Friends first….

The title takes on its full meaning today, because it is with your friends that you find the strength to move forward in the most difficult moments. For personal reasons I have not been present on the blog and other networks this past week. I come back to you with a girly and cocoon article, the opportunity to escape a few moments of our daily life. At the beginning of October, I received an email, an invitation for a cocooning day between girls, with a spa afternoon and a beauty evening, signed Les copines d'abord... I read the email three times, ok five times, and confirmed my presence in the minute. I must say that I was just waiting for this, to relax and forget the stress of this black year. Appointment scheduled for October 23rd.

Le Zein Spa

I meet Maria and Manon, who are also invited to this exceptional day. Smartphone in hand we followed the gps that guided us to the Quai Rive neuve (7th century). In a small traverse of the old port, a stone's throw from the famous Bar de la marine, also housing a circus school and the Quai du rire theatre, this is where the Zein spa entrance was located. Immediately we feel the softness of the environment, a peaceful atmosphere, perfumed with the scents of the East. The spa manager gives us a warm welcome and explains how our afternoon went. We follow our host, and that's where everything turns up behind a curtain. Here we are in Marrakech, immersed in a scenery of the Thousand and One Nights, the dimmed light of the candles illuminate a corridor that takes us under the vaults of this place steeped in history, the spa is built under the former royal arsenals. We are taken to the changing rooms and invited to remove our make-up with argan and rose oil. Impatiently we put on bathrobes and tap shoes to continue the visit of this mysterious place. Zein Spa is a national chain, you probably have one near you! A complete establishment entirely dedicated to the well-being, diversity and quality of the services offered make it an exceptional place. Beauty institute, hairdresser, hammam, warm and hot room, scrub room, and massage cabins. You can even privatize the place a good gift idea for boyfriend's birthday! The Zein Spanous team had booked a relaxation area with a nice buffet, fruit, oriental pastries, lemonade and mint tea. We are disoriented, out of time, here there are no networks, a tragedy for the hiccups that we are, but it is what has also allowed us to live the moment fully, totally forget the stress of our lives outside. After enjoying the warm room for a long time, which is already very hot, we were treated to a black soap scrub. Traditional Moroccan soap, it is made with oil and crushed black olives, it is a grainless scrub paste that, combined with the heat of the hammam opens the pores of the skin and allows the hair glove to remove dead skin. A ritual in perfect harmony with the rest of our program, the massage. We are led into a pretty double massage room, lit by candlelight and lulled by oriental music. I had chosen monoï vanilla massage oil, a scent that I particularly like, a holiday scent. I totally surrendered myself to the expert hands of my masseuse who untied my muscles one by one and freed my body from all the accumulated tensions. A moment of pure happiness, free of all constraints, timing, thoughts, nothing but well-being. At the end of these twenty minutes, wrapped in my sheet, I was peaceful, a real marshmallow. The afternoon was coming to an end, we had to go to the apartment of the famous "girlfriends", all day long we were wondering who these fairies were who were offering us this dream day. After a few photos, thousands of thanks to the fabulous team who welcomed us like princesses, we leave the Zein Spa with eyes full of stars, amazed by the beauty of the place with the feeling of having discovered a secret place.

The Friends' Apartment

After a hard return to reality, the cold, the noise of the city, the traffic jams, the wet hair we arrived at 87 Boulevard de Paris. We ring the bell, we doubt, the door opens on a pretty blonde, who invites us to follow her. In the elevator, still a little embarrassed, we exchange the banalities of use, my curiosity is piqued, impatient to discover the rest of this extraordinary day. The Apartment is a real apartment. Invested a few months ago by two girlfriends, Clémence and Sabrina. Two girls full of life, as funny as they are pretty. Together they imagined a living space, exclusively for women, a space of freedom, relaxation to chat with chicks and be pampered. More than a concept, it is a state of mind. Here the girls organize girly aperitifs, Sunday brunches, private events such as bachelorette parties, for example. The girlfriends' apartment is also a showroom and a beauty salon (manicure, pedicure, eyelash extension). There is even a S.O.S. service, a kind of date brigade. A last-minute appointment, don't panic, the Friends First thought of everything. More effective than Charlie's angels, they offer a hairdressing service, make-up and even outfit rental. That's genius! The girls welcome us around a glass of white wine (we don't do it again), and a buffet of sweet and savoury homemade delicacies prepared by Minoofi. The girls have decided to take care of us until the end, I am styled by Anaïs, an independent hairdresser, who makes a pretty blurry brushing, then I go under the brushes of Chrystelle professional make-up artist and finish with a manicure with permanent varnish. Spoilt until the last minute, we all left with our beauty bag filled with pretty surprises. I am all pumped up and delighted with this fabulous day that ends in the living room over a drink, exchanging good tips and gossip. A real breath of fresh air, we even forget that we were invited, we feel like we're staying with friends. A successful bet for this pretty team of shock that should make a name for itself in the coming months.