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I feel like this blog post should have been posted a long time ago! After all, LA and beauty are right up my alley! Los Angeles is the mecca of the entertainment industry, hence home to beauty stores, holistic health centers, and other beauty-related spots: cutting-edge facials performed by top-notch estheticians; natural makeup boutiques and beauty supply superstores.
The inspiration behind this post came about a week ago when I couldn’t sleep and started browsing through the Rose INC website. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley is the founder of ROSE INC, which is an amazing beauty website and Youtube channel that I’m a huge fan of. The aesthetic of the brand is truly stellar. Rose INC has become my favorite beauty website alongside IntoTheGloss! And this is coming from someone who used to be pretty indifferent to Rosie Huntington. You can see she’s a real beauty aficionado and that translates in the quality of her content. Anyhow, since I was in the beauty headspace at 2 am, I thought, why not make a blog post about the best beauty destinations in Los Angeles? She’s based in LA and most of the interviews are done in LA, so why not meld these two categories together in one post?
A few months ago I wrote about where professional makeup artists in LA get their supplies for movie studios and productions. In this post, I decided to do a thorough round-up list of the must-go beauty places to visit! Of course, they’re way too many to visit if you’re from out of town and are only going to be visiting for a few days. For those of you beauty and skincare lovers who live in LA, I hope you find in this list a new place or two to go!
Full disclaimer: I haven’t been paid in any way, shape or form to talk about these places.
Glossier
Read the review of the new store here.
8407 Melrose Pl, Los Angeles, CA 90069
It’s a given that at during any point of the day, especially on the weekends, teenage girls flock to this place and stroll idly with their Alfred Coffee and Tea cup in one hand and the Glossier tote bag in the other hand. Glossier is the first-stop beauty destination for a lot of out-of-towners who don’t have the luxury of testing out the products before buying them in their hometown. The West Coast theme, which includes a Grand Canyon room and a millennial pink atmosphere, will make for an unforgettable store experience. Don’t forget to read my very in-depth review of the store and the products here!
Violet Grey
8452 Melrose Pl, Los Angeles, CA 90069
Only a few blocks away, on the same street nestled among other luxury boutiques, we can find what I call the big sister of Glossier. This place, certainly unexplored by the same Glossier clientele, is a haven for beauty and skincare connoisseurs. It’s tucked away on the quieter side of Melrose Place, so you have to pay really close attention not to miss it! Violet Grey’s under-the-radar atelier will make you feel like you’re in a fancy boutique in Paris. The store has a very nice curated selection of the best luxury skincare and makeup products that are highly favored by celebrities, makeup artists and hairstylists. It started out as an E-commerce website and in 2014, founder Cassandra Grey opened this brick-and-mortar location.
Their wide assortment of brands
There’s even a beauty studio in the back with a very fancy canvas chair and a giant ring light used for
The Detox Market
Locations: West Hollywood, Century City and Santa Monica
In LA, the words “natural” and “organic” don’t just apply to food. This store is a haven for organic and natural skincare and makeup. I love coming here and trying out products. They have all the high-end natural skincare and makeup brands that aren’t physically available elsewhere! If you want to know some of my favorite products, read my blog post “The best natural skincare products”, most of the products mentioned are available at The Detox Market. Whether you’re coming from out-of-town to check out the amazing repertoire of skincare, makeup and haircare brands or you want to transition to a more natural beauty routine, The Detox Market is the place to go! The sales assistants are super welcoming and they let you take samples home. They also offer workshops but you have to sign up in advance. There are three locations in Los Angeles: West Hollywood, Santa Monica and Century City. I would skip the latter as it’s inside the mall and the store is super tiny, which means they carry a very limited selection of brands. In comparison to the size of the other two locations, this one falls short big time.
Credo Beauty
8327 W 3rd St, Los Angeles, CA 90048 and 8500 Sunset Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90069
Welcome to the Sephora of natural beauty! Here you will find a more ample selection of brands than at The Detox Market. The location on 3rd street offers makeovers, waxing services and guess what else? Tata Harper’s facials! Prices range from $30 to $175.
