I’m a huge fan of facials; I could easily have one a week. And I like trying out new facials – but they have never come with a health warning before!

Recently I booked a facial at the Camelot Spa at The Marion on Nicol, Hurlingham, Sandton; it’s a nice little upmarket spa, which I like a lot. I can highly recommend the grub at the hotel too; they make the best salmon on the planet.

But, I digress. So, I booked a 60-minute Thalgo Source Marine Hydrating Facial. At R880, it isn’t the cheapest in town, but it promised to “correct the hydration levels of the skin, deeply replenishing and restoring the skin’s velvety-smooth feel and radiance”. I liked the sound of that.

When I phoned to make my appointment, an earnest lady asked me if I had issues with claustrophobia. “Some of our clients haven’t been able to manage this facial,” she warned. A facial that people cannot manage? What a lot of rot, I thought to myself.

The following day, when I arrived for my facial, I was questioned once again. “Are you sure you don’t get claustrophobic,” my therapist enquired. Once again, I assured her that I had no such problems.

And so it was that I disrobed and lay on the bed. The therapist did all the normal stuff; cleanse, exfoliate blah blah blah. You know the drill. Then came the surprise! After applying two serums, she applied a mask – which, as the pic of yours truly shows, completely covers your eyes and mouth! I was okay with it; many of my friends would platz.

So, there’s the scary bit. How were the results afterwards? Terrific. My skin really did feel hydrated that day, and the next day too. I’ll do it again.