Cover Studio manager Safa Zidani performing a pedicure as part of the Bastien Duo treatment (Photo: courtesy of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental)
Studio manager Safa Zidani performing a pedicure as part of the Bastien Duo treatment (Photo: courtesy of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental)
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The Bastien Duo treatment by podiatrist Bastien Gonzalez at The Landmark Mandarin Oriental spa helps you rediscover the joys of bare and beautiful nails
Many who choose hard gel consistently for their manicures will find their nails have become thin and brittle over time. Then it’s a decision between sacrificing beautiful hard gel nails or going without for a while to let your nails grow healthy and strong again. That’s the question for which Bastien Gonzalez—a trained podiatrist and pedicurist who’s otherwise known as the “feet maestro”—says there is a simple answer: “Healthy nails are beautiful nails”. A philosophy Gonzalez explains to me while working his magic on my feet as part of the 75-minute Bastien Duo treatment at The Oriental Spa at The Landmark Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong—a treatment where two trained practitioners treat you to a synchronised “four-hands” manicure and pedicure. For me, it was a rare treat to have Gonzalez himself, who was in town for a few days, and studio manager Safa Zidani to care for my ten nails.
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Above The Bastien Duo treatment (Photo: courtesy of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental)
The Bastien Duo treatment (Photo: courtesy of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental)
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Gonzalez knows what he is talking about. He has 36 manicure and pedicure studios across the world—including in Singapore, Bangkok and Tokyo—and he’s pampered countless celebrities and members of royalty. Also, he has his own skincare line—Révérence de Bastien, which he uses throughout my pedicure—and has even opened a school to teach medical pedicure where he puts the emphasis squarely on “cure”.
Upon arrival at The Oriental Spa I am ushered into a private studio where I am comfortably seated on a chaise lounge. Gonzalez, who will be giving me my pedicure while Zidani works on my hands, starts by wiping my feet with a wet towel before beginning the drilling process on my toe nails, which is a lot more luxurious than it sounds. First comes the high-precision drill with diamond dust, which is followed by the Révérence de Bastien Pearly Buffing Cream that is made with crushed mother of pearl. The buffing process is finished off with a custom-made chamois leather buffer. The result? Instantly shiny bare nails that look like they have been painted with translucent varnish.
Also read: 5 Tatler-approved foot massages in Hong Kong
Starting at the same time as Gonzalez, and in complete synchronisation, is Zidani who is as skilfully buffing and drilling my nails for my manicure. The processes are similar, but fingernails are buffed thrice, while toenails are buffed four times.
The two masters then work on my cuticles. Using a fine medical blade, Gonzalez pulls out dead skin from the sides, making sure to reassure me it won’t hurt a bit—it doesn’t, and neither does the trimming around my fingernails. After that, he applies the Révérence de Bastien cuticle cream to moisturise the skin around my nails, and Zidani does the same on my hands.
Above Many of the products from Gonzalez’ skincare line are used in the mani-pedi treatment at The Oriental Spa (Photo: courtesy of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental)
Many of the products from Gonzalez’ skincare line are used in the mani-pedi treatment at The Oriental Spa (Photo: courtesy of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental)
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Then out comes another blade in a different shape (by this time I am confident I am in extremely skilled hands) that Gonzalez uses to remove the calluses and dead skin from the soles of my feet. While he is busy with that, Zidani tackles the dead skin around the nails on my hand.
When both my feet and hands are cared for, and all my nails shaped and buffed to their satisfaction, Gonzalez wraps up the pedicure with a soothing but firm foot massage, which he compares to “fluffing the pillows”.
“When you fluff your pillows before placing your head on it, it feels so much more comfortable,” he tells me. “I am doing the same with the fatty cushions on your feet. Through a firm downward massage movement, I am helping the fatty pads on your feet to be uniformly redistributed so that the evenly spread-out cushioning system minimises the effect of pressure and friction on your feet.”
Above The Bastien Duo treatment (Photo: courtesy of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental)
The Bastien Duo treatment (Photo: courtesy of The Landmark Mandarin Oriental)
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The 15-minute massage uses the Sensitive Feet Balm from the Révérence de Bastien collection and focuses not only on my feet but also up to my knees. It leaves my skin feeling supple, hydrated and smelling of sage. Finally, the pedicure is finished with a sprinkling of leg shimmer dry oil, which adds to the shine—and to my confidence of showing off my bare legs.
Similarly, Zidani also ends my manicure with a hand massage, for which she uses the same water-based cream to massage me in, likewise, firm but relaxing strokes from my fingertips to my elbow.
Before the end of my treatment, Gonzalez observes that the nails on my hand and feet are on the brittle side, and suggests I abstain from applying any kind of gel manicure for some time—advice I am happy to follow, especially since the manicure and pedicure left all ten of my nails with such a beautiful, natural shine.
Overall, the synchronised aspect of the Bastien Duo treatment feels doubly relaxing, and while two heads might be better than one, when it comes to hands, four are definitely better than two. Especially for a pampering coordinated hand and foot massage, which was definitely the most indulgent part of the treatment.
Price: HK$2,150
Duration: 75 minutes
Available at: The Oriental Spa, The Landmark Mandarin Oriental, +852 2132 0011
Suchetana Mukhopadhyay is the Digital Content Manager for Tatler Hong Kong. In this role, she leads all digital editorial and branded content on Tatler Hong Kong’s website, from brainstorming story ideas with the writers to editing and publishing the articles, and from managing the overall content flow to driving search engine optimisation. She also leads the beauty content at Tatler Hong Kong and across the region, and is always looking to champion diversity through her articles. She was previously with Cedar Hong Kong and Gafencu, and freelanced for the South China Morning Post, Campaign Asia-Pacific, CNN and more. Contact her here.