From body and hair products to jade rollers, Credo Beauty takes care of all your beauty needs. The attention is super personalized and the ladies really know what they’re talking about. I went in asking for a KJWeiss blush and the lady helped me try out different colors until we found the one that was most complimentary for my complexion. The staff at Credo beauty are all trained aestheticians.
Goop Lab
225 26th St Suite 37, Santa Monica, CA 90402
The store is located in one of the fanciest celebrity frequented locations on the West Side: Brentwood Country Mart. This quaint outdoor shopping center features luxury retail boutiques and very nice casual eating spots. Stepping into Goop is like being transported to a fancy boutique in The Hamptons. This bungalow-inspired store is a mixture of skincare and makeup products, kitchen appliances and fashion clothing all in one place. If you have heard of Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand Goop, the store is an extension of the website: beautiful and pricey. Is it worth it to come to the West Side to check it out? Unless you’re a big fan of Goop, not really, but if you’re in the area and have never been to the Brentwood Country Mart before, it’s definitely worth a visit. Most of the brands carried in-store are also available at the aforementioned places.
K-Town
When I was writing this post, I did some research on other LA beauty places. It baffles me that most of them, with the exception of one website, completely overlooked Koreatown! If you’re in search of good K beauty products and you’re in LA, you’re in for a treat.
Palace Beauty Galleria
3250 W Olympic Blvd #214, Los Angeles, CA 90006
Welcome to the Sephora of K skincare and makeup! Palace beauty is located on the second floor of the Koreatown Galleria. Don’t be afraid of being the only non-Asian person. Nobody gave me a second glance. If you’re a sheet mask fanatic, you will feel like a kid in a candy store! They also carry the entire line of Bioderma. The store was featured on Refinery 29 skincare series.
Auritaum is also located on the second floor of the KoreaTown Galleria. There you will find the complete skincare line of Laneige and more K beauty brands.
Another beauty store, which is also one of my top favorites, and carries a curated selection of online hard-to-get brands, is Riley Rose. They have a wide assortment of K beauty brands and endless shelves of sheet masks. Fortunately, Riley Rose is physically available at many locations across the US.
Faceshop, which is located just a few blocks away from the Koreatown galleria, is a store with an attached coffee shop that also stock amazing K beauty items! The lady at the counter was super nice and more than willing to help me. They also have testers, which is great!
Lip Lab by Bite
142 N Larchmont Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90004
Raise your hand if you’ve always wanted your own customized lipstick! Bite Beauty is a Toronto-based natural lip care company founded in 2009. If you go to Sephora frequently, you will probably have seen their Agave lip mask. What many people don’t know is that they have their own lab! They have one location in Toronto and three in the US: New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The latter opened in October 2018 in the heart of Larchmont Village. Seeing the brightly hued jars and trays filled with round pots of colorful pigments felt like I was in the Charlie And The Chocolate Factory of lipsticks. You can also engrave them with your name! How cool is that?
If you want to have the most pleasant experience customizing your lipstick, the LA location is the one to go to. After reading online about the other two stores in the US, I glea
Make your appointment on the website!
Charlotte Tilbury
Location: The Grove
The most famous celebrity makeup artist opened her first flagship store at The Grove in June 2019!! This is also her first official brick-and-mortar in the United States. And, what better location than the most renowned shopping destination in LA?
The store décor is the perfect rendition to Charlotte Tilbury’s feminine and flamboyant personality. Once you step inside is like being transported to the old Hollywood era. The winners for me were the two giant lipsticks and the lip neon sign. It was very fitting of Charlotte to do that, since she’s mostly known for her award-winning lipsticks. She really went all out! In the back of the store, there’s a beautiful beauty “boudoir” (
We all know Charlotte Tilbury is available at Sephora and Nordstrom, but shopping at the official store will give you a completely different overview of the brand, and will fully immerse you into Charlotte Tillbury’s Beauty Wonderland. There is also a gorgeous rose quartz sink called “Fountain Of Youth”, in which customers are able to try out the brand’s skincare products, like her $100 Magic Cream or her Goddess cleansers.
