed to be really great
for toning, rejuvenation,
all of those things that are wonderful
because I am feeling just, like,
dry and icky this winter.
I'm wearing makeup right now, so just
don't look at me till I show the before later, OK?
On top of that, it also looks like
it's going to be a little claustrophobic.
When I saw this YouTube video of what this does,
I showed it to everyone I knew.
I have to say that, the person getting the facial
in that video, I'm not sure how they were breathing.
I am super worried that I'm gonna freak out
when I'm in this mask.
Before I overthink it, let's just get going.
The Repêchage four-layer facial
costs customers a hefty $450.
Repêchage is the skin-care line
featured at the spa.
And for my facial, I got to meet
the creator of the line, Lydia Sarfati.
Lydia Sarfati: Emily, let me just tell you
briefly what I'm going to do.
Emily: Sure.
Lydia: You're going to feel hot and cold and,
mm!
You're just going to feel like you're just
basking in the sun at one moment
or jumping into the pool of cold water.
So, all sensation and senses you will be experiencing
during the Repêchage four-layer facial.
You will look fabulous.
Emily: And, honestly, I believed it.
But I still had one doubt.
Am I gonna get claustrophobic
under there? Lydia: No.
Emily: Or is it gonna be so relaxing
that I don't even notice it?
Lydia: I think you will be sleeping.
Emily: OK.
That I can do. Lydia: I think you
will be sleeping. Emily: That I can do.
Lydia: I'm sure will enjoy it.
Maybe not as much
if we would be just the two of us in this room.
Emily: But we got this whole crew here.
Lydia: But you will enjoy it.
Emily: OK, do it. Lydia: Because we have
great crew with us as well.
Emily: The treatment began with
a cleanse and exfoliation.
Lydia: Everything I do has very gentle movement.
Your skin will never feel irritated.
Now we are going to use a little sonic spatula.
So, the sonic spatula
[machine beeps] Emily: Oh!
is going...[laughs]
Emily: It's a robot. Lydia: A robot.
Here comes the little robot.
It's just going to help us
to do a little microcirculation
and micro-exfoliation.
Now I'm going to do a mask,
which will help us with deep cleansing.
We are able now to move on to our facial.
So, now we will begin! Emily: Oh, the facial's just
beginning. [laughs]
Lydia: The facial just beginning now.
And let's go for a swim, darling, OK?
Emily: Let the layers begin. Lydia: So, there we go.
So we swimming with seaweed now.
This is our cytoserum of seaweed,
which is very rich.
We call it simply C-serum,
because who would remember cytoserum?
But it's more than just vitamin C.
So, it actually has 12 vitamins
and 18 amino acids
and 42 trace elements and minerals.
There are over 40,000 different species of seaweed.
I selected about 12,
and the main seaweeds
that we're going to use today are two.
One of them is called Laminaria digitata.
Emily: Whoa. [laughs] Lydia: Whoa.
And the second one, it is Ascophyllum nodosum.
Emily: Lydia told me that all of these vitamins
and minerals in the seaweed are meant
to soften aging lines and rebalance the skin.
She also used an LED frequency machine,
which helps brighten up any dark spots.
Lydia: A hydrating, moisturizing cream
made with multi-fruit acid,
lactic acid,
and two different seaweeds.
So we have Laminaria digitata,
we have Ascophyllum nodosum,
and we also have hyaluronic acid.
With the step No. 2,
we will provide a full massage.
Emily: Lydia's signature massage
uses lymphatic-drainage techniques,
which can help boost skin elasticity.
The second layer of hydrating cream lightly exfoliates
while Lydia works her massage magic.
Lydia: It is.
And I always win.
Producer: [laughs] She wouldn't joke.
Emily: I love you so much. Producer: It's the truth.
Emily: They're really cooling.
It's just, like, so...
I don't wanna say cold,
'cause cold implies that I'm chilly.
It's just relaxingly cool.
Am I green?
Lydia: You are. Emily: Score.
Here I go. Goodbye, world.
Lydia: Goodbye, world.
Emily: While the third layer cools
to ocean-water temperatures,
the minerals in the seaweed work
to tone and tighten the skin.
Lydia: And now you're going to come out
onto the beach.
Emily: Ooh.
Lydia: And you're going to be basking in the sun.
Emily: All right, I can do that.
Lydia: So, you're going to feel warmth,
and the warmth will lull you to sleep.
Emily: The final layer of the facial adds heat.
This activates all the other layers,
which helps them penetrate into the skin.
It naturally heats up to 101 degrees,
and Lydia says the way that it works
is a total secret.
For 15 whole minutes,
I sat under the mineral mask.
I could feel my face tightening,
and I couldn't move.
But I was far too relaxed
to freak out like I thought I would.
And finally, at long last, the grand reveal.
[crew laughing]
Lydia: You now have a new face.
Emily: [laughing] Oh, my God.
Is that me?
Oh, she's beautiful, my child.
Lydia: You are beautiful, it's your baby.
Emily: Hey, Emily, what's going on?
I'm also Emily. [Lydia laughs]
She looks so afraid!
Was my mouth this open the whole time?
Was I, like, mouth-breathing this hard?
OK, I'm leaving the facial,
and I didn't put any makeup on.
I brought my whole makeup bag
thinking that I would want to
redo my face after the facial
before I went back to the office.
Look at that!
It's glowing, I...
It has been a few weeks since
my four-layer seaweed facial,
and, honestly, my skin has felt incredible.
I was really worried about
dull, dry, icky, wintry skin,
and I have felt hydrated ever since,
even in the weeks after.
It's so hydrated!
I definitely noticed an evenness in my skin tone
that I wasn't noticing before, and overall,
the benefits of this facial have lasted me
so much longer than I anticipated.
I haven't had a breakout since then.
It's been kind of incredible.
The only thing I will say is that
I didn't notice any firming or tightening benefits,
but that wasn't something that I was really
going into this facial looking for,
so that's OK with me.
I had no idea that seaweed
had so many skin-care benefits,
and Lydia told me that she discovered it because
farmers use seaweed as a biostimulant and fertilizer.
If it works for the earth,
why wouldn't it work for our skin?
I was really nervous about going in
and feeling claustrophobic under all of those the layers,
but I was so relaxed the whole time.
I think it had a lot to do with
the fact that Lydia's massage was amazing.
Everything went great. Didn't freak out.
If I ever come across $450,
you will know where to find me.
[laughing] It just, it felt like my face was
literally peeled off my face.