Marianne Kehoe – LA Skin Guru

One of my favorite topics is Healthy Aging as there’s nothing more important in life than taking care of your health and well being. A great way to start is with an excellent skin care regimen and regular facials. When it comes to living in Los Angeles, there’s no better place for glowing skin than celebrity skin care guru, Marianne Kehoe, who’s been at it for over twenty years.

Stepping into Marianne’s brightly lit studio located in downtown Studio City is a treat. You will likely be greeted warmly by her friendly staff. The studio is delightful and charming. The buzz about Marianne from her celebrity clients is well deserved. I stumbled upon her studio this summer as I was looking for a special treat for my daughter on her birthday. We indulged ourselves to a day at Marianne’s studio and were pleasantly surprised with the results. Marianne is well versed in natural and holistic skin care, as she has had difficult skin since she was a teenager.

Marianne is an expert at the “Hannibal Lector” IDERM Galvanic Treatment. She feels there is not another treatment available that is so results driven and spent 14 years under the excellent tutelage of Ernie Benson, maestro of The Face Place, perfecting the process. I’m all about finding things that work as naturally as possible and I was game to try an unusual series of facial treatments designed to wipe away years of sun damage. Marianne combines the Galvanic treatment with her award winning facial infusion that brings a doctor developed vitamin, minerals, and nutrient solution into the skin with a “magic wand.”  It was gentle and felt like an electric toothbrush as it easily glided over my skin, dropping all of those nutrients deep into my dermis. It sounded a little out there but I’m always game to try the latest holistic treatments and signed up for the series.

I made my way into her treatment room and she wrapped me in a cozy blanket.  Marianne began by cleaning the surface of my skin, followed by a yucca root solution that works to expand the pores.

The first week we did a combo, the Iderm combined with the magic wand.  The Iderm is different than a regular facial as it doesn’t use a steamer. Marianne begins by placing warm cotton strips that have soaked in a yucca root solution and then puts this crazy looking heat dome over you, which prepares you for extractions.  After ten minutes, her unique extraction process allows the impurities to be drawn closer to the surface of the skin. My skin felt super clean after this process. Marianne began by using a mixture of powders, a cocktail of 23 blended ingredients, that were bright orange in color. She told me that was the retanaldehyde which was accompanied by her hand selected powders to create this solution. The next step, she began to carefully paint it over my face. It was definitely a Great Pumpkin moment but I was all about the results! Next it was time to begin the Hannibal Lector portion of the treatment. Surgical cottons were placed over my face that had been marinating in a vitamin-mineral solution. An electric mask was then applied which required grounding that must be done to assure that the vitamins and minerals go into the skin. She placed an electrode under my arm, and then set the electrode mask over my face, and turned on the machine. She said I would likely taste a metallic flavor under my tongue. Oddly enough I did!

Galvanic current serves to firm and tighten the skin, which we know can be an issue at midlife, and increases circulation, providing nourishment, and decreasing inflammation. It also helps to drive the vitamins and minerals deeper into the skin in order to hydrate and nourish and help build collagen.

Marianne has a wide range of knowledge from her decades of experience and works closely with a doctor who formulates her skincare products with all natural ingredients. The line that she carries helps to amplify the results at home. I absolutely loved the Osmosis skincare line and found my skin remained dewy and hydrated. If you’re at all uncomfortable with the idea of the “Hannibal Lector” facial, she does offer a more traditional facial with essential vitamin infusion.  If you think you could be a bit squeamish, I would recommend going with the Vitaboost facial infusion. This treatment along with the wand will continue to improve your skin over time. This was definitely the first time I tried a facial treatment that wasn’t designed for pampering although it was somewhat relaxing. It was formulated to improve the texture and quality of the skin in a short amount of time and that sounded pretty amazing to me!

My overall experience was excellent. The treatments were painless, the mask took some getting used to, but the end result was that I could see an enormous difference in my skin immediately upon finishing the treatments! Marianne treated me to a three series process and I found that my skin was responding well and looked far younger after the third treatment. According to her, the ongoing treatments build on each other and the results are long lasting. Utilizing the skin care products that she carries will definitely help maintain your glow. It’s easy to see from the pictures that there’s quite a difference from the beginning of the series until the end. I came to the studio without a stitch of makeup as I wanted to show my authentic experience. I wore a hint of lip gloss and absolutely nothing else. It was time to reveal the truth and I couldn’t wait to see the results.

Up until now in my mid fifties, I haven’t tried a lot of different skin care treatments. I used to get regular facials many years ago and Marianne has inspired me to get back in the game and take really good care of my skin. I’ve mainly focused on Superfood Nutrition as I’m a big believer in taking good care of the internal world. I’m grateful to have discovered a skin care master in Marianne Kehoe. If you’re in the LA area, I highly recommend a trip to her studio. Your husband or boyfriend will thank you…if they recognize you! And, be careful because they just may want to join you as half of her clientele are men and I think that’s pretty cool.

Check out her website at MKstudio.com. Her studio is located at 4383 Tujunga Avenue, Studio City, CA, 91604.  Phone number: 818 509 0384.