Coconut Body Glow for Sensitive Skin

Some 60-70 percent of women believe they have sensitive skin; if you fall into this category, try one of natures treats: freshly shredded young coconut (rich in nutrients but not over-abrasive). The Mandara Spa at The Chedi in Bali offers this scrub using nutritious coconuts from Sulawesi.

Ingredients : half young coconut, freshly grated, 1/4 tsp turmeric powder (or I cm tumeric root, grated), 1/4 kilo (1/2 lb) carrots, grated or blended, 2 tbsp gelatin, already set.

Steps : Mix the freshly grated coconut with the turmeric (the latter is used for its cleansing properties and high vitamin C content), Gently rub the mixture all over your body. Leave for five minutes and wipe off with a wet, warm cloth. Mix the carrot and gelatin and apply to the skin.This adds conditioning nutrients to the skin after the exfoliating process.

Papaya Body Polish

This erotic-sounding elixir has become synonymous with The Oriental Spa in Bangkok. Around the world people talk with titillation about their pureed papaya, smeared into all the body crevices which are left to sweat under a plastic sheet. Papaya contains certain enzymes, biochemically known as papain (it is used as a meat tenderizer) which soften and revitalize the skin when absorbed. The papain also settles the stomach, making it one of the best things to eat for an upset tummy. It is also perfect as baby food.

At home use ready-to-eat rather than unripe papaya (as the acid is too strong), puree it and spread it everywhere, without rubbing. Allow your body to sweat by rolling yourself up in a plastic sheet for 20 minutes. Wash off and feel the results!

Just as Cleopatra used to bathe in sour milk to keep her skin smooth, tropical Asian women daub mashed, ripe papaya around their eyes to keep their wrinkles at bay. Due to the fruits mild exfoliating properties, the skin loses a layer and wrinkles appear less noticeable. The enzyme contained in papaya works like an alpha hydroxy acid (a natural fruit acid that acts to remove the flaking cells on the skins surface) without the tendency to cause skin irritation.

Bali Kopi Scrub

If you swoon when you pass a city coffee bar, imagine that smell for a full 45 minutes while the most fragrant of blends is smothered all over your body. Admittedly this coffee body scrub was only recently invented to cater for our addiction to the aroma of freshly ground beans. In Indonesia, where this scrub is offered, people stick to drinking the stuff, less as an excuse to sit and chat and more to give them energy while they work.

This scrub, rougher than some and ideal for male skin, is offered at all Mandara Spas (at The Chedi, lbah. Bali Padma and Nikko in Bali), the Novotel in Lombok and Malaysia's The Datai) according to this recipe.

Ingredients : 200 gms (6 oz)Balinese coffee beans, ground,40 gms (3 tbsp)kaolin clay (or cosmetic clay available at health shops), pinch ground pumice stone (optional), 1/4 kilo (1/2 lb)carrots, grated or blended, l0gms (1 tsp) gelatin, already set (optional)

Steps : Balinese coffee is the most fragrant of all Indonesian varieties, but you can substitute this for your favourite blend. Crush the dried beans quite finely and mix with the kaolin clay and ground pumice.Add a splash of water. Rub over the entire body, later rubbing more vigorously so that the mixture sloughs off. Rub the carrot, which can be mixed with the gelatin for easier application, into your body to replenish any lost moisture during the exfoliation process. Shower and moisturize.

Aloe and Lavender Wrap

Aloe is grown and used in abundance in Indonesia, its long, spiny leaves cut and squeezed to release a sticky juice, ideal to pacify upset skin, stimulate the scalp and add fullness and lustre to hair.

While aloe is a major ingredient in all kinds of sensitive skin products, there is nothing more seductive than a coating of aloe, lavender and banana leaves, offered in this wrap at the Spa at Jimbaran, Four Seasons Resort Bali.

Ingredients : 1 tsp fresh aloe to cover body aloe vera gel (store bought) a few spritzes lavender essential oil mixed with distilled water 12 pieces banana leaves (approximately 20 cm x 10 cm) 4 lemons or limes, cut in half few drops lavender essential oil generous amount lavender body lotion (or your favourite).

Steps : Stir the fresh aloe into the bought aloe gel and smear  the mixture over the body, but first rub it between your palms to take off the chill.With a good gel, this feels wonderfully soft and slippery, rather than sticky on the skin. Spritz the lavender essential oil in distilled water over your body for a heady fragrance. Place the banana leaf patches over the top of your body and round your arms, so that all limbs are loosely covered. According to Balinese tradition you should not lie on top of banana leaves as this denotes part of the ritual that prepares a body for cremation.While banana leaves are not beneficial to the skin in themselves, they do help to take the heat from the body. They feel gentle and soothing on the skin without feeling cold. A cotton sarong can  be placed on top to keep the leaves in position. Lie still for 20 minutes. As the wrap is conditioning and relaxing the skin, this is the ideal moment for a head massage from a friend or loved one! Remove leaves and shower; then douse your body with warm water infused with the juice of the lemons or limes and a few drops of lavender essential oil. Together these rinse and soothe the skin. Finish with lavender body lotion.

Java Wrap

The Java Wrap is a global beauty phenomenon waiting to happen: an age-old process for a new-age answer to slimming. It started out as a 40-day ritual to rid the midriff from post birth bagginess and, even today, the Indonesian woman lovingly restores her body this way. It is believed that the Java Wrap helps flush out the bacteria which gather in the body after childbirth. It gets the lymphatic system going, reawakens the bodys organs, and cleanses and heals.

New mothers can also benefit from the mineral and citrus paste that is smeared around the middle, then bound tight in a cotton corset. As the old sayirig goes: 'you have to suffer for beauty". This figure-saving treatment is time-consuming rather than really uncomfortable, unless you visit the St Gregory Javana Spa in Singapore where all the work is done for you.

The special paste recipe is fairly standard throughout Indonesia where it has been handed down from one generation to another, and administered woman to woman in the household. This treatment is best done by one friend to another,

Ingredients :

eucalyptus : strong antiseptic, benefits digestion, crushed sea stone/coral : calcium and other mineral content which warms and firms,fresh lime juice : an astringent which flushes toxins from the body, betel leaf : a leaf with antiseptic properties to cleanse womanly odour, massage oil : containing mint and eucalyptus essential oils for anti-viral and decongestant properties, also cooling.cotton cummerbund : 8-10m long, 10-20 cm wide (8-10 yds long, I ft wide)

Steps Mix enough ingredients to half-fill a cereal bowl with sufficient massage oil to give the paste a tacky texture that sticks to the body. Rub the paste gently from above the tummy button to below the bottom. Let it dry for 10 minutes, so that its healing properties start to soak into the skin. Wrap the cummerbund neatly and tightly around the body starting under the bottom and weaving upward to the waist. The wrap physically constricts the body and helps to squeeze it back into shape! Leave for 20 minutes, shower and moisturize with a gentle oil or lotion. Post partum women in Indonesia also drink copious amounts of nourishing tonics such as turmeric, lime or betel leaf water.