Aqualia Spa

Just wanted to update everyone that Shelly has moved the spa upstairs to the third floor, sharing a space with Pink Sands Tanning. I went for a massage the other day and she honored my package which I purchased over a year ago. I know she is doing facials and massages.

I have been coming here for awhile. The staff is great, use great products and give great facials. I just called today and made an appointment for next week so they are opened. They are located on the third floor now. No one answered the first time I called but I got a call back within 2 mins.

SPA IS CLOSED
And it’s taken any of your pre-​paid service money with it. I was not told until the day before the spa closed that this was about to happen. On the phone (I think I was talking to Shelly), I was told the spa was going to reopen within a month at a nearby location. It’s now been 2+ months and I have not seen any sign of it opening elsewhere. Does anyone know who the owner or business entity of this spa is/​was?

This spa is now closed. Luckily, Shelly has rented a few rooms on the 3^rd floor at Pink Sands so I can continue getting my wonderful facials from her. I don’t believe she has a direct line or website but you can probably call Pink Sands to schedule an appointment.

I come here for facials and eyelash perming+tinting, and I am a fan. They are always available for appointments when I need them on the fly (I hate having to book weeks in advance!) and use good products (Dermalogica, GM Collin) and are centrally located. They have good deals, especially if you buy a prepaid series.
And as for lash services, they are the best I’ve had for perming+tinting (compared to Lavilash and random tint shops I’ve tried) for the price you pay. I’d recommend trying them out. Some cons are the heavy product upsell and the small space, but it doesn’t bother me enough to ding them on that ;)

Shelly is great for facials and Joyce for massages. Thank you, spaweek!

Great eyelash extension deal and Kathy makes your lashes look great. I just got mine done for my wedding and the months leading up to it and got so many compliments! It’s also very easy to get in for a last minute appointment but I would just call ahead of time to confirm your appointment times to avoid any wait. I also would ask for the collagen patch instead of using the tape which is just a little extra. Definitely recommend !!

I bought a special on lifebooker for a massage. The girl KK who provided the service was very nice but I couldn’t relax because her phone kept vibrating, she would bump in to the table or a shelf. It also didnt seem as though she really knew what she was doing. It was mostly rubbing (with one hand while texting with the other) and less massaging. It gave me an awkward feeling. I won’t be going back.

I would not come here again. The microdermabrasion facial felt like nothing. It is as if the machines were not working. The service was constantly interrupted by people taking phone calls and leaving the room to attend to other people. The only thing that was good was the facial massage. The ladies here push products and other services during what’s supposed to be a relaxing hour. There are definitely better places in NYC.

3.5 stars, but I’m rounding up.
Went here for a lash perm. Conveniently able to book with short notice through lifebooker and get a discount. I used to go to Lavilash but now have been trying to find another place that isn’t sketchy or expensive.
I found the person waiting for me when I arrived at the place and was ushered quickly into a private room. She was nice and went right to work. The experience overall was fine, though it seemed like it didn’t take as long as I’m used to. As other reviewers have noted, they don’t really have customized sizes of curlers.
One thing I didn’t like was that during the procedure, she kept trying to separate the top and bottom lashes and would pull my eyelids apart, allowing the perming solution to seep in and make my eyes tear. The end result looked quite nice. One side is curled more than the other, but it might just be that my lashes are longer on one side. So far it’s been almost two weeks and they are still curled, so it seems to be pretty good.

I’ve been getting my lashes done by Kathy for a while now. I can’t even begin to tell you how many compliments I receive on a daily basis. I have even referred several colleagues from work and they are just as happy!
We can’t live without our lashes or Kathy!

I got my eyelashes permed by jenny and they came out perfect. I’ve got them done by other places before and never are they this nice. This is my second time back so hopefully they come out the same as I plan on being a long time customer with this if it keeps coming out fantastic.

