Indulge: A Retreat to the Peninsula’s Spas

Awaiting a luxurious facial at Lucia.

Relax, breathe, and melt into some very talented hands in Door County. Whether for a bachelorette party, honeymoon, or personal time, Door County now has quite a few options for special body treatments.

Three spas, Lucia Luxury Day Spa, Lori’s Spa and Nail Studio, and The Spa at Sacred Grounds, provide a menu of different massages, body wraps, and facials and more. Euphoria, an Aveda concept hair salon, also provides quality services.

Lucia Luxury Day Spa, located in the Harbor’s Bazaar of downtown Egg Harbor, brings fun and celebration to your special treatment. Owner Deb Davis feels that her spa is about joy in combination with healing. Each customer is considered a guest, and if a bridal party shows up, Lucia provides Mimosas. If it’s a cold and wintry day, they’ll have Bailey’s Irish Cream for your coffee, in addition to many choices of tea.

Nancy, a massage therapist at Lucia, provided me with a more cleansing cup of detox tea, after giving me a two-hour ayurvedic massage, or abhyanga.

Candle burning, lights low, soft relaxation music playing, Nancy massaged my entire body in light to medium pressure with liberal amounts of warm sesame oil. In circular strokes, Nancy carefully focused on areas called marmas. These are points located over the lymph nodes and at joints where blood vessels, ligaments, muscles, nerves, and bone intersect.

By massaging these points with the warm oil, Nancy nourishes the skin, flushes toxins from the lymph system, and balances the doshas. The three doshas, Vata (air), Pitta (fire) and Kapha (earth/water) represent elemental qualities of our body, mind, and spirit. Each person tends toward one or two of three doshas, and needs a little balancing to stay healthy.

When I said “liberal amounts of warm sesame oil,” it seemed Nancy applied gallons of soothing warm oil during the massage, and my skin and body loved every drop. “I explain to people it’s kind of like I’m basting a turkey,” Nancy told me as she explains that I’d have to change positions from sitting to lying for the abhyanga. I didn’t feel like a turkey; I simply felt like Nancy had silently created a new, fresh and alive body for me.

After an hour massage, Nancy placed a steam tent over me to open all the pores in my skin and to encourage blood flow. (Claustrophobics should decline this procedure.) To be sure I didn’t overheat, Nancy dabbed my forehead with a cool moist cotton towel and released steam from tiny vents at different intervals. With deep moist breaths I inhaled the exotic aroma of simple sesame oil. At this point, I already felt elevated into a more divine world, but more glorious sensations followed.

After the steam tent, Nancy patiently drizzled warm sesame oil along my hairline with a quiet, copper, straw-width fountain. No hands, only oil. For twenty minutes, this nutty warm oil softly, gently massaged my scalp. I thought I was levitating — absolutely the most amazing experience I’ve ever had.

Lucia also offers a Rain Drop Therapy, in which a combination of essential oils specifically for the use of massage and emotional support, are dripped along the spine and dispersed into the back. Two hot towels “set” the oils. After the back and legs, the massage concludes with a shoulder, neck, and face massage.

For more information about Lucia and their services, call (920) 868-1597.

Lori’s Spa and Nail Studio caters to personal treatments. Lori Strantz, trained and licensed for many types of massage, performs every service herself, one individual at a time.

From the first step into Lori’s Spa and Nail Studio, the log cabin decor creates a cozy bed-and-breakfast style of hospitality. A half circle of comfortable chairs facing a fireplace welcomes the guest to relax before and after services. The nail studio sits downstairs in a quiet area designed for no interruptions. Upstairs, Lori massages her clients in a soothing softly lit room secluded from the hustle and bustle of Fish Creek.

To my delight, Lori gave me a Milk and Honey Body Polish. Lori starts by vigorously scrubbing my body, feet first, with exfoliation gloves and the polish. Sweet aromas of nuts and honey circle around my head as she works to increase my blood circulation with the finely-ground nut shells and oils. For those with bad blood circulation, or people who cool easily, this exciting exfoliation process really gets the blood moving, yet smells and feels scrumptious.

After the scrub, Lori gently pulls the polish off with hot moist towels. Hot moist towels are the absolute best part of any spa experience. Luxurious hygiene!

