Shore thing

IN this job, you get asked to do some very odd tasks. All manner of weird and wonderful requests, from the sublime to the ridiculous, land on my desk or come through my telephone, so I tend to think of myself as pretty much unshockable.

Indeed, one of the oddest things I ever did in the name of journalism was paint a panda using only my breasts (in my defence, it was for a cancer charity), so when I was asked to go for a lava shells massage, I didn’t even raise a cynical eyebrow.

It was only when one of my friends said to me, “A massage? With shells? Which heat themselves up? Are you joking, or is this just latest bizarre beauty fad?”, that I really gave it much thought.

And concluded that, yes, it did sound pretty bizarre. And possibly faddish. All the more reason for me to try it out, I reasoned.

So, appointment booked post-Christmas and pre- New Year’s Eve to get me revived and (semi) detoxed for the big night, I set off down the A1 for Ripon an hour before my appointment. Forgetting, of course, that the A1 would be a nightmare on wheels, jammed with traffic and the helpful addition of roadworks, and that I should, of course, have left at least an hour and a half to allow for gridlock. An hour and 45 minutes, and a lot of grinding of teeth and gears later, I arrived at the salon, very flustered, embarrassed and apologetic.

I was greeted by Beth, a Darlington girl who has recently taken over the beauty franchise at the long-established salon, following a stint as a cruise ship beauty therapist. Bright and bubbly, she made me feel at ease and ushered me upstairs to a second- floor beauty room, which feels like a world away from the bustling salon downstairs.

She explained how the massage – which uses tiger shell clams from the Philippines – work. A sachet inside the shells containing minerals, dried sea kelp, and algae mixed with salt water and essential oils causes a chemical reaction, resulting in heat which lasts a couple of hours.

I got undressed and lay down on the massage bed, still a little flustered. But that soon melted away when Beth began to work. The heat from the shells was wonderfully relaxing, and as with all temperature massages, helped the strokes to penetrate the muscles of my back and shoulders. It’s similar to hot stones, but I would say not quite as hard and deep.

Beth is an expert masseuse, using light yet firm strokes similar to Swedish massage and tailored to my preferences. She managed to identify, just from the tension in various parts of my body, which shoulder I carried my bag on, and by the time she finished, I felt about three inches taller.

The massage was top notch, and afterwards I felt exactly how you should after a good beauty treatment – relaxed, happy and revived.

As the treatment finishes with a scalp massage, it’s a good idea to get a wash and blow dry before you leave, so not to frighten unsuspecting members of the public.

Staff at the salon downstairs could not have been nicer. They accommodated me without complaint, even shifting around a few appointments so I could have my blow-dry almost straight after my massage. My hair got a thoroughly professional shampoo and condition, from a very nice and chatty junior, before senior stylist Jo coaxed it into a fabulous big and bouncy shape.

Overall, the salon was down-to-earth and unpretentious, with excellent customer service. As to whether lava shells are a fad, I’m undecided. But to be honest, I think that’s missing the point. It’s a lovely treatment, and the heat certainly aids the therapeutic effects of the massage. Fad or not, I’d certainly make a return visit. Even if it means battling the A1.

􀁧 A lava shells fully body massage is £35, instead of £45 for a limited period. Call Beth on 01765-607722 for an appointment.