Latest Boy Club by DNA Magazine

While not the butchest boy on the block, I am certainly not from the fake tan, eyebrow-plucked school of male grooming; deferring instead to the shit-shower-shaveout- the-door-in-thirty-minutes routine. So, when I was given the opportunity to review the range of beauty treatments available at a male-only Sydney salon my decidedly clogged pores jumped at the chance.The Male Grooming Salon is owned and staffed by Christian Acuña.

After working as a cosmetologist, skincare and beauty therapist for a number of years, Spanish-born Acuña realised that no one was tailoring treatments or products solely to the male market. Responding to the gap, he opened his salon and began experimenting with 100 per cent organic botanical ingredients to formulate effective solutions suited to the specific environmental and physiological needs of men’s skin. What results is an extensive and masculine range of products, complimented by a stable of body and face treatments, perfectly suited to the modern Australian man.

Upon my arrival, Acuña, dressed in loose fisherman’s pants and a casual cotton top, greets me at the door before ushering me into a room off the main hallway. I take a seat on the massage table, eyeing the rows of dark brown and amber bottles lining the shelves of the wooden cabinet opposite; bottles containing the results of years of research into male skincare. He walks me through his range and goes on to explain the list of treatments he currently offers: a variety of facials, waxing hair removal, injectables wrinkle reduction treatments, massage and body scrubs and vast number of non-surgical treatment for men directed by Doctor Jeremy Cumpston. Wanting to get the full bang for my journalistic buck, I opt for the Well-Being all over body scrub. This particular treatment purports to “detoxify your skin, enhance cell renewal and infuse essential nutrients into your skin”. Call it what you will, the hour-long treatment was nothing short of amazing.

After stripping off my clothes and putting on a towel, I was instructed to lie face down on the table and relax as he massaged organic mandarin and lime oil, from the top of my neck to the tips of my toes, softening the skin. He then repeated the same pattern with a scrub containing pumice stone and lemon tea tree oil, followed by a dry corn exfoliate sponging. I was then asked to turn over, had a soothing eye mask applied, and the routine was replicated on the front of my body. Then it was time for a shower to rinse off the remainder of the rough granules before returning to the massage table for act two. It was pretty much the same as before but in place of the scrub was a subtly perfumed moisturiser, which was gently kneaded into my skin; all while soft music played and essential oils burned in the background. Completing the experience was a spray toner, to wake up my skin.

Once I’d risen from my near comatose state of complete relaxation, the tingling sensation that covered my entire body was a clear indication that my skin had absorbed all the nutrients promised in the advertising spiel. I felt refreshed, revitalised and convinced that I had just undergone the most indulgent act the exterior of my body had ever experienced.

All in all, the treatment exceeded my expectations. It was soothing, sensual and, for a beauty therapy virgin such as myself, totally unique and addictive. Looks like it might be time to rethink my beauty routine.

Contact The Men’s Grooming Salon direct on: 1300 856 577 or 0415 237 494.

Latest boy club by DNA Magazine
Source: DNA magazine
Writer: Luke Malone