Skincare Tips for Ladies over 50 and More from the Lotus Spa

Skincare tips for Ladies over 50.

My first experience of the Lotus Spa on Sea Princess was one of complete relaxation – I had a deep tissue massage which lasted 50 minutes.

Usually I’m dragging my feet past the spa on the way to the gym for a much more intense workout, so to lie back and relax, instead of sweating it out next door, was absolutely wonderful.

The Spa on Sea Princess offers a wide selection of treatments from stone therapy to bamboo massages, facials, manicures, pedicures, hair salon services, wellness therapies including teeth whitening, yoga and leg therapy … and the list goes on and on.

In keeping with the Lifestyle Fifty Manifesto, I’m always interested in finding out the best ways of keeping fit and looking fabulous as we age – and sharing these tips with you, so I chatted to Kerry Waugh at the Lotus Spa who shared some great skincare tips especially for ladies of a certain age.

Kerry hails from Northern Ireland, has worked as a skin specialist for 2 contracts with Princess Cruises and is currently the Assistant Spa manager on Sea Princess.

Read on for some down to earth and practical advice on keeping your skin looking as youthful as possible.

1. No Wipes! Wipes are so bad for your skin – they don’t have any good qualities in my eyes. They dry your skin out and when you’re over the ‘half way mark’ you need to keep as much moisture in as possible. Try using a small amount of cream or milk cleanser on a cotton round instead.
2. Use hydrating masks as often as possible. Try leaving the mask on for an entire night – your skin takes in so much more when you’re resting – so make the most of the time you have.
3. Treat yourself every so often. Let the professionals do what they do best – facials once a month can help replenish all that your skin needs – and leave you feeling a little younger.
4. When applying any creams or cleansers to the skin, always use an upward, circular motion. We want to fight gravity and make ‘fine lines’ less apparent.
5. Rotate your routine. Have a few options for your skincare routine. Your skin will react at its own pace. The products you’ve been using for a year will most definitely not have the same effect as they did when you first started using them. Try to change your products every three months – just rotate them.
6. Have some home treatments that you can use every 2 weeks. If your concern is dehydration then have a nice exfoliator and an anti-aging serum to really boost your skin.
7. You must buff your skin once a week, no more no less. If your skin is a little bit more sensitive then you can mix your exfoliator with some cream cleanser.
8. Sunscreen. Does this really need an explanation?
9. Don’t clog your pores with good intentions. Rich creams are meant to moisturise your skin but make sure you cleanse properly each day to get rid of any residue.
10. Keep it up. Rumour has it that if you can keep up a routine for at least 21 days then it becomes a habit.

Thanks Kerry!

Deep Tissue Massage

My therapist for a deep tissue massage at the Lotus Spa was Lucille from Davao in The Philippines. She’s been giving massages for 4 years and has been a therapist with Princess for 2 contracts.

First up she gave me an all over body brush.

“This needs to be done on dry skin for maximum benefit,” she told me. “It opens up the skin’s pores and gets rid of all the dead skin.”

For the deep tissue massage Lucille used an alkaline oil to neutralise and get rid of tension. Then massaged frangipani oil onto my hair and scalp. It smelt lovely and she told me that the oil is also great for nails and dry skin.

Finally Lucille patted on an anti inflammatory gel which made my skin tingle. “That means it’s doing good,” she told me. “It’s an all natural gel, not petroleum based. We use all-natural products  called Elemis, in the Lotus Spa.

I asked Lucille, “What’s the best thing about working on Sea Princess?”

“You meet so many people and so many different personalities on a cruise. I love helping guests find solutions to their concerns, as well as building new friendships. For me, my motto is, “Working with passion while travelling the world.’”

Most popular treatment?

“I’d say it’s the Elemis Aroma Spa Seaweed Massage. It’s not just a massage or a wrap. It helps your body detox, and it’s also a cleansing treatment and good for muscle pains, fluid retention and arthritic pains,” Lucille told me.

Later on in the cruise I tried the Hot Stone Massage and Blessing from Nelspruit in South Africa was my therapist. This is her second contract with Princess Cruises.

I asked her to tell me a little bit about why this treatment is special.

“It’s one of the most relaxing treatments we offer, and it helps to break down the lactic acid build up in the muscles and really relaxes the muscles at a deep level. The stones are specifically created for massage purposes, and are sourced from Indonesia.”

I’d never had a hot stone massage before, and it was a completely different experience to a traditional aromatherapy massage.

I came out of the spa on both occasions, relaxed, invigorated and feeling as if this was another building block in the process to Come Back New after the world cruise! Watch out world 🙂

I’m a guest of Princess Cruises, but all opinions are my own.

Have you got a great skincare, or home skincare treatment to share? Would love to hear about them in the comments section.