Search Results

Are Pedicures Really Safe? We put our hands in there too!

There are risks inherent in every activity, and for generally healthy clients, the risks associated with a pedicure are very small indeed.  By generally healthy, I am including anyone who’s immune system is functioning normally and your Doctor is the best person to help you assess the status of your health.

At Bella Fontana Spa, we help protect your health by using a special foot soak that is anti-bacterial and anti-fungal.  It contains urea, salicylic acid and aloe vera, among other ingredients that cleanse and help soften calluses.  According to the manufacturer, some of the retail products, especially the Anti-Fungal Formula 7, contains 1% Clotrimazole. an anti-fungal agent that relieves itching, scaling, cracking, burning, redness and irritation associated with fungus, including ringworm and athlete’s foot and protects the feet from picking it up in the first place.  The moisturizing and anti-fungal formulas use a dermal integration technology, DIT, that allows the product to penetrate easier and faster into the skin.  The mousse mimics the skins own composition closely and contains CoEnzyme Q10 and urea making it the most effective moisturizer available.  Read more about Footlogix.

Recently, SpaBoom put an entry on their blog about Pedicures, and I commented:

Think about the fungal and bacterial load at the gym, department store carpet in the shoe department, and the parasites in the lake or your own front yard. Our first line of defense, as wonderful as many of the smell and feel good products out there, is a specialty anti-bacterial and anti-fungal foot soak. We also use EPA rated anti-bacterial, anti-tuberculoidal and anti-fungal sanitizer in our pipeless pedicure stations. We have an autoclave, disposable tools and more all to keep our clients safe. Unless a client has a compromised immune system, our pedicures are as safe as any other activity. Sure, there are risks like a nick or cut for both the client and the technician. Take care of the customer and reassure them you are using the best products to protect them. Clients, please ask about the sanitation protocols and take good care of your feet everywhere you go!

It is important to me that you feel safe and know that I am doing everything I can to take care of your health and well being.  In my judgment, pedicures are safe in an environment that is conscientious about cleaning their equipment and implements, or uses disposables, and uses products that facilitate protecting and caring for your skin.  There are risks, but the risks under these conditions are typically a nick or cut that can become infected without care, abrasions or infection or other injury that is no greater than what you might expect at your local gym, on the beach, in your backyard or medical office.  Remember, we put our hands on your feet and in those bowls too!

Dermaplaning rejuvenates skin while removing hair.

A superior form of manual exofoliation, this treatment removes the outermost layers of dead skin cells leaving the skin immediately smooth, supple and vibrant.  Derma planing is another non-traumatic, non-invasive method of skin rejuvenation with the benefit of hair removal.  Your skin will be renewed and your topical treatments will be more effective as they will penetrate more deeply since the layers of dead skin cells will be removed.

For more information call us at 903.893.6222 or book online.

How does the Technician perform this treatment?

Our certified technician will use a #10 blade, a type of scalpel.  The blade is held against the skin at a 45 degree angle and stroked along the skin just like shaving.  However, the practitioner is doing the stroking while holding the area of skin taut.  At Bella Fontana Spa, your skin will be cleansed and prepared in advance and a treatment cream will follow so your skin will be smooth and moisturized.

Is this Derma Planing Treatment Safe?

This treatment is performed by a professionally trained technician with extensive skin type knowledge.  It is very safe and there is no more risk to the skin than when a barber shaves a face the old fashioned way.  However, we will prepare the skin in advance and will not be using shaving cream.

Doesn’t Hair grow back thicker and/or darker when shaved?

This is a common myth.  What actually happens with terminal hair (that that grows under and on the arms, legs, beards, etc.) is that when cut it has a blunt edge.  The blunt edge starts just at the skin level and feels sharp and can be seen through the skin if there is enough contrast between the skin color and hair color.  At Bella Fontana Spa, we recommend laser hair reduction or waxing for this type of hair.  Vellous hair, or the fine blonde hairs often found on the face will not be physiologically affected by cutting.  It will remain soft because the structure of the hair, and its root is undamaged and unaltered.  Terminal hair is coarse, and vellous hair is soft and each will retain the original structure after cutting.

Why do dark, or Terminal Hairs, suddenly appear?

Typically the sudden change in the thickness, texture of hair or the appearance of dark and/or coarse hair appearing where it has never been before is the result of hormonal changes, puberty, menopause or chemotherapy, thyroid disease or other hormonal changes.  Consult your physician if you are concerned about the changes in your hair.

What about Waxing?

We are waxing or depilatory experts at Bella Fontana Spa.  Waxing makes the hair appear thinner for one of two reasons.  First, waxing pulls the hair from its roots effectively restarting the dormancy and growth cycle.  The new hair will grow in with the small pointed tip making it appear thinner and feel softer.  But the structure of the hair remains the same, and if grown long enough or cut will conform to the description above about terminal vs. vellous hair.  Secondly, if you interrupt the hair growth cycle enough, there is a chance that the hair regrowth cycle will slow, or the root becomes damaged and the hair will not grow back, or finally, aging, hypothyroidism or some other factor will affect the growth cycle.

Will I bleed?

Probably not, but I must say this is one of the risks of using an open blade on the skin.  This can happen with waxing or laser hair removal as well.  Or, if you are on blood thinners, or have used certain medications, your propensity to bleed will be increased.  We do not recommend waxing, for example, for those actively using Accutane, Retinols or other treatments that thin the skin and increase the occurrence of peeling or bleeding.  The incidence of an accidental cut is slim, but about the same as shaving even with safety blades.  We have all nicked our knees and ankles, chin or other places with shaving.

