Monday, October 1, 2007

Man-icure, anyone?

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The spa experience is no longer just a woman's world There was a time when the spa was a woman's escape. Not anymore: Today's man manicures, too. "The spa experience is really not seen as a frou-frou place of pampering anymore," said Lynne McNees, president of the International Spa Association. "It's seen as a place to go to take care of yourself and to really focus on a healthier lifestyle." According to the ISPA, men make up 31 percent of all spa-goers, up from 24 percent in 2002. And while massage (particularly sports massage) is still the No. 1 men's treatment, McNees said facials, pedicures and manicures aren't far behind. Men are just as concerned about looking good as women are." Indeed, the kempt man has come a long way since a sinister Christian Bale in "American Psycho" made it appear as if only psychotic men used moisturizer.

And considering that a (naturally) suntanned face is no longer considered "healthy," and copious amounts of chest hair lost mass appeal around, say, 1979, it's no wonder more and more men are flocking to spas and salons for facials and "manscaping" (slang for body-hair trimming). "If the man is going to expect the woman to look good, why shouldn't the woman expect the man to look good?" asked Vic Sosikian, owner of the Mark Matthew Fine Gentlemen's Grooming Club in Studio City, an upscale barber shop that offers massage, facials and other spa services for men. "Men's grooming is something that we should have been doing all along." But since men-only spas are still the exception, many facilities that have long been popular with women are creating separate menus to appeal to a man's sensibilities and to quell any potential spa timidity. Some spas even offer men's below-the-belt waxing, an arguable final frontier when it comes to making the men's spa experience on par with its female-oriented counterpart. "We do what men demand," Sosikian said, adding that the more "complicated" waxing can cost upward of $75. "Some guys just want their arm hair trimmed. To be honest, what other spa does that?" Honestly? Not many. Spas for Just for men in California




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