Spa-mazing!

Last weekend was a rare four day weekend for me, due to the Melbourne Cup celebrations. So I thought I would spoil myself with some much needed pampering. 

I thought as it was approaching Summer, it would be great to incorporate a full body scrub into the treatment to get my wintery dry skin summer ready. I also wanted to include a massage as I have been feeling pretty stressed and anxious lately, and had quite a few muscle aches and pains.

I wanted to go to Endota Spa (view their website here) because they are one of the few spas that are conveniently located everywhere, whilst also being luxurious and fancy. Plus I’ve been to them quite a few times before. 

After much deliberation I decided upon the treatment package called the Scrub + Glow, which was a 1 hour 45 minute treatment involving:

- a 10 minute billabong footbath, where they scrub and massage your feet and lower legs (surprisingly amazing!)

- a 50 minute full body scrub with essential oils, herbs and salts. Then oil up your skin and sprinkle the salt mix on top, rubbing it in in little circular motions.

- a 45 minute full body massage including moisturiser application

A sneak peak of the treatment room - with massage table and shower

So how did I find it? 

The billabong footbath sounds average, but it’s actually incredible. It was one of my favourite parts of the treatment. Perhaps you wouldn’t love it if you are ticklish on your feet though. The scrub has left my skin the softest it’s ever felt, and so glowing and healthy looking. The actual process was a bit rough though. I think the salts were quite large for exfoliating purposes, meaning they worked brilliantly to get soft skin, but it wasn’t the most pleasurable application process. Some parts felt almost painful like it was irritating my skin (it wasn’t though!). But I’ve had a scrub before which was incredible and even more pleasurable than a massage, which is what I hoped this scrub would be like. The massage was so relaxing and amazing that I think I fell asleep for a few minutes, which I have never, ever done before!

In this treatment after you’ve had the scrub element, you then have a quick shower in the in room shower/bath to get all the salts off. This just adds to the relaxation and cleaning process.

All in all I would highly recommend this treatment, or a scrub/massage combination that's similar. 

This is the first spa type treatment I’ve ever purchased myself, and I have to say I feel it was totally worth it. I spend $150 on a dress or on a 15 minute specialist medical appointment for instance, so why do I feel so guilty about spending this amount on two hours of pure bliss that makes you feel so much healthier and happier, helps your muscles and aches, revitalises your skin and is extremely relaxing. I feel everyone should try to treat themselves to something like this at least once a year. The benefits are countless and it's just great to take some time for yourself every now and then. 

My tips:

• I think a half hour massage is too short, as you often spend a lot of a short massage worrying that it’s about to end. The perfect massage length is 45 minutes to an hour, which allows them to do the full body.
• I’ve learned to ask for a firm pressure massage. As medium is too soft for me, and firm isn’t too hard. So I always opt for the hardest pressure as the masseurs I’ve had have never pressed hard enough for me. And it’s not like I like being beaten into the table or anything, just firm feels like a normal massage.
• I find getting treatments that are most pleasurable (massage) or have longer term benefits (scrub) to be the best, whereas I find facials for instance aren’t as relaxing because essentially it’s just someone putting on and taking off creams to your face.
• Drink lots of water, as often you can feel dehydrated during/after a treatment like this.
• If you come out of a massage feeling a tad achey, you can use a heat pack on the area to help soothe it.
• Try to choose a spa location away from a shopping centre/mall. The point is to avoid stress and hustle and bustle!

Do you ever have a spa/pampering day? If so what is your favourite treatment/combo to get? 

IPads And My All Time Favourite TV Shows

When your life seems to be all work, sleep, eat on repeat, you need to find things that get you excited and passionate. Things that can provide entertainment, escapism and something to look forward to.

Since starting full time work, I’ve been pretty overwhelmed by my lack of spare time, huge commutes, long work days that leave you exhausted by the time you finally get home, and the fact that I’m always seemingly living for the weekends. So I’ve found it really important to find things that make my work days a bit brighter and more bearable.

