Design Exercise

Design 3

Wellness Center:
Salon & Spa
Research Document

Alcantara, Mardy Morris A.

I.

Introduction

A. What is Salon & Spa?

Let us first define the meaning of these two:
Salon: A salon is a facility which offers beauty services. Salons provide a wide array of
services to men and women, and they can be found in many regions of the world. Growth
in the salon sector tends to be constantly expanding, as more people grow interested in
beauty services and new services are developed to expand the existing customer base.
Employees at a salon, known as aestheticians or cosmetologists, depending on the types
of services they offer, usually require a license from the government in the area where
they work.
Salons can also specialize in services such as nail care, skin care, and so forth. Others
offer a wide array of services, allowing people to come to one location to satisfy an
assortment of beauty needs. Services at a salon can include manicures and pedicures,
facials, body wraps, body polishes, waxing, hair threading, make-up, and beauty
consultations. Salons may also offer tanning, for people who want to maintain a deep tan
during the months when the sun isnt available to do the job.
Spa: It is an establishment contributing to peoples wellness in an environment conducive
to relaxation, offering as the main activity one or more forms of water therapy and one or
several types of professional treatments, at least including massage therapy, offered in
two or more treatment rooms and comprising a relaxation area reserved for this purpose.
Another kind of spa that offers services only during the day:
Day Spa: are the place you go for the day to get massage, facials, and body treatments,
like sea salt scrubs and mud wraps. Theyre called day spas because, unlike destination
spas or resort spas, you dont spend the night.
Day spas come in a huge range of styles and personalities, from small village day spas
with two treatment rooms to 35,000 sq.ft. extravaganzas with hydrotherapy tubs, Vichy
showers and an elaborate spa menu.

Many day spas combine both a hair salon and spa. It usually started out as a successful
salon and added spa services. This can be a wonderful combination, because you can get
spa services that leave you relaxed, then get your hair washed and blow dried.
But its important that the two operations are completely separate!
Salons are inherently noisy and bustling. Spas have to be very quiet so you can
completely relax. So it might be worth a visit to the spa to make sure its the real thing.
Some hair salons call themselves day spas when all they have is one massage room off
the salon.
Here is what a day spa should offer:
A quiet, peaceful atmosphere
Robes and slippers (some small spas have no locker rooms and have you change

II.

in the room)
A full menu of massage, facials, and body treatments
Professional massage therapists and aestheticians
Private treatment rooms with fresh linens
Professional spa products
A relaxation room with tea
A scrupulously clean facility
In large spas, secure lockers, steam room and sauna

Historical Background
Salon: if you arent aware of it yet, the history of beauty salons is not relatively new
to the world. Back in the days of the ancient Egyptians, people from the upper classes
would normally have their hair clipped very close to their heads. This is so they could
wear full and fancy wigs on top of their heads for special occasions, ceremonies and
public outings. Back then, the beauty salons were the places where wigs were being
made and ordered. While many beauty salons could be found inside the palaces of the
rich and noble, there were also a few on the streets which the commoners frequented.

Grooming has always been around since the days we picked fleas off of each other,
but as our knowledge of hygiene and the technology for looking good evolved, so did
the salon, hair care, hair wands, and the role of the beautician.
As a result of this history, many people had become accustomed to having their hair
styled for them throughout the years. Now beauty salons are not only limited to
styling hair. Almost all beauty salons now are offering many different beauty services.
These services include color, perms, facial treatments, manicure/pedicure, massage,
waxing, tanning, etc. Indeed, beauty salons throughout the history have progressed.
Spa: The word spa may be derived from the Walloon word espa meaning
fountain. This, in turn, came from the name of the Belgian town Spa, where in the 14th
century a curative, thermal spring was discovered. Spa may also originate from the
Latin word spagere (to scatter, sprinkle, moisten) or may be an acronym of the
Latin phrase sanitas per aquas (health through water). In Britain, the word spa is
still used, whereas in the rest of Europe the term thermal waters is preferred.
Bathing in thermal water for therapeutic purposes has several descriptions (for
example, taking the waters, balneotherapy, spa therapy, hydrotherapy), which will all
be used throughout this paper, and are more or less interchangeable.
The spa as we know it a spa, as known to us today, is center for treatments through
various alternate medications, and has grown to include relaxation, unwinding and
getting pampered. But what makes for an interesting read is the origin of this culture,
and the genesis of the word spa. So, when did the concept of spa relaxing and
getting treated for ailments through water come into being?
History of the spa social bathing was religiously adhered to as a culture in the ancient
Mesopotamian, Egyptian, Minoan, Greek, and Roman civilizations. Among the first
to use a variety of baths, the Greeks pioneered the concept of lanocia (hot water tubs
and hot air baths). The Romans adopted and modified it progressively into balneum
and then thermae (Greek for heat). This spearheaded the culture of social bathing
which gained immense popularity in the following years. Even though the fist
thermae can be traced back to 25BC, the balneum existed in the Roman society

