This luxury-focused feature story was a labor of love, having carried it from pitch to proof to print. I left virtually no stone unturned, making personal visits to every great spa of note and local neighborhood gems to research the availability of private spa parties and interviewing proprietors to ensure the accuracy of the article. Using my best judgment and my editor’s favorites, I was able to populate my Writer’s Picks sidebar with professionalism and without bias. 

New Orleans Bride, Winter 2009

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Chaos is king as the big day draws ever closer. Friends and relatives can’t help being underfoot, unintentionally contributing to the lovely knot of stress living between your shoulders, and all the women in your life struggle to find common ground outside of yourself. Groups of acquaintances are beginning to clash or section off. You want your loved ones who haven’t yet had the chance to get to know one another to do so, but hosting a party is an overwhelming idea at this point in time for you or your frazzled maid of honor. So what to do with all these different ladies from different backgrounds, short of declaring defeat and running off to elope in a blaze of petticoats and running shoes?

A solution that’s all the rage in cosmopolitan cities throughout the U.S. is within reach of New Orleans brides at their wits’ ends, too – wedding party spa parties. After all, the best way to dispel negativity is to introduce positivity and at a spa, that’s the name of the game. Indulgence and peace are focal points, distracting from the unfamiliarity of previously uncombined social circles. Nothing can get rid of tension faster than supple hands kneading sore muscles, and there’s simply no greater equalizer than being wrapped bare-bottomed in a towel with a face tightly coated with clay. Seriously, who can feel holier than thou or pass judgment on another nearly naked?

The concept of bringing people together through pampering shows its brilliance through its longevity. Bonding through relaxation has had its place throughout the ages and has spanned the globe, from social soaks in Roman and Turkish baths to colonial French hairdressers and their hours-long sessions. Reflexology has been around as long as the pyramids have (both claiming Egyptian origins), and Chinese bodywork has carried through the centuries as well …

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Relax! And keep reading.