Murad (Lane Crawford Faces) - Birthday Facial - mini review ★☆☆☆☆

The Spur: I am a Murad Acne Complex loyalist, since their products really have changed my skin for the past few years. And for that, I am rewarded with a phone call from the Murad counter at Lane Crawford's Faces, with an offer of a free facial near my birthday. No strings attached? It's the first thing I wonder. I hate pushy salespeople and am wary of something like a free facial being a platform for them to sell sell sell. But I was zen in my resolve to not feel bad about saying no.

The Goods: Lane Crawford's Faces in TST is nowhere near where I live or work, but I'm always up for a free facial, so I made the trip there after work. I've always wondered what their facial rooms look like. Well, it's basically a small back room with white walls, a sink, a mirror and a narrow foldout cot covered in a layer of towels. I had to take my top off and cover myself with towels, and the facialist kept telling me it's freezing in there so I should use more towels. She was right.

The Sticker: She told me this 30-minute facial is for replenishing moisture. I wouldn't pay for a facial here. It's normally $480 for a 60-minute facial, which is exorbitant.

The Atmo: Obviously, you don't get the spa ambiance. Actually, the ambiance here is so bad (hello, freezing back room in a mall), I don't understand why anyone would come here - just because they use Murad products? For this price, I can easily find a real spa that uses the same or better products.

Treat Me! But also, the facial itself was very sloppy. Everything kept dripping down my neck. The facialist did not seem very experienced. The treatment involved normal facial procedures of cleansing, toning, scrubbing, mask, moisturizing. Then afterwards, I tried to do my makeup as fast as possible but still got kicked out of the room. The only good thing was, to my surprise, there was no product push at all.

Overall: ★☆☆☆☆

But I did console myself by going to the Nars counter to buy makeup. I want a Nars makeover!