I drove from Westchester to Metamorphosis Day Spa, located on 127 56th St between Park and Lexington a bit harried from staying up all night the previous night before with my best friend Kari. Luckily, Metamorphosis is located on a charming block on the Upper East Side with well-groomed marble building entrances and fresh flowers on the street side.  I found parking right on Park and was whisked up to a fragrant spa with candle lit décor and long mesh curtains.  I went to a waiting room with a plush chair and curled up to some Orange blossom tea and water filled to the brim with lemons.  Lounging, I had a little detoxification from my car ride.  The spa staff was extremely friendly and welcoming, offering to take my coat with warm and generous smiles.

The spa owner, Cleo Londono, a Colombian woman with vibrant, glowing skin that gleams like a penny, brought me into a tidy little room with all-white bedding and a cream waffle knit robe dress-thing, that I would probably wear out on the beach if I ever get to Tahiti for my dream vacation.
Cleo delicately inspected my skin to give me the Spa’s signature facial, an herb based skin treatment that moisturizes and relaxes the skin.  Heavenly, sign me up!

She began with a lavender milk facial cleanser that is suitable for all skin types and then gave me a lovely steam, carefully noticing whether it got too warm.  She wrapped me up in a fluffy wet facecloth that made me feel like I was about to get some sushi for dinner.

Cleo felt that the cranberry enzyme peel would be the best to revitalize my skin, which can get a little bit dull.  After I had this enzyme peel my skin felt clear, and I felt a little bit rejuvenated from my long night out the day before.  She found this amazing hydrating serum that made my skin feel like a creamy serving of dew and cherries.  The serum’s effect lasted all day, when I hit a yoga class at Jivamukti and saw hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons.  I always like looking beautiful for billionaires. She ended with a radiant mask that had the wild scent of roses.  I asked Cleo a little bit about her past, and she is from a very small town in Colombia where her grandmother was the resident health herbalist.  Her inspiration comes from her grandmother’s interests in plants and flowers.  All of Metamorphosis’ products are organic and natural, and smell great on the skin.  This is definitely the smoothest facial I’ve ever had, in terms of making my skin feel very smooth to the touch and giving me that glossy, dewy air of those healthy women we see bopping all over New York City.

Cleo’s favorite treatments at the spa are Cleopatra’s Confection, a milk and honey wrap with alpha hydroxy exfoliation and the Pumpkin enzyme peel that is infused with Vitamins A and C.   She does many special packages for men and women that are holiday themed.  The mother’s day packages are filled with white tea and flowers.  She also frequently donates a small portion of these packages to Save the Earth and the Breast Cancer Society, which I think is an excellent way of giving, and that I wish more businesses would do.  The treatments left me feeling soft and silky.

Metamorphosis Spa is located on 127 E 56th St. 5th floor.  The phone number is (212) 751-6051.   www.metspa.com

This is one hell of a chic spa with confidence written all over it. I love the fact that this spa is right off Lexington Avenue, it has the potential to be showy and ostentatious, but it isn’t. I had to walk straight up to the directory at the door to know I was in the right place. That speaks volumes of confidence all over to me. When I got off the elevator, the front desk was the first thing I saw. I didn’t even have to look around and figure out my surroundings because the girls behind the desk welcomed and directed me right away. I knew immediately that this place had great direction.

I was led to the lounge room, or as it’s called, “the quiet room,” where I waited for my Clean as a Whistle facial. There were a couple of binders on the bottom shelf with clippings of newspaper and magazine articles on the spa. I poured myself a glass of water, had a snack bar, and did some light reading with them. Read my lips - Wowie. Cleo, the petite and amazing woman whose metaphorical baby is this spa, fetched me from the lounge and led me down the hall to my room. I have no idea how she did it but in the little bit of instruction she gave me in changing into the robe and getting under the covers, she made me feel completely natural being where I was. It doesn’t matter how accustomed or unaccustomed you are to going to spas – it takes a special touch feel like that.

There are twenty-five different facials to choose from. I was getting the Clean as a Whistle facial that was actually customized with elements of other treatments. I highly, highly recommend getting skin treatments with Cleo. She made me feel that I could trust her and her assessments. That’s probably no surprise – I mean, she does develop her own products, which she uses at the spa! She has a firm and gentle touch that made the treatment really soothing especially when she used high frequency to clean my pores. The zaps don’t hurt but you definitely do feel them and they’re kind of startling. That could be why I liked that there was a lot variation in temperatures during in this facial too. It was a pleasant surprise, a refresher, when Cleo put a cold towel to my face, when normally I dread the cold.

Anybody who goes here is absolutely going to discover a gem of a spa that doesn’t need a big, grand flashy sign. Cleo gave me the low-down on my skin too and advice on all sorts of little things I could do to improve it. For example, I’m drinking at least a cup of water more a day than I use to. I wouldn’t have thought that the spa actually lives up to the name Metamorphosis. But anyway, I’ll wait until my appointment for next month to see more of that. I felt so natural there I look forward to going back and feeling right at home.

The Metamorphosis Day Spa’s at 127 E. 56th St. #5 between Park and Lexington Ave. Call to set up appointments at (212) 751-6051 or go to www.metaspa.com.