I have a few go-to activities that provide me with great joy and escapism, however the number one at the moment is my addiction to TV Shows. Specifically dramas.

One enormous tip I can give to those of you that have a long commute or travel lots on public transport is try and save up and BUY AN IPAD (which I did really recently!).

Isn't she pretty?

Before my iPad, my 45 minute train ride to work and then 45 minutes home again nearly killed me. Now when I wake up in the mornings and when I step out of my building at night, I really look forward to my iPad TV show watching on the train. It’s a perfect amount of time to watch a full episode, and train trips fly by so fast to the point where I barely notice them anymore. Sometimes I even wish they would go longer so I could watch another episode! 

I feel like I’ve gotten back an hour and half of my life a day (that equates to 7.5 hours over the work week!), and time is so precious to me. So an iPad has been a brilliant investment for my life and wellbeing. It creates my own little movie theatre on the train where I can zone out and be fully engrossed in my shows and not even notice I’m on a train.

So getting your hand on an iPad would be one of the biggest work/life balance recommendations I could give you.

Anyway now to get to what I actually watch on my iPad!

If you are anything like me, you’ll whizz through every season of a whole TV show and then constantly be in search of your next potential show addiction. I’m currently waiting on about NINE shows to start in the new season, which is pretty crazy! So I’m always looking for new recommendations of the next show I should watch. I’d actually love it if you guys could recommend shows to me!

So in case you share this show addiction of mine, I thought I’d create a couple of posts on my favourites. This one will be my all time favourite shows that are now finished and are my top shows of all time. The next post will be current favourite shows that are still being produced.

So let’s start with a BANG. My favourite show of all time...

#1

One Tree Hill (9 seasons)

Part of my OTH collection - have leant the others out to friends who now share my addiction!

Basic Plot:

The show centres around two half brothers- Lucas and Nathan, and the girls in their lives- Peyton, Hayley and Brooke. It covers their struggles with their selfish and difficult father Dan, relationships with their friends and family members, and the issues experienced as a teen and as a twenty-something.

It’s 9 seasons long and the first four seasons span their 16-18 year old lives, and then the show skips forward five years in season 5 and shows their lives from 22 onwards. It’s great to be able to follow the characters as they grow and see where they end up.

Genre:

Drama, Romance, Feel Good. 

Why I love it:

It’s one of the only shows I’ve watched that focuses on the life of the young adult (rather than just teen or college student). The characters grow as you do, and I started watching it when I was the same age as them (around 16) and then finished watching it when I was a similar age to them.

The show includes elements of many different interests of mine. For instance there’s a fashion designer, a music label owner, a singer, an author, a sports star, a movie producer, a model/actress, etc. Through each of these characters we see their related element play out, so it feels like many shows in one.

It’s such a feel good show that portrays relationships so incredibly well, and you get to know the characters in enormous depth. There are some really fast paced thrilling episodes, but also plenty of slower moving relationship focused ones, but all of it is full of drama and incredibly exciting. It’s just such a genuine, sincere, lovely show.

Yes... I do have a Clothes Over Bros T-shirt!! (don't judge me too hard - I wear it as PJs!)

Any Negatives?

Stick with it, first season takes a while to get into. I watched the first five episodes and got slightly bored, and then a bit later really got back into it! After about episode 10 of first season, the show is absolutely amazing. So stick with it, I promise you’ll love it! Also some people weren’t sure about the five year jump that occurs in season 5, but I think it was a perfect addition to the show.

Favourite Characters:

Brooke, Nathan, Julian and Jamie.

#2

Lost (6 seasons)

Just part of my Lost collection

Basic Plot:

A group of (very good looking!) strangers find themselves stuck on a deserted island after their plane terrifyingly crashes mid flight. Turns out the island is no ordinary island, and the survivors have to band together to survive.

Genre:

Drama, Suspense/Thriller, Mystery. There is also quite a lot of Comedy and Romance too!

