Veteran skincare expert Veronica Barton Schwartz has a new facility.
Los Angeles is home to hundreds of spas, but not every one is created equal. There are day spas, hotel spas and resort spas, to name a few. And, of course, suite spas: those diminutive hideaways typically found in upscale boutique hotels, where guests can squirrel themselves away and soak up the deluxe surroundings in total privacy.
One such hotel is the Malibu Beach Inn, where Veronica Barton Schwartz, who owns the nearby Skin and Body Care Center, recently opened a second location. DAYSPA was lucky enough to be invited in for a treatment one recent weekend.
Although it was an overcast, breezy day when I visited, the setting itself was enough to impress. Located right on Carbon Beach (aka Billionaire’s Beach, this being Malibu), next to the city’s iconic pier, the 47-room property sets a welcoming tone as soon as guests walk through the door. To the right, there’s a cozy bar area—complete with a flickering fireplace when I stopped by—and, straight ahead, a bustling patio restaurant overlooking the ocean.
Within a few minutes, Veronica had arrived to greet me and whisk me upstairs to the spacious skincare suite, kitted out in comfy beige and cream linens and furnishings.
Despite enjoying a celebrity clientele list as long as your arm—built up over 35-plus years in business—Veronica is super-friendly and down to earth. Her service menu includes a variety of facials and massages, plus reflexology, brow shaping, waxing and more. For me, she selected an Epicuren Himalayan Superfruit Enzyme Facial (60 min./$240), which included the brand’s delicious-smelling scrub, gentle extractions (sans steam! I don’t know how she did it but I didn’t feel a thing!) and an application of oxygen to help with my aging concerns.
And, speaking of which, I grilled Veronica about her secrets for staying so youthful-looking—naturally! They turned out to include good skin care, fastidious SPF application, plenty of water—and daily fish oil supplements.
Veronica is also a fan of other skincare manufacturers such as SkinCeuticals and Intraceuticals, and switches them up as necessary to deliver a truly customized service.
At the end of the treatment, my skin felt plumped and soothed. And as if I wasn’t relaxed enough, Veronica sat me up in the bed so I could gaze out at the water (“We often have a male sea lion come by!” she shared.) With a long drive ahead of me, I had to decline the hotel’s proprietary Veronica Spa Cocktail—a blend of pineapple juice, coconut water, lime, mint and organic, gluten-free vodka—and instead sipped on fruit-infused spa water. I pondered how I could barricade myself in the room and never leave, before reality hit me with a bang. But the good news is: I don’t have to stay the night to enjoy this small slice of paradise again: the spa suite is open to non-hotel guests too!