Increasing the relaxation process, Lori finishes the treatment with a soft full body massage with massage lotion. My skin already feels surprisingly soft during the sleep-inducing massage. Every aspect of the treatment proves Lori’s skills in body work. Any person who receives a service from Lori should feel as privileged and special as I did. I knew throughout the entire hour and a half, no one would interrupt the experience, since Lori locks the door and lets the mute answering machine answer the phone. My time at Lori’s spa was my time and my time alone. Afterwards we sat in front of the fireplace, drinking water and talking about why she runs her business solo.

After surviving colon cancer last year, she realized that life was too short to allow stress into the picture. She felt most comfortable without employees, working on one client at a time in the space she created with utmost comfort and personal attention. In my book, she succeeded. Peace and satisfaction glow in her eyes.

For more information on Lori’s Spa and Nail Studio, call {920) 868-9493.

The Spa at Sacred Grounds in north Ephraim, focuses on a beautiful, and tranquil retreat experience. Diane Ludwigsen, the owner, wants to emphasize that The Spa is all about healing. Skylights spread soft natural light throughout the space of wood and granite. I felt my mind drift away into dreams instantly, I heard the fountain trickle, soft music soothed my busy schedule into nothing, and I sighed.

Massage therapist Maureen welcomed me into her room for a hot stone massage with native stones from the area. I noticed these beautiful stones in all sizes and colors, simmering in hot water, each smooth and wonderfully round. After I undressed and sat on the table, Maureen laid out two rows of stones behind me to perfectly line up on either side of my spine. As I lay down, I felt each stone warm and firm on my back, but I soon forgot about them. The massage proceeded with Maureen working oils into my skin with warm stones and circling the stones to loosen muscular knots. This feels unique in that it’s slightly exfoliating, yet incredibly warm, soothing, quiet, and less specific than other massages tend to be. No fingers or thumbs working knots, no pulling, no seeking. Long strong strokes, smooth rhythm, and the stones’ texture and heat create a relaxing massage. At a certain point, I had little flat stones on my forehead and in between my fingers and toes, with larger stones under each hand, under each foot, on my belly, and under my back. Take one moment with your eyes closed to imagine that warmth and polarity. Smile.

After a refreshing glass of lemon water, Becky showed me into her room for a facial. Their new French product line, Decleor, speaks to the senses with amazing essential oils. Neroli, which comes from the orange tree, happens to be one of my favorites and I was thrilled to have this six-course facial featuring that oil.

Before all the soothing aromatic treatments begin, Becky sits down and explains what it means to have healthy skin and what daily routine with these products does to accomplish that. My favorite part, which might be the most challenging, was the plasty, or what I think of as cereal sludge. After a couple of clean sings, Becky gently lays moist cheesecloth over the top and bottom of my face. Only my nose is left free. She then carefully spreads something similar to breakfast cereal over my entire face, so I have no choice but to stop talking and relax. (Claustrophobics should decline this procedure.) I can smell the bran as Becky proceeds to massage my shoulders, arms and hands. By the end of the facial I felt radiant, relaxed, and on top of the world.

Also deserving mention are the amenities offered at The Spa at Sacred Grounds. Each client has a wooden locker with key, a robe, slippers, and the option of using either of two showers after services. They also have a lovely new steam room and sauna.

For more information on The Spa at Sacred Grounds services, call (920) 868-4733.

Euphoria, an Aveda concept hair salon in north Ephraim, offers a friendly atmosphere of women who love working with each other. With every service at Euphoria the client receives a massage of some sort, whether on the neck and shoulders, scalp, hands and arms, or feet and legs.

At my last appointment, after salon owner Arnie Kissel painted my hair with three colors of dye, Beth gave me a pedicure. Her caring massage on my feet and legs made my day. While one foot was in the vibrating foot bath, the other was skillfully massaged while the hair dye set.

Looking around Euphoria, anyone can see complete camaraderie among the staff Each person cheerfully helps the other with sweeping, rinsing, mixing up dyes, serving coffee or water – every little task.

For more information about Euphoria’s services, call (920) 854-9107.

Actually, all four of these businesses — Lucia, Lori’s, The Spa, and Euphoria — shows that any business can create a healthy environment if that’s what it sets out to do. Visit any one, or all, of these fine establishments to feel the hospitality, relaxation, and comfort they offer.

As it says on Lucia’s brochure:

Breathe In, Breathe Out. Breathe In, Breathe Out. Relax. Celebrate.