What you are about to read is quite literally a glowing recommendation – I glow as I type!

I’m fresh from Cinnabar Beauty in Mylor Bridge, a hidden gem of a beauty salon, with a tantalising menu of treatments, including a range of facials to suit every need.

Cinnabar beauty salon, Mylor Bridge, Cornwall, exterior

The salon is run (solo) by highly experienced beauty therapist Fiona, who counts reflexology, hypnotherapy and Neuro Linguistic Programming among her many and varied professional skills.

Fiona has always lived in the Falmouth area and worked at luxe hotels, including The Nare and Budock Vean, before starting her own salon. She opened Cinnabar in 1996 and has clients who travel from all over Cornwall to see her.

Cinnabar beauty salon, Mylor Bridge, Cornwall, treatment room

Every treatment offered at Cinnabar is flexible and you get the sense that Fiona is really responding to your skin and even your mood as she goes, tailoring the experience. And if her own flawless and radiant complexion is anything to go by, Fiona knows what she’s doing when it comes to skincare.

She works with three quite different skincare brands, including Dermalogica, Neal’s Yard and bareMinerals and believes in them all for different reasons. Because I prefer more natural products and I hadn’t come across a bareMinerals facial before, I decided to try their three-step ritual, customised for me by Fiona.

Cinnabar beauty salon, Mylor Bridge, Cornwall, bareMinerals products The treatment included a double cleanse, exfoliation with a soft brush, then hydration with Skinlongevity Serum (containing a Japanese super-herb from Okinawa) and True Oasis Replenishing Gel Cream and a nurturing head and neck massage. It finished with a quiet ten minutes with a cooling eye mask.

A couple of the products, though natural, felt a little tingly thanks to their active ingredients and they all had gorgeous subtle scents.

Cinnabar beauty salon, Mylor Bridge, Cornwall, Fiona

Although a facial at Cinnabar is incredibly relaxing, Fiona is focused on results – clearing the sebum-clogged pores on my forehead in my case. And she not only worked on the problem area for me during the treatment but explained how I could continue to combat it at home – without the hint of a hard sell on products.

Directly after the facial my skin looked a little red in places but it had settled down by the evening and two days later, looks as healthy as it has in a long time.

Cornwall is dotted with hotel spas but a brilliant local salon like Cinnabar is a real find. Just don’t tell everyone – oh whoops!

THE MUDDY VERDICT

Good for: Anyone looking for a great tailored facial, in a welcoming and relaxed setting.

Not for: Cinnabar is a small salon, so no good if you’re looking for somewhere to go with a gaggle of girlfriends.

££: There’s a range of facial treatments to suit various budgets. An Express Dermalogica Facial will set you back £32, the bareMinerals facial I tried is £45.

Cinnabar Beauty, 21 Lemon Hill, Mylor Bridge, Falmouth,TR11 5NT. 01326 375476. Cinnabarbeauty.co.uk

Local Gem Alert! Cinnabar Beauty

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