almost 200 years before the advent of thermae. Each succeeding emperor to the
Roman throne outdid his forerunner in building more spacious and luxurious baths.
Some baths were large enough to hold about 600 bathers at the time.
The fall of the Roman Empire resulted in a decrease in the popularity of the thermae
concept the world over. All existing spas fell prey to the cyclic order of being
discovered, forgotten, and then being rediscovered. But although spas and hot water
treatments went in and out of vogue since man first stumbled over the concept, water
as a healing liquid never lost sheen. With innovations in the medical science,
allopathy took over almost every other branch of medicine and well being in the early
20th century. Dispensaries and public hospitals started to be viewed as an alternative
to natural healing processes. This threw the existing spas out of gear as they got
transformed into vacationing hubs, losing their original purpose and catering only to
the rich. Other spas responded by concentrating on the beauty business offering an
amalgam of fitness and beauty in glorified salons called days spas.
But, thanks to the indulgent and health conscious populace that looks at relaxation
more as a way of life rather than a leisure activity, the spa culture has sprung back to
life in most parts of the world. Modern spas, though having undergone a paradigm
shift in their ways of treatment, still retain water therapy as their nucleus, and follow
a routine of cleaning, heating, treatment and rest, akin to their older counterparts.
Throughout the ages the interest in the use of water in medicine has fluctuated from
century to century and from nation to nation. The (medical) world has viewed it with
different options, from very enthusiastic to extremely critical, and from beneficial to
harmful. Today, spa therapy is receiving renewed attention from many medical
specialties and health tourists, and having a revival. However, the exact therapeutic
potential of spa therapy still remains largely unknown. Better and more profound
scientific evidence for its efficacy is therefore warranted, in particular for its effects
on the musculoskeletal system.
III.

Design Guidelines

Salon & Spa: When you go around the city, you will probably see a number of salon
& spas around. However, it does not always follow that you will get a great
experience with every spa around. There are a lot of spa owners who have come up
with a decision of building their own business due to the fact that they have not been
satisfied with the services they get. These are the people who wanted to get rid of
stress and offer good services. A spa should be able to give relaxation and comfort to
every woman. This can happen when good services are being offered and a good spa
environment.
If you are planning or have a spa, you should check of the designs inside your area is
pleasing to the eyes as well as relaxing. The design inside your spa is very crucial. In
order to provide what your spa is intended for, then you should make sure that the
environment will promote a stress-free feeling. Before you can decide on the perfect
spa designs, you must first get the understanding what are the feelings that you will
promote and why. It is quite hard for you to create a stress-free surroundings when it
has been used for other purposes.
However, this does not necessarily mean that you can do nothing about it. First,
consider the color of the building. Take note that walls that are stark white and real
vibrant are not good.
Choose colors that are soothing like the blue, green and purple. Make sure that these
are in soft tones. Make sure that they are properly painted in order to achieve a
relaxing feeling.
The spa should also include the necessary tools and equipment that is needed. Most of
the customers will go to spas to get a relaxing massage, a facial, fingernail painting,
or their hair done. Since these are common services that your customers will be using,
it is very relevant for you to have facial steamers, massage tables, styling chairs and
manicure tables.
Aside from the nice styles of the furniture, you need also to make sure that they are
comfortable. Never forget that your main aim for having a salon is to provide comfort
and relaxation. When your salon & spa is located in the city, you have to make sure
that you get a spa which is comforting and relaxing which will help the people in the
city to relax.

Do not also forget to include accessories in your salon spa in order to attract
customers to visit and come. Take note that a perfect salon spa can only be achieved
with proper salon design.
Salon: Because the principal business of a beauty salon is to make people more
attractive, it only makes sense that customers would expect a salon to be attractive
itself. So a beauty salon owner who is striving for success must design a place of
business with an environment that welcomes guests and assures them of that the
business understands beauty. By taking some extra measures to create a particularly
attractive salon, you may be able to substantially increase your ability to attract and
maintain clientele.
Spa:
General Observations on Spa Design:
Interior design should provide a residential not institutional feeling. A simple yet
effective zone keying system should be installed. A proper signage system should
be installed for easy traffic flow. All treatment areas should be as sound proof as
possible.
Materials:
Non-corrosive materials should be used in all high moisture areas (vents, ducts,
drains, ceilings & wall cover). Easy to clean moisture resistant materials should be
used in all high moisture areas. Consider using local materials and integrating cultural
and artistic traditions.
Locker / Changing / Vanity Area:
Provide for appropriate number of half size lockers (two per full size locker