My best friend and I went to Aqualia for the first time for facials because we found a deal on spaweek that offered them at $ 65. This is not a true spa. It’s a nail salon that offers massages and facials, but it is not a true spa experience.
Speaking for my own experience, I thought it was one of the worst facials I’ve ever received. The woman was so rough and abrasive with my face, it didnt feel like a relaxing experience, nor do I think her extraction that lasted about 3 minutes was effective at all. She didnt even squeeze anything on my forehead, just my nose and my chin. Her massaging my face consisted of slapping my chin and cheeks repeatedly– again, this was definitely not soothing and relaxing at all.
She started by cleaning the mascara off my eye, she used a lot of cleaner and it was burning my eye. I had to stop her and ask for a tissue to clean my eyes. Next she put lotion on my face and again on my eyes. I never went to a salon that used lotion on your eyes, they are supposed to go around. Again, I had to stop her to ask for a tissue because the lotion was burning my eyes. In addition, she kept leaving the room over and over. Also, people kept coming into our room to ask her for something– it seemed very unprofessional.
My friend liked her facial and the woman who performed it, however, I will not return, nor would I recommend it to anyone.

Came here for a body scrub with 15 minute massage.
Arrived a few minutes late and they gave me no grief (though they weren’t busy) and ushered me back to the treatment room.
Room was small but not uncomfortable, nice temperature, gentle music. I was given a pair of disposable underwear and the treatment started quickly.
Scrub was very nice — the woman doing the work used just the right pressure, flowing movements, etc. It is more or less a sugar scrub or polish. You start on your back and then flip over for her to do your front. They aren’t terribly concerned about not «exposing» you, but whatever. They don’t go near your privates (or even rear end, for that matter) but they do scrub your breasts, so be prepared.
Once the scrub is done, you are asked to shower. This is were it got a little weird. The shower is right in the room (in a little nook) and you’re expected to get up and shower while the woman waits there for you. I had a towel wrapped around myself and she was like, «oh don’t be shy». Hmmm ok…
While you’re showering she changes the towels on the bed and you then lay back down (still in the wet disposable panties — yuck) and get a 15 minute massage.
The massage was pretty awful. I can’t imagine the woman has any kind of massage certification whatsoever — it basically consisted of her pinching my neck and pushing two knots she found in my shoulder area. Never even touched my back below the shoulder area.
At one point another woman stood outside the door and asked my woman a question. This went on for about 1 minute and was pretty distracting. (I have no idea what they were talking about since it wasn’t in English.)
If I was there for a massage I’d give this one star, but the fact of the matter is that I was there for the scrub which, except for the showering weirdness, was quite nice.

WORST EYE BROW WAXING EVER! I work DIRECTLY upstairs from the salon & had never tried them for any service until today. A coworker of mine went for a manicure one time & she had an issue but she has an attitude herself so I wrote it off to that. Well my boyfriend was coming back into town & I figured let me get to work a few minutes early to get my eyebrows waxed.
For starters, my eyebrows are PERFECTLY hair stroked permanently on my face. (permanent make up) so all they need is to be cleaned up… This «tech» waxed off my eyebrows! They are ruined. She left hairs all over them, didn’t even clean them up at all. She straight f*cked them up. When I sat up & she saw the look of terror in my eyes she starts her sentence with «well what had happened was…» its EYEBROWS! They teach you this in the first week of Esthetician school!
I will NEVER go there or even recommend a client to them. & on top of it they charged me $ 15 for a f*ckd up eyebrow wax & left wax all over my face. I knew I should of just waited a day until I went to my place in the BX that does an amazing job & only charge $ 4.

This is really 3.5 stars.
I’ve gotten an eyelash perm here a couple of times and honestly, it’s about as good as someplace else I’ve been which is much pricier. (The best I ever had was at Lavilash but ONLY when it was by Kiki — I stopped going because the other women that started working there were terrible — kinked my lashes, dropped solution in my eye, pulled and pinched when it had never been painful before. Anyway …)
I know some of the reviews on here don’t like the perm here. For me it’s good. I think it does depend on what your lashes are like. Mine are pretty long and the most important thing for me is for the technician to not curl them too muc because they’ll curl back and be on my skin — mine need to be straighter, and they do that just fine here. Also, it’s only $ 32 on Lifebooker or you can buy a package through the spa for, I think it’s $ 100 for 4 perms. You really can’t beat that.
Never had an issue getting an appointment (although I’ve only been here a couple of times), customer service was just fine. If you want to save money and get basically the same service as another well-​known lash place, come here.