She recently debuted her new lipstick collection “Hot Lips 2”, inspired by her massive A-list celebrity clientele. The new packaging includes very sultry and sleek animal prints and for the first time, this new lipstick packaging is going to be refillable!
My holy-grail CT products are the airbrush flawless finish setting powder and her full-coverage concealer.
Larchmont Beauty Center
208 N Larchmont Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90004
Also on Larchmont Blvd, this store is like a mini Sephora. Love this place! They carry a wide assortment of French brands like Bioderma, Embryolisse and Avene. The inventory here is very thoughtfully curated and catered to all preferences. They also carry Fresh, Supergoop, Mario Badescu and other big name brands you will recognize. The store is small but very easy to navigate. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask the owner! From nail polish, to hair products and Korean face masks, this place has all the goodies to fulfill your beauty needs!
Erewhon Market
Locations: Beverly Blvd, Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, Venice, Calabasas
Yes, I’m one of those people who fell in love with this outrageously expensive health food store. Erewhon Market opened its first location on Beverly Blvd in the mid 60’s, establishing itself as the original health food grocery store. The unique quality, the premium selection of brands and the freshness of the produce is unparalleled. When I first moved here, I used to frequent the hot bar at Whole Foods, which was not bad, but not the best. At Erewhon, the cooks painstakingly take out the fresh smoked salmon ready to eat and melt in your mouth. The organic brown rice balls and the crispy brussels sprouts are another weakness of mine.
You won’t find this care and attention at the hot bar section of Whole Foods, where the food is usually sitting there unsupervised. I’m also a big fan of their cold-pressed juices. My favorite one is the strawberry rose almond milk.
If you’re sick, they have a very wide array of wellness shots, which I always stock up on when I’m coming down with something. Just ask one of the lovely employees and they will recommend the best one. Alternatively, you can have them make a customized drink for you at the tonic bar. Whenever my dad is in town, we very rarely we stay in and buy groceries since we’re always out and about, Erewhon is our first-stop destination to eat something quick and healthy. And if you want to try the healthiest ice cream ever, get the Green Goddess ice cream!
Beauty-wise, Erewhon’s beauty section is decent but kind of lackluster compared to the massive ample aisles at Whole Foods. If you don’t live in LA and have no idea what Erewhon is, I highly recommend that you read this great article that explains Angelenos’, or many Angelenos’ obsession with it.
Other recommended places for smoothies are Earthbar in West Hollywood and Kreation Organic. Some locations of Kreation only serve smoothies and prepackaged meals. If you want to eat Kreation’s amazing food, the location on 3rdor Santa Monica are the ones to go to.
Eyebrows
LA might be the only place, or one of the few places where you can find a beauty salon on every single corner. If you’re obsessed with eyebrows, these are the top salons to score enviable feathery, natural-looking eyebrows like your favorite celebrity.
Kelley Baker
Location: 798 Main St, Venice, CA 90291
Clients: All the Kardashians, Sofia Richie, Shay Mitchell, Cardi B, Lucy Hale, Lea Michele, Zendaya.
With celebrities flocking to her salon in Venice, she created her eponymous eyebrow line so that clients could easily recreate the eyebrow effect themselves. The salon also offers hair and makeup services.
Striiike
Location: 9278 Civic Center Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210
Clients: Mandy Moore, Alison Brie, Kiernan Shipka, Sarah Paul Johnson, Mila Kunis, Anne Hathaway, Emily Blunt.
Founded by the Streicher sisters: Kristie, Jane
Website and Instagram.