What areas can be treated?

Blading the skin is performed on the face only at Bella Fontana Spa.  We recommend body waxing for arms, legs, underarms for temporary hair removal, and laser hair reduction for permanent hair removal.

Can I combine a chemical peel?

We recommend combining the derma planing procedure with our gel peel, a light salicylic or glycolic acid peel.  This peel requires no preparation and you can expect good results and a peel over a three or four day period.

Please contact us if you have any questions at 903.893.6222 or for more information about Bella Fontana Spa or book online.

Detoxifying treatments cater to guests that want to shape up body and mind

I find that our guests are becoming increasingly aware of what goes into and onto their bodies.  In response, I have begun requiring our product lines to be more earth and body friendly and many are organic, vegan, gluten and paraben free and do not test on animals.  Medical grade skin care lines such as SkinCeuticals are primarily  botanical while utilizing the best and most effective medical grade components available on the market at a price point suitable for our market.

Detoxifying wraps and body treatments cater to this trend by allowing guests to shed toxins while firming and toning the skin in the areas that need it the most.  Special products are applied that increase circulation and are steam infused to accelerate the detoxifying effect through the largest organ in the body.  What a facial does for facial skin, and a pedicure does for the skin on the feet and lower legs, a body treatment is the most effective skin care treatment for the entire body.  With the additional benefit of the Hydro3 vichy shower and steam infusion, the treatments are intensified and more effective while reducing claustrophobia and increasing the detoxification effect in a more comfortable setting.  There is less mess too!

European spa-goers begin body treatments at a young age, and guests in our areas are taking increased advantage of the services and equipment offered here at Bella Fontana Spa.  Benefits include stress relief, increased tone and firmness to the skin, temporary inch loss and stimulation of the metabolism.  To reach your goals while dieting and exercise try two or three sauna sessions and body treatments each week for inch loss and a better appearance in those critical body areas.  Add on a Lift and Tone Facial Massage or 45 Minute Therapeutic Massage and you will truly feel renewed and energized by the results you can see.

Questions about Hair Removal and Hair Reduction?

We are the experts in hair removal and reduction in North Central Texas and South Central Oklahoma.  Our employees have been waxing and using lasers to reduce hair growth and visibility for years.  Both waxing and laser hair reduction treatments require a 4 to 6 week interval between treatments.  I get a lot of questions about hair removal, so to make it easier for you to decide what to do where, here are some of those more frequently asked questions:

What happens when Waxing?

At Bella Fontana Spa we use warm soft wax with strips or hard wax depending on the area to be treated.  The wax will feel warm, but is not typically described as hot, even though the term hot wax may be used.  The wax locks onto the hair shaft and the hair is pulled from the skin interrupting the growth pattern and often putting the root of the hair removed into a dormant stage.  Hair must begin a new growth cycle.

What happens with the Laser?

The laser is a light that operates at a wavelength designed to be absorbed only by dark pigment or melanin.  Therefore, it is the hair that absorbs the laser energy.  The laser energy then travels down the hair shaft to the follicle (root) where it heats and destroys the hair follicle.  This is why the hair must be there and be actively growing to be treated.  The laser energy is not absorbed by the skin.

Does it hurt?

The perception of pain is unique to each individual.  Laser hair reduction feels similar to a rubber band snap, sometimes you feel a little heat. Once we have used the laser in the area to be treated, ice can be used to both numb and cool during or immediately after the service.  Most people tolerate the sensation easily and we can work at their pace during the scheduled time of the service.  Waxing pulls the hair and it may break at the skin, below the skin or optimally by the root.  The more hairs pulled by the root the longer it takes to grow back, but it does produce a little more discomfort over a larger area.  We can adjust the size of the area to be waxed in order to adjust to your comfort level.  Many people prefer it to be completed quickly, rather than more times however.

Is is permanent?

Laser is permanent, but only the hair in the active growth cycle will be killed.  Once the laser kills the root of the hair, it will not grow back. You have 500-1000 hair follicles for both terminal and vellus hair per square ince of your body and only a fraction of those hairs are actively growing.  The rest are dormant/inactive follicles.  Changes in your body due to stress, diet, normal aging processes, hormonal changes in pregnancy or menopause, etc. can cause dormant follicles to become active follicles.  Waxing is not permanent, but the hair may go through a dormant phase and new growth cycle prolonging the time before the new hair appears.

Shaving makes hair grow thicker, and waxing makes it thin out, right?

Not exactly! The reason shaved hair appears to be coarser and more dense is because the hairs are being cut at the skin level and are in an active growth phase.  As hairs grow, they start out with a slimmer tip and widen toward the base.  Hairs grow every day, so the longer the hair remains the thicker it seems and cutting it produces a sharp edge.  Waxing and other hair removal processes interrupt the growth cycle, causing the hair to go dormant, and the new hair has a slipper tip as it emerges and thickens as it grows to its preprogrammed full length.  Then it is shed and goes dormant again.  Over time waxing may damage the root and cause the hair to become more like vellus hair, those thin and lighter colored hairs that cover our body.  Alternatively vellus hair can become terminal or the thicker hairs on our heads, beards and other parts of the body.