As a beauty editor, I've had roughly 200 facials in my life. So let's just say I know a thing or two — and the treatment I recently got with Celeste Rodrigues, of Celeste Rodrigues Skin Care in Los Angeles, stands out. For starters, the vibe: The setting is under-the-radar in a "celebs totally go here" kind of way. Her studio is situated on a quiet street in Beverly Hills. In other words, it's exactly the place you'd expect to run into Machine Gun Kelly during a casual weekday afternoon facial. (I didn't, by the way, but it's no secret that the rap star regularly books appointments with Celeste.)
The treatment room has a cozy, girly vibe, with pops of cool-girl touches via the baby pink door and her signature neon Celeste Rodrigues Skin Care sign. The walls are neatly lined with her favorite products from IsClinical, Skin Better Science and other Celeste-approved brands. The celeb expert has a no bullshit, yet luxury-driven approach to skin care. Her "The Works" facial, (aka her most popular treatment), is a multi-step, 90-minute trip to skin heaven and it'll cost you $400. Steep, but worth it. Wondering what it's like? Come with me; it'll be like you're there yourself.
Image via @celesterodriguesskincare
The Consultation/Cleanse
"The first thing I do when we begin is ask you your skin concerns and take a look at your face so I can customize your experience," said Rodrigues. For me, my main concerns were cystic acne and inflammation. "You had some purging going on around your cheeks and jawline, so I wanted to focus on extractions and calming your skin down with anti-inflammatory treatments," she explained. To get my makeup off, she did a double cleanse. For the job she used Is Clinical Cleansing Complex, $44, followed by Is Clinical Warming Honey Cleanser, $45.
Image via @celesterodriguesskincare
The Foaming Peel/Hydrafacial
Once my baby fresh skin was revealed, she applied a super gentle foaming peel that lightly exfoliated my skin and helped prep my skin for extractions. Next up was my favorite portion: the Hydrafacial machine. "I love incorporating the Hydrafacial into my treatments. It's a non-aggressive, 3-step system that exfoliates, extracts and then infuses nutrient-rich serum into your skin for the ultimate glow," she explains. And don't worry, it's powerful, but gentle: It feels like a suction wand that vacuums out impurities.
Image via @celesterodriguesskincare
The Extractions
After my face had been doused with vitamin and antioxidant goodness, it was time for the extractions. Celeste doesn't mess around: The pro does a combo of manual extractions and extractions via a microcurrent sonic tool that uses ultrasound oscillation to vibrate hard to reach bacteria to the surface. "After extractions, your face can be a little red, so I like to calm it down with a quick cooling gel mask." The tingly mask felt pleasant, but the best part was the ice cold roller balls she pulled from the fridge to massage the product into my skin.
Image via @celesterodriguesskincare
The High Frequency/Microcurrent Machines
From there, the expert used a high frequency device (that kind of looked like a dildo, TBH) to oxygenate my pores and kill bacteria, post-extractions. This next part (a big hit with her celeb clientele) is the microcurrent machine. "It's basically a workout for your face, it stimulates your muscles with current technology for immediately lifted skin," she said. It adds 15 to 30 minutes to the clock and is a great add-on for right before red carpets or big events.
Image via @celesterodriguesskincare
