Salvation may be at hand for chocolate gourmets concerned about their complexions and addicts looking for a calorie-free cocoa fix with a new trend for chocolate-based beauty treatments.
Several Paris day spas now aim to disprove the theory that chocolate and smooth skin don’t mix whilst satisfying sweet-toothed cravings with cocoa-themed massages, facials, wraps and scrubs.
Challenging the age-old advice that chocolate causes spots, skin care company Nuxe’s Phytochoc range uses cocoa extracts to help keep skin looking good.
According to the company, the polyphenol compounds in cocoa have anti-ageing properties.
At their trendy spa ”32 Montorgueil” on a bustling market street in Paris’ second district, the Phytochoc facial is especially popular with thirty-something women seeking to smooth away their first wrinkles.
A complex procedure lasting an hour and a half and costing 120-euros ($155), the facial involves several steps and some serious massage aimed at plumping up the skin.
At 32 Montorgueil, cocoa extracts are used for their cosmetic benefits rather than to impart a chocolate high, as the Phytochoc range bears little resemblance to a bar of best Belgian.
However at the Four Seasons Hotel George V spa, the chocotherapy is seriously sybaritic.
For the ”Decadent Chocolate Package” which lasts two and a half hours and costs a princely 300-euros ($390), the sumptuous treatment room is decorated with candles, cocoa beans, cocoa powder and a big bowl of chocolates placed near the massage table.
The sweet treats are placed tantalisingly within reach, but once the treatment starts, the idea of simply eating chocolate seems less appealing than literally wallowing in it.
The ”Chocolate and Cranberry Body Scrub” uses sweet almond oil, chocolate extract and crushed cocoa beans to exfoliate the skin.
The glorious scent conjures up visions of how Charlie might have felt on his visit to Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory.
Sign up for the ”Toffee Chocolate Wrap” to be covered in a warm concoction of cocoa butter, shea butter and chocolate essence and left to soak for 45 minutes.
For the ”Deep Chocolate Massage”, chocolate-scented vitamin E enriched oil is used to knead away any knots.
Any remaining chocloate cravings are fulfilled with a plate of hand-made chocolates with a pot of caramel tea at the end of the session.
According to manager Isabelle Schlumberger, the treatments are intended to nourish the soul as much as the skin.
”You know you’re going to do yourself good and you won’t have any regrets afterwards. On the contrary you feel good in every sense, all the senses have been satisfied,” she said.
”It’s such a rejection of the idea of dieting, to dive into chocolate.”
Over at the newly-opened Bernard Cassiere spa, the chocolate treatment is taken to a sublime extreme with the ”Anti-Stress Anti-Pollution Chocolate Treatment”.
”I hope you’ve eaten lunch,” quipped Virginie Roussel, the manager of the salon aimed at a young, experimental clientele.
After a facial massage with pure cocoa butter, the treatment turns into a dieters’ dream with the application of a chocolate fondue mask.
Thick melted chocolate is slathered on the face and neck and the warm velvety sensation and rich scent sends the senses reeling. The mask is in fact pure chocolate, adapted to suit skin by Italian chocolatier Walter Bovetti.
The concept of death by chocolate suddenly becomes appealing as the fondue seeps into the skin.
Roussel agrees it is a surprising sensation, stating most people are awakened from the reverie as the first stroke of fondue is applied. ”They open their eyes in astonishment as if to say ‘My God, what’s that!”’
”Everyone loves it though,” she added, which is not all that surprising considering she advises licking your lips as part of the experience.
All lingering kid-in-a-candy-store fantasies are indulged as she scoops more chocolate from the pot and drizzles it into a wide-open mouth.
The 45-minute, 45-euro ($58) treatment leaves the urban epicurian with a glowing complexion and an almost guilt-free glimpse into chocolate heaven.
For Virginie Roussel and her colleagues though, there remains one last problem. ”It’s really hard,” she admitted.
”We always want to finish off what’s left in the pot.” – Sapa-AFP