banks) on each side

Provide a separate alcove with third-size lockers (two per full size locker

banks) for members on each side

Utilize movable benches or ottomans on casters for seating by lockers
Provide wall mounted soap, shampoo & conditioner dispensers in showers
Provide make-up lights around vanity mirrors on womens side
Provide wall mounter magnified shaving mirrors at vanity on mens side
Provide wall mounted hair dryer units at vanities on both sides
Provide for electrical outlets above vanities
Flooring in locker and changing area should be carpeted, all other areas tiled

Locker Room Wet Area

Accommodate Sauna, Steam, Whirlpool and Cold Pool (if applicable)

Provide lounge with water proof seating near each wet area
Provide clothing hooks throughout area
Flooring should be non-slip easily cleanable tile
Provide for non-corrosive ventilation ducts in this area
Outflow of HVAC should be provided for 25 air changes per tour
Provide for ozone water purification system for whirlpools (No smell)
Provide a self-service beverage service station with sink, counter, storage

cabinet, mini fridge & ice machine

Provide for clean and soiled linen storage

Spa Design Tips from the Experts

Create Texture: Use wall hangings, pillows, rugs and unique bed coverings to create
texture and contrast in your spa. Locally made textiles embody a return to folkloric
ideals and handmade crafts. Balance a combination of elements, such as reclaimed
woods and other recyclables, textured glass, and metals such as copper and bronze.
Bring the Outdoors In: Create a sense of the outdoors indoors by using with
waterfalls, bamboo, and stone. Natural elements such as calming waters and
meditative gardens intrigue spa visitors as they experience the environment along
with their treatments.
Dont Forget Dramatic Doors: Pay attention to doors and entryways: they signify a
crossing-over to a place where people can leave their everyday lives behind.
People are focusing on the client transition from the street to the spa interior, says
Clodagh. Water features, plants, and specialized lighting can liven up a plain looking
door.
Choose Colors that Stimulate the Senses: Flat color is out and color with depth
and character is in, says well-known spa architect Robert Henry. Our design
philosophy is to create environments that engage the senses. Splashes of color enliven
our spirits; luxurious textures engage our touch; aromas tantalize our sense of smell.
All aspects of design contribute to the overall experience and ultimately the success
of a spa.

Components of a Spa Facility:

The Basics:

Reception Desk and Welcome Area

Reservations and Scheduling
Retail/Spa Boutique
Mens and Womens Locker Rooms
Dry Treatment Rooms
Wet Treatment Rooms
European Hydro-Massage
Treatment Showers and Baths
Treatment Waiting Area
Treatment Lab

Optional:

Private Relaxation / Meditation Areas

Mens and Womens Wet Areas
Common Wet Areas
Movement Studio
Fitness Equipment Studio
Swimming Pools and Aquatics
Administrative Offices
Staff Lounge
Storage Areas
Laundry Room
Spa Caf and Juice Bar
Beauty Salon

Design for Beauty Services in a Spa Environment:

Design Considerations

Laundry drop directly outside of rooms, preferably dropping into chute or

carts.
Millwork for cabinets must be washable.
Provide extra sound proofing in between rooms and hallways.

Equipment:

Facial lounges: 72x30

Provide a sink
Provide stool on rollers, with adjustable height and back support.
Tip: mount items like mag and infrared red lamps on walls to lessen wear and
tear on equipment

Space Requirements:
80-100 sq. ft. 8x10 or 10x10. (allow enough space for door to open comfortably, at
the foot of the table)
Location & Access
Located in dry therapy area with massage rooms, or in the Beauty Salon

area
Lounge and wait area should be within close proximity to the treatment rooms
(this minimizes traffic in between treatments)

Room Set-Up: Sink should be located behind lounge or to the side. (both hot and
cold running water is necessary)
Flooring

Linoleum or vinyl tile floor must be non-porous, surface, smooth and

washable
Walls, Ceilings and Doors
Wall paper or paint
Tip: wallpaper may separate at seems from the steamer
Doors must be solid and have some type of numbering or lettering for
identification and an in use sign.

Lighting

Indirect lighting with dimmer control on wall or overhead at edge of ceiling,

not directly over facial lounge

Task lighting at counter surface

Tip: provide separate overhead lighting for waxing, on separate switch room does
not require daylight.