Why I love it:

For its emphasis on human drama and relationships. No other show that I have ever watched has had so many main characters (this has over 20!), all of whom you get to know in enormous detail. Each episode tends to have a specific character focus, so the show will ‘flashback’ into the lives of the character before the island, and you can find out why they act the way they do due to past experiences, and discover what motivates them.

I really love psychological shows where humans are tested to their limits by extreme circumstances. It’s the psychologist in me coming out! It’s a brilliant, addictive, clever show, with the most well developed, plausible characters at its centre.

One of my very lucky friends had the 21st of a lifetime (cost over $25,000!!!!??!) and had four TV shows as the theme/sets - Dexter, Simpsons, Sex and the City and Lost. It actually felt like you were in each of the TV shows, it was that good! I stole this secretly as a souvenir - I think I appreciated this more than anyone!

Any Negatives?

You will probably hear of people complaining about how confusing Lost is. It is a very high involvement show definitely, one where you have to watch every single episode in order. But if you follow it religiously you will understand it. There are constant clues and mysteries and things you pick up on, which just adds to the enjoyment of the show.

Also the show takes a slight sci-fi path in the middle, and so long as you are prepared to slightly suspend disbelief, it makes sense in the context of the whole show. In addition, the ending is highly debated, but one thing to keep in mind is that there are many interpretations to the ending (which sporadic watchers missed), so choose the one that you are most comfortable and satisfied with. A lot of Lost is about personal interpretations and meanings derived from events.

Favourite Characters:

Kate (love it when my name’s a character’s name!), Jack, Sawyer, Locke and Sayid.

#3

Friends (10 seasons)

Box Set!!

Basic Plot:

Centred around 6 best friends living in New York City, and the show follows their lives spanned over 10 years. Covers their friendships, loves, losses, work life, and just everything friends go through.

Genre:

Comedy, Drama, Feel Good.

Why I love it:

It’s so true to life and genuine and it reminds me of my group of friends. It’s so comforting and happy to watch and always puts me in a good mood. It’s extremely relatable.

Poster in my room

Any Negatives?

It’s not as addictive as the top two shows, I love shows that have cliff hangers where I can’t wait to watch the next episode. Even though there is a continuing plot, most of the episodes could be stand alone. Good for quick or random viewing, but I prefer to get fully absorbed in a show. Although I can still do this with Friends, and I have been known to sit there for a few hours and watch episode after episode! Also the episodes only go for 20 minutes, whereas I prefer longer episodes of shows that get me more absorbed.

Favourite characters:

All of them! Particularly the boys! But Monica annoys me.

So there you have my top three shows of all time!

If you pushed me to make it a top 5 (I couldn't help myself!), I would also add Gilmore Girls and The OC in there.

Gilmore Girls is such a clever, witty drama with plenty of comedic moments. The banter that goes on between mother Lorelai and daughter Rory is brilliant - they speak so fast! Slightly slow moving in terms of plot, but along the same lines as One Tree Hill in terms of being a sincere, genuine feeling show. There are 7 seasons, that cover the ups and downs of the mother daughter relationship, family, friends and romance, switching between focusing on both Lorelai and Rory’s lives. Lorelai is a stand out character in this show.

The OC came out at a similar time to One Tree Hill, but instead of being set in a small town with more normal characters, the characters in this are more along the lines of Gossip Girl. Incredibly rich and spoilt, it spans the lives of a group of high schoolers and their relationships. An addictive, exciting, glamorous show that never fails to remind me of summer and of my youth. There is an innocence and sincerity that lies at the middle of this show, that’s different to others of its kind, which makes it a stand out in my mind. Absolutely love Seth and Sandy Cohen! It is let down slightly by its final season however (there are four seasons).

So there is my top three/five (it was hard to decide okay!)

I’ll do a post soon about my current, still screening favourites. So are you a fan of any of these shows? I’d love to hear your opinions on them in the comments below! I always enjoy a good chat about the TV shows I love!