Jessica Alba's BFF Gave Me a Facial! (Here's How It Went Down)

I’ve never been much of a facial person. Give me an hour and a $100 to spend at a spa and I’d be hard-pressed not to book a massage over what often feels like a glorified face washing. (I also have less-than-stellar skin, though, so make of that what you will.) 

But let me tell you, facial person or not, when you get a chance to have a treatment with facial royalty, you take it. And recently, I did just that. 

I first became aware of Shani Darden from Jessica Alba’s Instagram. She pops up frequently in her feed and Stories, hanging out with their daughters (they both have two), spending time with their group of friends or posing post-facial, often referring to her as her "boo" or #bff.

But Shani has become a bit of a celeb in her own right. She is the Hollywood esthetician of the moment, tending to the crystal-clear complexions of Chrissy Teigen, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Lea Michele and, yes, Ms. Alba.

Her facials reportedly cost $700 a pop, but even if that price doesn’t make you bat an eye, good luck getting in. Shani only sees her existing stable of carefully curated A-list clients. Friends recommended by one of those clients can see her associate. And if you’re more than one degree of separation from Chrissy Teigen? Well, good thing L.A. is home to many other fine estheticians you’re sure to love.

Of course, you could also get really, really lucky, as I did. Shani, you see, also happens to be the celebrity esthetician for Garnier. And in conjunction with the launch of its new fall products (I can’t share anything about them yet except that they may involve apricot and charcoal—and that you’re totally going to love them), Garnier offered a few editors the opportunity to nab an appointment with Shani. I couldn’t say yes fast enough!

Image via @shanidarden