Mommy Makeover Part 6: Surprise Extras

Goody Bag from ARC/Kathleen

I thought my last makeover entry, part five, was going to be the last treatments at Aesthetic Rejuvenation Center before my last time with the crew at Iluminada Studio, getting the blowout, wax, make-up and final photos. I was incorrect.

I had an appointment with Dr Freund scheduled for Wednesday evening, the twenty-second, just to check the results of the Belotero, and make sure everything was good. I saw the doctor, he and I were both happy with the results, and I was going to leave. I'd remembered Rhonda had mentioned she'd like me to use a retinol creme or something, and to remind her. Now that my face treatments were done, I thought it was time. Dr Freund said Rhonda was there and to go to her office.

I went down to see her and not only did she give me a retinol product to take home, she wanted to introduce me to Kathleen Stolarz, who would be doing my make-up the day of the last treatments at Iluminada. She's an esthetician at ARC.

Retinol product

I met Kathleen and she was super nice and of course, has luminous skin. She looked me over, as Bryan and I do lamps. In my head I was laughing. She immediately just threw out there that I'd be a perfect candidate for Dermaplaning and some kind of peel. I'm extremely happy with everything they've done so far, so I was in for whatever they were going to suggest. Kathleen felt that if I had the Dermaplaning and peel, when I'm supposed to get the make-up done in six days from then, it will go on much smoother and nicer. Great, I was game.

When I said I could come back to do it the next day, Rhonda was fine with it, and booked it with Kathleen. Doing these extras was over the original budget plan, I'm sure, but they were cool with it. Again, like I've said about them before, not only is it part of their mitzvah of making over a tired, busy mom, but word of mouth is priceless and goes a long way. Why wouldn't they want the best results at the end of this? They do, so they certainly have gone above and beyond in making me happy, look good, and fix my physical flaws to the best of their ability in the short time we had. They all really care. It's kind of amazing, especially in this world of only caring about the almighty dollar.

I came back Thursday, to see Kathleen, and she went right to work on a warmed table, in a heated room. All of which was fantastic. She did the Dermaplaning first, which takes off any and all dead skin, plus any little hairs or peach fuzz might be there. This actually did feel like the famous kitten licks I like to reference so often. I didn't see what kind of tool she used to do it, but it didn't hurt. When she completed that, she did a peel for sensitive skin, which she refers to as "the red carpet peel". It's the one you'd do if you had an event to go to in a few days and you wanted that red carpet kind of glow the stars have. Who wouldn't be down for that?

Kathleen gave me a little goody bag too. It has some NeoCutis Lumiere & Micro-Eyes eye packettes. Some Bio-Cream face cream packettes, and the Hyalis Hydrating Serum. I also got a SkinCeuticals Triple Lipid Restore anti-aging treatment and an ARC lip balm. I'm so excited to try all these products, especially since I'm generally either a CVS product or Estee Lauder kind of gal.

When I was done with the Dermaplaning and peel, the best description of my face I could give, would be dewy. It felt way smoother than normal to the touch, and definitely to the eye. My friend Alex said, I looked extra smooth and moisturized, because I happened to see her when I got back to town, waiting for the kids to get out of school. I wasn't wearing any make-up and I felt like I still looked fine enough to see people. I thought I was going to be all red at the end. That's what I think of when I think of the words chemical peel. It wasn't like that at all. I just looked refreshed and dewy. 

I forgot to ask what these treatments would cost if someone was booking them, but I'm sure you can call and ask or do a google search of what stuff like this costs in your area. If you're in Bergen County, I highly recommend seeing Kathleen, who is at ARC on Wednesdays and Thursdays or Pam who is there every other Monday.

It's been a bit of chaos getting to all these appointments, but I'm not complaining, and I'm sad they're over. Maybe they'll let me be a guinea pig once in while? Barter lighting? On a serious note, I bought a big rainbow floppy hat for the beach (who *AM* I??), and I'll now be looking for a side gig to pay for all the treatments I want going forward. Obviously, now I want to do everything. And I'm never giving up the Belotero. Kathleen said I should do Dermapen again in the future and Pam told me I should do some other kind of peel to continue to try to get rid of my acne scars. The scars diminished greatly through all the treatments, but they're not gone. It's a marathon, not a sprint.

I keep feeling my soft face. I told E that my face feels like a baby's butt and he got hysterical. Then he said, "Ooh, can I feel?". He felt it, then it was the first thing he wanted to tell B when he walked in. "Mom's face feels like a baby's butt!"

Don't mind my crazy eyes. I still can't take a good selfie.