'Bird poop facial' included in $50 Spa Week packages

New York’s Spa Week is no stranger to wacky-sounding treatments, with hot-stone massages, chakra realignments, ear candling, and waxing in very painful places. And now, the Geisha Facial has landed.

Shizuka New York Day Spa’s Geisha Facial uses uguisu no fun. Translation: powdered bird droppings.

“Geisha found that nightingale droppings could be used not only to remove makeup but to brighten, heal and retexturize the skin due to their natural enzymes and guanine, which imparts a pearly luster to the skin,” according to the Shizuka website.

The spa’s website also answers several questions about the facial:

Is uguisu no fun safe/sanitary to use on my face?
Yes, the uguisu no fun used at Shizuka New York Day Spa is professionally sanitized under UV light and powdered before being applied to the face.

Does the bird poo facial mask smell?
Although the uguisu no fun has a slight musky aroma on its own, Shizuka’s special mask formulation neutralizes this aroma, leaving a mild “organic” smell from the rice bran.

Normally, the 60-minute Geisha Facial costs $180, but you can get it for $50 during New York Spa Week, which runs from April 13 through 19. Spa Week reservations started Monday, but Shizuka still had openings for the Geisha Facial as of this morning.

Shizuka New York Day Spa is located at 7 W. 51st St., New York, NY 10019, on the 6th Floor.

March 17, 2009

NewYorkology.com

Other Shizuka New York Day Spa Press Coverage

New York Times City Room Blog - Don't worry, that white powder is just bird excrement!

BeautyNewsNYC.com - Find cures for the recession blues with these great spa specials.

Boston Globe - One of the most unusual treatments using organic ingredients offered in the city is the Geisha facial at Shizuka New York Day Spa. Spa owner Shizuka Bernstein reveals the main ingredient: nightingale droppings.

Complete 2009 Press Coverage