Anastasia Beverly Hills
Location: 438 N Bedford Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90210
What a great way to pay homage to the eyebrow pioneer who started the whole eyebrow trend. While you will not get your eyebrows done by Anastasia Soaree herself, you can still enjoy the eyebrow and waxing services by the trained aestheticians or browse through the impressive ABH paraphernalia. Make your appointment here.
Facials
Le Jolie Spa
Locations: West Hollywood and Studio City
Clients: basically every influencer in LA
If you want to know the place where every influencer in LA gets their facials or beauty treatments done, welcome to Le Jolie Spa. A basic facial starts at $125, which considering how upscale this place is, is not super bad. It also includes a shoulder or foot massage depending on your choice! The Instagram feed includes a very beautiful, totally made for the gram lounge area with the words “Pick Me Up” in hot pink neon plastered on the wall.
I got the personal facial which starts at $125 plus microdermabrasion ($50). While this was certainly not cheap, it was worth every single dollar. This being my first high-end facial in LA, my skin had a special glow that I had never experienced at facial bars. The glow lasted for one week! I’m not saying that facial bars aren’t good by any means, but you can certainly see the difference right away between a $175 facial versus a $75 facial. Plus, not only did this facial include a massage, but also an LED light treatment and many other extras that you won’t get for a facial under $100! Not to mention the incredibly good reputation of this place. Farrah, my aesthetician, was so kind and knowledgeable. She will ask you what your budget is to see what kind of add-on treatment is the best for you. If you don’t want to get any add-ons, the $125 facial alone includes extractions, so you will be good either way.
Joanna Vargas
Locations: New York and Los Angeles
Clients: too many A-list celebrities and models to list.
Every time award season nears, you can bet most celebrities get their facials done at Joanna Vargas. With
Ciel Spa
Location: 465 La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90048
Located at the SLS hotel in Beverly Hills, Ciel Spa offers the very prestigious Biologique Recherche facials. You may not be in the luxurious flagship Biologique Recherche spa in Paris, but this is the closest you’ll ever be! Ciel Spa is also my go-to place to stock up on my beloved Biologique Recherche P50.
Kate Somerville
Location: 8428 Melrose Pl c, Los Angeles, CA 90069
Clients: Meghan Markle, Kendall Jenner, Vanessa Hudgens, Lauren Conrad, Anna Kendrick.
Kate Somerville has been a household name for many years in the LA skincare industry. She opened her clinic on Melrose Place back in 2004 under a different name where clients would experience new cutting-edge facial technologies and treatments. The word-of-mouth promotion garnered her a massive celebrity clientele and a multi-million dollar skincare business. Her skincare line is available at Sephora US and Canada. If you would like to get a facial at the Kate Somerville spa, book it here!
Touch Of Faith Aesthetics
Location: 717 N Highland Ave # 6, Los Angeles, CA 90038
Clients: Jessica Biel, Kate Bosworth, Kirsten Dunst, Charlize Theron.
Under the management of nutritionist and esthetician Faith Tatro, this serene oasis offers customizable facials and other exclusive signature facials. They don’t have a set menu like other places. If you want to get one, you have to call so they can make an assessment of your skincare needs and concerns. All the products used are 100% natural and they even use the famous Vintner’s Daughter serum, which retails for $185, so you can rest assured your skin will be getting top-notch treatment. Moreover, Touch of faith aesthetics offers
Shani Darden
Clients: Jessica Alba, January Jones, Shay Mitchell, Mila Jovovich, Jessica Alba, Rosie Huntington, Chrissy Teigen, Em Rata.
After working out of her guest house for years, she finally opened her official flagship store in Beverly Hills in June 2019. Her skincare line features her most famous product, the resurface retinol form serum, which is favored by many celebrities.
Carasoin Spa
8474 CA-2, West Hollywood, CA 90069
Clients: Jennifer Aniston, Kate Upton, Banks (singer), Nicola Peltz, Eva Mendes, Ryan Gosling, Rooney Mara, Sofia Vergara.
