Our editor discovers the facial that promises the quickest way to a glow that lasts

Any facial touted as red carpet ready has found its way onto my radar of late. Sure, I still have an intensive programme I’m working through of all the high tech stuff—but some days more of an immediate glow is what I seek. It was on one of these days, one where I found a few free moments in my calendar while on a busy deadline, that I finally managed to give the iconic iS Clinical Fire & Ice facial from Saint Beauty a go. I’ve been told that it is loved by people with angelic faces like Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Halle Berry, and as an advocate of almost everything that this brand does, I went into the treatment with no reservations.

The facial itself is an embodiment of the duality between fire and ice. Following a deep cleansing ritual with the brand’s beloved Cleansing Complex and Warming Honey Cleanser (with an added layer of love in steam and LED), two contrasting masks are applied—one immediately after the other—that almost shock the skin into a new state of being.

The first, embodying fire, is the Intensive Resurfacing Mask with botanical extracts, retinol, niacinamide, and glycolic acid that generates heat, exfoliation, and increases cellular turnover. Its counterpart is the very cooling Rejuvenating Mask designed to soothe, hydrate, and nourish the skin—which very quickly became my favourite part of the ritual.

The fire element, I will say, was indeed spicy. I have religiously used the brand’s Extra Strength Active Peel Brightening Peel pads at home, part of their range for out-of-clinic use (and a genuine holy grail), and so I thought I would be more prepared for the slight discomfort than I was. It’s not painful or harsh, more of a pervasive itch. A part of me that wanted to scratch away at the layers— but knowing what I do now about how very good this product is—I knew this was the mask eating away at all of those layers I was hoping to shed, and I soon found out the discomfort in those three short minutes could be easily relieved by a light tapping action administered by my therapist Concilia.

Then came the cooling, a very welcome relief. Packed with hyaluronic acid, green tea extract and aloe vera, this next mask was massaged into the skin with cooling globes and soft manual touch. And while that deep hydration is really penetrating through all three layers of the skin, you’ll probably fall into an arm- massage-induced half-slumber, only to be woken by a final layering and spritz of the brand’s famed Copper Firming Mist, followed by the Hydra Cool Serum, Pro Heal Serum Advance+, Eye Complex, Reparative Moisture Emulsion, and naturally, Eclipse SPF 50+.

Although it’s thought of by the brand as the perfect event prep, made obvious by the immediate glow, I found I didn’t want to waste these results as merely the base for a fresh face of products. Instead I took cues from a more modern red carpet, making my way to the party, bare- faced and with a glow that I hoped would be eternal.

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