My skin and I were going through it. In other words, I’d been experiencing everything from dry patches and dullness, to a general lack of radiance that no amount of moisturizer seemed to fix. With summer around the corner, naturally, I wanted something that would reset and hydrate my skin—because nothing says new season like a fresh, glowing face. The Hydrafacial at Oasis Day Spa in NYC did just the trick, even making me want to skip out on foundation for a whole entire week.
Below for my experience and why this will be my new skin refresh go-to.
The Skin Prep
As soon as I arrived at Oasis, I felt like I had entered a luxury wellness bubble. The esthetician began with a thorough skin analysis to assess my needs. We decided on the signature Hydrafacial with a booster to target dullness and uneven texture. After cleansing and exfoliating my skin, she used the Hydrafacial machine to vacuum out impurities and deeply infuse hydration.
The Session
She started by double cleansing my skin and then used a gentle exfoliating tip to slough off dead skin cells. Once my skin was prepped, she moved on to the extraction phase with the signature Hydrafacial suction tip. And let me tell you, watching the gunk come out of your pores (yes, they show you the vial after) is oddly satisfying. But the best part came next: hydration. Using the same machine, she infused a blend of antioxidants, peptides, and hyaluronic acid into my freshly cleared skin.
But this wasn’t your average facial. The experience included a facial massage, a hydrating mask, LED light therapy, and lymphatic drainage. As someone who loves a product-rich, sensorial skincare moment, I was in heaven. My skin drank up the customized serums like it had been waiting for this moment all season.
Then, she applied a cooling mask to help calm the skin, followed by a tension-relieving facial massage that nearly put me to sleep. From there, she performed LED light therapy—blue to help keep breakouts at bay and red to stimulate collagen. She finished the session with lymphatic drainage to depuff and sculpt my face. I left feeling like I had just received five treatments in one—and somehow, my skin looked alive again.
The Aftermath
Immediately after the facial, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and did a double take. My skin was plump, smooth, and luminous, with zero redness or irritation. It was the kind of glow that looked lit-from-within—not greasy, not sweaty, just healthy. Over the next few days, that glow didn’t fade. My skin stayed hydrated, calm, and visibly brighter, which says a lot for someone who usually wakes up to a new dry patch every other morning.
I was advised to keep my routine, post-treatment, easy: gentle cleanser, a hydrating serum, moisturizer, and daily SPF.
What I loved most? How this facial felt like a seasonal reset. It didn’t just make my skin look good—it made me feel ready for the humidity and heat to come.