Carasoin spa is the latest addition to the list. I was reading Intothegloss where the singer Banks mentioned this place:
“I just got a bunch of candles from Carasoin, too—do you know that place in LA? It’s an all-natural facial place, and they sell products. Actually, this makeup artist with the most beautiful skin told me about it. They give you blueberry tea when you walk in, and it’s a really relaxing environment. The candles smell so fresh.”
Carasoin is tucked away in a very secret location on Santa Monica Blvd. This oasis offers a plethora of cutting-edge machine based treatments like anti-aging facials, deep tissue massages, body scrubs, wraps and chemical peels. All the treatments are personalized based on your skin’s needs, and it goes without saying that the products here are 100% natural. Carasoin was founded by Lena Bratschi (born in Sweden) and her husband Tom. Lena grew up in Switzerland and then moved to London to keep pursuing her love of skincare. Despite Carasoin being an A-list celebrity enclave, all the reviews on Yelp mention how welcoming and humble Lena, Tom and the staff are. The cheapest facial is the Carasoin’s essential facial and starts at $135.
Skin Worship
9001 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills
Clients: Lizzo, Sophia Richie, Kaitlynn Carter, Camila Morrone, Olivia Culpo, Hailey Baldwin, Stassiebaby.
If you want to get a holistic facial, you have to go to Skin Worship in Beverly Hills! The founders are Leslie Kritzer and Madison De Clerq. All of the estheticians are also called healers since all of them are trained in holistic psychotherapy. The facial tables are lined with a blanket of crystals to make your experience even more immersive and relaxing. From gua sha treatments, to energy healing sessions, they even offer the 100% That Bitch Facial, inspired by their client Lizzo (Truth Hurts is my body positive jam), for a whooping price of $240.
Do you want to elevate your facial to the next level? Feel free to choose from the multiple add-ons which include guided meditations, healing chakras and more self-love practices.
Note: The facials at Skin Worship start at $200. They also offer other services like peeling and lash extensions. If it’s your birthday and you want to splurge on some me-time, you won’t regret it! You will leave feeling purified and cleansed from the inside out.
Facile Skin
638 1/2 N Robertson Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069
140 S Lake Ave #104, Pasadena, CA 91101
Clients: Lucy Hale, Dove Cameron, Hailey Baldwin
“Facile means easily achieved and effortless. That’s why we chose the name Facile for our unique new medical boutique focusing on cosmetic dermatology-made simple. We’re what you get when you cross a dermatology office, a spa, and a beauty boutique. We’re obsessed with skin. We personalize every service to meet your needs on any given day (because skin is moody, y’know?).” – Facileskin.com
From the decor to the beautiful website design, Facile Skin’s aesthetically pleasing atmosphere will provide you with a top-notch experience. The facials start at $170. They also offer the Biologique Recherche facial (starting at $285).
Don’t want to break the bank on upscale celebrity beauty treatments? I got you covered! LA has a great plethora of “face bars”. Face bars are no-frills set ups in open-concept spaces. While you certainly don’t get the luxury spa experience, the services include lengthy options of available treatments performed by well-trained estheticians! Face bars are meant for people who are on-the-go and want a quick full-service facial without the high price point. Sessions range between 30 to 75 minutes. Taking care of your skin doesn’t have to mean spending outrageous amounts of money! Below are some of my favorites. At first, I was a little bit apprehensive of the open-concept, knowing that the person lying next to me was also getting a facial, but people are generally respectful of your privacy and anyway your eyes are closed the whole time! With the exception of Skin Camp, all the following places have a starting price point of $65.
Face Facial Bar, which I wrote about here. (Silverlake and Downtown LA)
FaceHaus (West Hollywood, Studio City and Santa Monica).
Skin Camp (West Hollywood). Facial starts at $40.
Bijou Beauty (West Hollywood). This is another hot spot for influencers in LA! The services range from facials, eyelash extensions, eyebrows and waxing services.
