Our facial is deliberately old-fashioned. There is no device, no light panel, no extraction unless you ask for it, and no consultation that ends with a list of products to buy. What there is, is an hour, and a third of that hour is massage.

It opens with a double cleanse and two steam towels, which is the only heat step and is there to soften rather than to open anything dramatic. Then the house clay — green illite with chamomile, the same jar sold on the apothecary shelf — sits for eight minutes while your therapist works your hands and forearms, because doing nothing for eight minutes is harder than it sounds.

The last twenty minutes are the reason to book it. Facial massage worked properly is slow, firm along the jaw hinge and the brow ridge, and light everywhere else, and it addresses the held tension that most visible "tired skin" actually is. People routinely describe the result as looking rested rather than looking treated, which is the outcome we are aiming for.

It suits stressed, dry or dull skin and anyone in the middle of a hard season. It is not a clinical treatment: if you are managing a diagnosed skin condition, or you are on a prescribed retinoid or acid course, tell us at booking and we will either adapt the treatment or tell you honestly that you should see someone else first. Keep the skin bare for two hours afterwards and stay out of direct sun that afternoon.