I give this place 3.5 stars. Came here for a mani-​pedi booked same day on lifebooker. The place was empty when I came in, and during my visit one person came for some treatment in the back and another for a facial. The place wasn’t busy at all, but then again, it was a Tuesday and 1PM.
The pros:
The technician that was working on me was friendly and gave me a very good mani-​pedi and I’m happy with the results.
They offered to do both at the same time in case I was in a hurry or on my lunch hour.
Clean, sunny spa/​nail salon.
Took me in sooner than my appt time.
Cons:
The person working the desk wasn’t really good at answering multiple lines. I heard her put people on hold to pick up another call. She would get lost in that call, and the other person waiting on hold would hang up on her.
The person at the front desk (maybe a tech?) walked away with another customer, leaving the other tech (who was eating her lunch in the salon) to answer phones. She had no sense of urgency to pick up the phone, seemed almost bothered by it.
At check out with another customer, the tech tried to up-​sell a package to her. Client denied, and the tech asked her «why, are you not happy with my service?» AWKWARD.
They attempted to up-​sell me from my mani to a gel mani.
The kept talking and saying «lifebooker». That’s the only thing I could understand. I thought that was very odd (and rude).
All-​in-​all, I would return using the same rate I found on lifebooker. I was kinda turned off by the fact they try to up-​sell you, but at least they weren’t pushy.

In need of a manicure close to my office, I found Aqualia through Lifebooker (they were offering a manicure for $ 10.50). I booked the appointment online for a manicure during my lunch break.
When I arrived (on time), the salon was empty except for the receptionist. She asked me to pick a color and handed me some magazines. I waited for 10 minutes until the manicurist came over and got started (not sure why there was a wait since there was no one there).
I noticed right away that Helen was filing kind of crooked and was abrupt in her actions. When she started painting my nails, she used several little brush strokes instead of long smooth ones, which left me with streaky spots. When she was finished, she brought the nail dryer over and I started to dry. Running a little late because of the late start, I asked if she could use Quick Dry, and she told me to let them air dry for a few minutes first (the purpose of Quick Dry is so you don’t have to air dry, but whatever). I turn around a couple of minutes later and see Helen eating, which is probably why she wanted me to wait a few minutes. I get that everyone needs to eat but she could have waited a few minutes until she was done with her customer (probably my fault for tipping right after I paid and not waiting for giving it to her before I left). I explained that I was in a rush and she abruptly came over to put the quick dry on, getting more on my hands and fingers than the nails themselves, then went back to eating.
Overall, an imperfect manicure and a less than ideal salon experience.

I came here for an eyelash perm because I got a really good deal from Lifebooker (less than $ 35 with tip). This was my first time getting an eyelash perm in the US, so I was slightly weary about the quality I would get here versus Hong Kong (where I got it done before). The whole process took about 45 minutes. The lady doing it was nice and gentle. The place was quiet and slow, which made it easier to relax (and it helps you have your own little room).
Bad: They use a generic kit, so you don’t get to choose the rod size for your curls. Also bad: When she was done, one side of my lashes were more curled than the other. … It wasn’t SO bad, but I could tell. But I guess that’s what I get for a cheap eyelash perm?
Good: It’s been 3 weeks and my lashes are still slightly curled.

If you used to like to LaviLash, you will love Aqualia. I’ve only tried their eyelash perms but based on my experience, I’m open to trying more.
They are more gentle with your eyelids, the curl looks amazing, and you get a private room. The prices are amazing. I had a relaxing experience, which is not something that you get at one of the eyelash sweatshops.
Jennifer is careful and she continually checks to make sure you are comfortable. Give Aqualia a try; you will love the results.