If I’ve been MIA from Seattleite lately it’s because I’ve been out and about displaying my revitalized face thanks to an hour-long visit with Svetlana at Jill Bucy Skincare. 

Heard of Jill Bucy? It may be familiar to fans who’ve been patronizing the French spa religiously since Jill Bucy founded it back in 2006. The spa quickly garnered both local and national recognition but when Jill’s husband was called to some faraway place for work this past year, Jill decided it was time to pass the torch.

That’s where Svetlana Ponomareva comes in. Jill and Svetlana had actually been trading facials with each other for years (haven’t you always wondered who aestheticians trust with their own faces?) with Svetlana specializing in the same innovative, effective natural treatments that the Jill Bucy name has become synonymous with since opening. Svetlana officially took over ownership in December 2012.

 

Hidden on the creaky ground floor of the (supposedly haunted) MarQueen Hotel in lower Queen Anne (across from Pesos Kitchen & Lounge), Jill Bucy Skincare is a chic space with French details from the breathtakingly beautiful receptionist (with perfect skin, of course)  — and who apparently isn’t from France but instead Minnesota and has predominately traveled and lived in Asia — down to the hand soap used in its bathroom. (Seriously, go just for the hand soap. You can even purchase a bottle of it there if you’d like.)

The spa is an intimate one-room space where now-owner and master aesthetician Svetlana and her colleague Shanda Harmon perform magic … errr … treatments informed by the client’s skin and lifestyle, with customized blends of ingredients that deliver exceptional results without chemicals or invasive procedures. The treatments are centered on French techniques using Biologique Recherce (BR) products and machines. Yes, machines! Jill Bucy Skincare has one of four BR Remodeling Face Machines in the entire United States and is only one of two spas in the Seattle area with the “Perfector” — a non-invasive device that uses gentle, low frequency micro-currents to encourage cellular regeneration.

My situation: Once perfectly primed skin ruined by my it’ll-be-worth-it-in-the-end pregnancy. At 16 weeks pregnant, Svetlana knew exactly what to do with my wayward face and importantly, what to say … “You’re pregnant? You don’t even look it!”

After descending into a bliss that can only be brought on by the hands of Svetlana (and only momentarily startled when she used the Perfector which I had never experienced before — it was a painless “zapping” sensation), I came out from behind the sliding doors fresh-faced and fancy-free.

A few weeks later and my skin seems to be almost back to pre-pregnancy normal. So with that, I can officially say Svetlana at Jill Bucy is worth a visit and a relaxing hour out of your day. If not to come out glowing, then to perhaps catch a glimpse of a ghost. And at the least, the parking is free (via the MarQueen valet).

Jill Bucy Skincare | 600 Queen Anne Avenue N | (206) 283-9295