So… you book in for a facial thinking it will be a nice treat. (Although, sadly, it isn’t always.) You walk in, as Sarah did to Vaishaly Patel’s salon near Baker Street, London, looking a bit white around the gills, slightly gaunt and bony-faced, after three days of neck ache and poor sleep. Then, under an hour later, emerge gleaming and beaming, looking and feeling as if you have had the most perfect night’s sleep and all is very right with the world. No wonder some of Vaishaly’s clients have stuck with her for 20 years, and others come from all over the country and jet over from Europe and America. Some, she tells Sarah, can afford to come every six weeks or so, others save up for a twice-yearly visit. Because it’s worth every penny.

How does Vaishaly weave her magic? It seems strangely simple: first, removing debris with some sort of little gizmo – ‘no squeezing so you don't leave looking red and blotchy,’ – then a very quick whiz of micro-dermabrasion to lift off dead skin cells (and even Sarah’s super-sensitive skin didn’t complain one jot) – then cleansing. Next a mask and while this sits and does its work, Vaishaly does cranio-sacral work on head and shoulders, and facial massage (‘like body massage for the face – no stroke-y, stroke-y, you can do that at home!’), then more cranio-sacral.

And the secret lies in that gentle touch therapy. Ultimately, Vaishaly believes the look of your skin reflects your state of mind and body. Get that right and your skin will show it. Suffice it to say that – incredibly - Sarah’s neck and shoulder ache practically vanished in that short period and, golly, did she feel the difference. (All Vaishaly’s aestheticians are trained in her technique for the Signature Facial.)

Then the test: get up, get dressed, look in mirror… Too often, it’s a disappointment: we have experienced post-facial puffy eyes, blotchy redness and uneven skin tone, and we have to whip out our make-up bags to face the world. But after this facial, Sarah’s nude face – lifted, rosy, gleaming and beaming – looked so good that she set off for the YOU magazine office to show it off. (And, yes, there were compliments…)

And, last but not least, as well as all the other beauty treatments available at the salon (including threating, waxing, massage, eyelash and brow treatments as well as men’s grooming), Vaishaly has opened an enchantingly pretty nail salon right next door. So… all your beauty wants satisfied.

Signature Facial with Vaishaly/£250 for 55 minutes (£125 for 55 minutes with aestheticians)

vaishaly.com – 020-7224 6088