Six Ways to Feel Fresh for Fall in Toronto

Between the sun, smog, and booze, the summer can take a toll on your body.

With less than one week left in August (we know…) why not face the fall – the real start of the New Year – as fresh as you can?

Here are six notable options to do so in Toronto:

Have a Hammam and Gommage.  
After the summer sun, your skin could use some exfoliation. Few things feel as liberating as a Hammam followed by a Gommage treatment and it’s not just because it requires you to get practically naked (or fully, if you’d like). It involves a steam (so you can rid yourself of those summer cocktail toxins) and a deep body exfoliating treatment that’s rooted in the authentic traditions of the Middle East. After a quality steam, you lay on marble while an esthetician exfoliates all that dead skin you didn’t know you had off your body. And don’t worry – that summer tan will remain once it’s over.

Our Notable Pick: Miraj Hammam Spa by Caudalie Paris at the Shangri-La Hotel. You’ll feel like they scrubbed off a whole new person when your skin feels like your baby nephew’s.

Get a mani-pedi.
Especially with TIFF around the corner, an end-of-summer manicure and pedicure are pretty much necessary. Don’t neglect those toes just because they’ll soon be tucked away in socks and boots instead of sandals – somebody will (hopefully) see them. And let’s be honest, at this age, everyone checks your hands in the inevitable wedding ring scan. Guys, if you’re still a mani/pedi virgin, we suggest you put it on your fall to-do list. 

Our Notable Pick: The Ten Spot Beauty Bar. It combines the efficiency we know and love of the sometimes-sketchy low-end nail salons with the trappings of high-end spas. And it isn’t just for the ladies – they also specialize in gents.

Get a cold laser facial treatment.  
Find yourself fresh-faced for fall with a cold laser facial treatment. The sought-after celebrity skincare treatment includes a gentle diamond microdermabrasion (as opposed to crystal), a hydrating oxygen facial with organic rose water, a cold laser with micro-current treatment using the 8-beam multi-coloured laser, an all-natural hydrating collagen mask and a 500-beam cold laser panel customized for different skincare concerns.

Our Notable Pick: The Freeze Clinic. Their Signature Treatment reduces your need to ‘put a filter on it.’ We noticed an improvement in skin texture, tone, and brightness instantly.

Get smooth with a wax.
Make it a point to stay as smooth as summer this fall. Few things are as refreshing as hair free, baby-soft skin after a fresh wax. And guys, we’re talking to you too.

Our Notable Pick: WAXON Waxbar. Why? A post-wax makeup application, the virtually painless ‘waxoff’ experience (yes, really), and a wax that can remove hair as short as 2mm.

Make a hot class part of your routine.
You’ve likely indulged in cocktails and BBQ since Victoria Day Weekend. Now it’s time to fit into all those jeans you had put away for the season. Take up hot yoga. It detoxifies the skin and the heat helps the body relax (much needed in the post-Labour Day madness), improves breathing, and focuses the mind (again, needed).

Our Notable Pick: Yoga Tree. Departing from traditional chanting tunes, the instructors arrive with well-curated playlists of everything from Dave Matthews to Jack Johnson. And you don’t have to be an expert; the whole vision is to make yoga a more mainstream practice.

Start Juicing.  
Make it a point to be a little healthier with what you put in your body as patio season winds down. You would have to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables to consume all of the essential vitamins and enzymes offered in one 16oz juice, all of which enter the bloodstream more rapidly and give your digestive organs a sometimes-needed break.

Our Notable Pick: The city has no shortage of great juicing options. Whether you want cold pressed or full blended smoothies, you’re shopping in Yorkville or hitting The Junction, check out our Toronto’s Best Juice Bar poll to get the fix you’re looking for.


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Cover Image: indiwall.com

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