Free hand massages at Jo Malone

November 11th, 2008, 12:00 pm · 2 Comments · posted by Candice Shih, Staff Writer

First, I have to say I know I have a very cool job.

Second, as part of that very cool job, I went to Jo Malone for what I heard were free 5-minute hand-and-arm massages. It’s investigative journalism, you see.

Thus, I didn’t introduce myself as a reporter until after the treatment.

To start off, Jo Malone stylist Katie Barraza (pictured) asked me which scents I liked, i.e. floral or citrus. I told her I was clueless, and she helped me select Nectarine Blossom & Honey, the South Coast Plaza’s store most popular scent.

We went to the sink where Katie gave me shower gel to test under the warm water. Next came the bath oil, which she rubbed on my hands. Then, with my hands patted dry, she massaged body creme into them.

Although all the products were scented with Nectarine Blossom & Honey, Katie also spritzed the fragrance on both my wrists.

The multiple applications are what Jo Malone calls layering and I was told they are an effective way to make a fragrance last throughout the day as well as to mix-and-match scents.

Since then, I’ve been holding my hands to my nose in delight like Molly Shannon’s Mary Katherine Gallagher on “Saturday Night Live.” (Minus the armpit part.)

After the treatment but before I told her I am a reporter, Katie offered me a bag of Jo Malone samples, too.

So it wasn’t exactly a full-on massage (I didn’t get to sit down), but it was definitely pampering and it was definitely free.

I was suspicious that I might get a hard sell as a result but that wasn’t the case. Katie was very informative but I didn’t feel pressure to buy anything.

The treatment is available to anyone at any time and can also be done at the Jo Malone counters inside Bloomingdale’s, Saks and Neiman Marcus at Fashion Island.

Click on the rest of the entry for photos of holiday gifts at Jo Malone.

Click on the images to see larger versions.

Jo Malone is on the second level near Carousel Court.	Scents are lined up for testing, mixing and matching.	Holiday gifts include a set of six colognes for $95, six bath oils for $85 or six candles for $85. Customers sometimes break them up into separate gifts, according to manager Debora Parker.
The fragrance trousseau includes 12 3.4-ounce bottles of fragrance in a large keepsake box for $1,200. (Individual bottles retail for $100 each.)	The candle trousseau, originally made for Elton John, is $575.