Heyday (West Hollywood and Brentwood). I can’t wait to write a full review on this place! Heyday has probably the cutest décor out of all the spas in LA. The Beverly Blvd location has an outdoor lounge area with a beautiful terrazzo mural and woven pendant lamps. Unlike the places mentioned above, Heyday doesn’t have an open-concept room.
Massages
Locations: Beverly Blvd, Santa Monica, Silverlake.
Best boutique massage parlor in LA! I love the bohemian and earthy décor of the place. I wrote about The Now last year because I loved it so much. The calm space will make you forget that you are in the middle of Los Angeles. If you go to the Beverly Blvd location, request José to be your masseuse. The Now provides you with an outstanding full-spa massage experience for a fraction of the cost!
If you want to a no-frills massage parlor, Sunset Foot Spa is my absolute go-to place! Cheap and effective! When I first moved here, I tried almost every massage parlor in every single neighborhood without any luck. Fortunately, my mom, who’s a magazine hoarder, read an interview on the Spanish version of Maire Claire where the actress Amanda Seyfried mentioned how obsessed she was with Sunset Foot Spa in LA. So, thanks
Tomoko Japanese Spa
141 S Beverly Dr, Beverly Hills, CA 90212
This spa is also known as Beverly Hill’s best kept secret!
“In 1999, Tomoko Kurono set out with a simple mission:
Search every corner of the world for the perfect treatment , a massage that could truly remove negative energy from her body and renew her spirit.She would know when she’d found it, having been born to a mother who was her village’s healer in Osaka, Japan.
Tomoko was raised with a deep understanding of the healing powers of Chi (blood) and Qi (energy).
She found that many massage therapists possessed expert technique, but not many offered a combination of technique and soul. The healing powers of a massage therapist who gives from the heart far surpass the benefits of technique alone.” – Tomokospa.com
The Tox LA – Lymphatic drainage massages have been a big beauty trend for a long time thanks to its numerous benefits such as boosting weight loss and reducing water retention. I found The Tox LA thanks to an influencer, and the aesthetic of the place and the website caught my attention right away. The cheapest massage is the facial lymphatic massage, which is only for the face and is the least expensive service ($125) — A full-body massage starts at $225.
Meditation
With the many yoga and holistic studios that can be found in the city, it goes without saying that there’s no shortage of meditation studios. From mindfulness classes, to sound baths, these are my two favorite meditation studios in LA. If you want a more comprehensive guide, check out this blog post by TheLaGirl.com in which she mentions a handful of meditation studios based on neighborhoods.
The Den Meditation (West Hollywood, Studio City). Read my review here. The West Hollywood location is permanently closed.
Unplug Meditation (West Hollywood, Santa Monica). The décor of the place is sleeker and more modern compared to the quaint and rustic atmosphere of The Den, but they still do an amazing job at helping you “unplug” from your daily challenges in a safe and protected space. Whatever class you choose, all of them will take you to an inner level of peace and connection within yourself in ways you didn’t know were possible.
House of Intuition
Locations: Echo Park, West Hollywood, Highland Park
This place genuinely gave me “The Craft” vibes! For those unfamiliar with The Craft, it was a 90’s teen horror-drama that focused on four teenage girls using their newly acquired supernatural powers to curse anyone who had wronged or bullied them in the past. The movie became a
The Echo Park House Of Intuition was the first and original location which opened in 2010. It’s located in a house on Sunset Blvd, perched atop the hills. Once you park at the top, you have to walk down the street where you will be met with the beautiful skyline of Downtown LA. You have to walk up a very long black flight of stairs to get there so make sure you’re wearing comfy shoes! Once you’re inside you will encounter all types of crystals, candles, incenses, accessories, books
I live super close to the Melrose location, which was my first introduction and thought it was a new store on Melrose Ave. Little did I know that they had been in business for a while.
Have you been to any of these places? If you live in LA and have more recommendations let me know in the comments!
