When Christina Kesaris, an experienced spa and health industries professional of Greek descent, moved from Boston to Miami 10 years ago, she decided to use her knowledge and passion for healthy living to inspire others to be more self-aware. When she did, she opened her first boutique day spa, med spa and hair spain the Miami Design District, and named it eména, “me” in Greek. As of right now Eména has two locations: the one in the Miami Design District and one in Hollywood.
The day Christina invited me to a complimentary facial to share my honest opinions with you, I couldn’t say yes fast enough. I needed this pampering session and was really looking forward to it.
Dads, Husbands, Sons...if you’re reading this, make this Mother’s Day easy on yourself and just send your children’s mom, mom, step-mom, grandma, etc. to eména for a special treatment.
 | Even though I've had massages and facials before, this was my first visit to eména and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. Tucked away in Paradise Plaza amid the designer boutiques, eména is located on the third floor on NE 2nd Avenue. The day before my appointment, the spa manager Ken Bower, who has been working with Christina for 8 years, texted me the direction, with pictures, for a smooth arrival to the spa - a first hint of how personal their customer service is. |
From the moment I entered eména spa I felt as though I had escaped the stress of everyday life and found myself in an intimate, inviting and relaxing space with a calming, clean and chic aesthetic. Ken greeted me and really made me feel at ease. The atmosphere is so quiet and serene, the music is soothing and all the staff is really friendly. I really can’t rave enough about the customer service and how welcoming this day spa is.
A hidden gem that is a locals favorite, eména caters to every single beauty need. Need a haircut? It has a hair salon. Need a manicure? It has a nail station. Need a message, wax, or facial? It has spa rooms. Need to restock on skincare products? It sells exclusive luxury, organic, health conscious products that Christine has carefully selected for her guests.
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One of the things that I really loved about eména is that Maria, the esthetician that they assigned to me, asked me what facial caught my attention, she really listened to what I wanted out of the experience and gave recommendations on what she thought would have been the best treatment for me. I was treated to an organic facial (valued $155) with a selection of products designed for my skin type.
After my treatment, I asked Maria to go through what she did to share all the steps of the facial with you as well as the products she used - a custom cocktail of organic fruit and vegetable based skin care products:
- To start, Maria turned the steam on me and my pores opened up slowly.
- Then she cleansed my skin with a Charcoal Detox Cleanser, a sulfate free gel cleanser that provides a gentle and effective lather, dissolving oil and makeup, rinsing away pore-clogging impurities, and excess oil.
- To remove dead skin cells, she exfoliated with Facial Exfoliating Scrub, containing natural Avocado, Jojoba, Hemp and Grapeseed oils, plus 4% Shea Butter and Vitamin E.
- After a little bit of extraction, she did a facial massage with a Natural Healing Oil to balance and tone normal/oily to blemish prone skin types with a potent blend of Jojoba, Grape Seed, Evening Primrose, and Black Currant seed oils.
- Then she applied a Super Fruits Power Mask to my face, a super hit of antioxidants to reverse the oxidizing free radical process for smoother, younger, happier and truly vibrant skin.
- Next she toned my skin with a Green Tea Toner, a superior toner with Tamarind Seed Extract, that has moisturizing effectiveness equal to Hyaluronic Acid. It contains Aloe Vera, Chamomile, Japanese Green Tea, Cucumber Extract Wheat protein Selenium, Magnesium, Copper, Zinc, Calcium and Germanium for a glowing complexion.
- For a serum she used Pomegranate Hyaluronic Acid Serum, a superior quality, botanically derived concentrated blend of Hyaluronic Acid, which also provides a protective film on the skin that strongly binds water and fills up fine lines.
- For the puffiness and dark circles around my eyes, she applied a Soothing Peptide Eye Gel that helps restore elasticity and firmness to the skin.
- To finish, she applied a Purely Bright Moisturizer, a highly effective hydration formulation designed to lighten hyper pigmentation, fade sun spots, and restore brilliance and clarity to drab and tired skin.
Post-facial:
- Maria usually applies a sunscreen, but because it was late in the afternoon and not sunny she skipped this step.
- She suggested to not wash my face or wear makeup until the next day to let my skin breathe and absorb all the products she used for my facial.
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BEFORE | DURING | AFTER |
I am not a facial expert and I don’t understand all of these, but I will point out a few things:
- When I was younger facials were far from a relaxing experiences. They were often uncomfortable, occasionally painful, moments of extracting blackheads, etc. from my face. With this treatment I didn’t have one painful moment and I didn’t leave with any marks on my face from extractions! Amazing, right?
- Their facials are around 50 minutes long, so I was in and out really quickly.
- We should get facials every 4 to 6 weeks and change the type of treatments every time to see maximum results. eména spa has quickly become known as a favorite destination for Miami locals seeking high quality facial services. They have 10 different types of treatments to address the different needs every skin.
It's been about 10 days since my facial and I'm still amazed with the results - this facial has revived my skin and gave me the needed glow. I've also been wearing way less makeup because my skin is just that smooth and bright.
If anything, the experience was a testament to taking better care of my skin and make self-care part of my regular to-do list. They also have a fantastic membership (starting at $99/month) that includes your choice of one (or more depending on the membership level) of their services (facial, massage, hair, etc) plus other member-only perks. I will definitely come back to eména for another treatment, no questions asked.
4100 NE 2nd Ave #301, Miami, FL 33137
ph. (305) 363-7358
Sunday-Tuesday 11am-7pm
Wednesday-Saturday 10am-8pm
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