Spa school makes dreams come true
Reyna Almonte, owner of Aromazul Day Spa on Greenwood Avenue in Bethel, advises her clients to stay away from skin care products containing alcohol. “It will dry up the surface of the skin,” she said.
Instead, she recommends they exfoliate at least twice a week, a process that removes dead skin cells.
Almonte learned about skin care in 2006 when she trained as an aesthetician at the Institute of Aesthetic Arts & Sciences on Main Street South in Southbury.
The institute was founded in 1987 by Kathy Shingara and offers classes in skin care, makeup artistry, nail care, hair removal, microdermabrasion and oxygen therapy.
“A large part of this job involves talking to clients and getting to know what their skin care needs are,” said Shingara, 63, a licensed cosmetologist with more than 40 years of experience in the industry. “At most of the salons or spas people go to, they are asked to pick their treatment. I don’t agree with this, since many of them don’t know what kind of treatment is best for their type of skin.
“In our school, we specially train our students to address clients’ concerns and then offer our opinions. We walk them through the entire process so they can understand what we’re doing and how we’re doing it,” said Shingara, an Oxford resident.
Almonte, who worked in the clerical field for 11 years, became interested in a career in skin care after receiving a facial one day. “I fell in love with it. It was so relaxing,” said Almonte, 42, a Bethel resident. “I knew that I wanted to make other people feel as good as I did.”
Almonte’s sister, Diamela Urena, also has graduated from the Institute of Aesthetic Arts & Sciences and is a part-time aesthetician at the Aromazul Day Spa.
“One thing I learned from IAAS is that your skin problems can greatly improve by making just a few changes to your environment,” said Urena, 41, of Southbury. “One of these is to avoid being outdoors during peak traffic times. Car fumes and other outside debris go into the air and get into your skin cells and age them.”
Almonte’s friend, Eva DeLara, also recently graduated from the institute. Although she has been a nail technician for the past nine years at Dawn’s Pizzazz-Artistic Group & Day Spa on West Street in Danbury, she now works there as an aesthetician, as well.
“I learned some great makeup tips,” said DeLara, 41, a Danbury resident. One of them is contouring. “If you want to make your nose look smaller, use dark foundation on your nose bridge and lighter foundation on top of your nose.”
Shingara said she is confident there will always be jobs in the skin care industry despite the economy.
“In tough times, when you’re hearing nothing but bad news all around you, we all like to escape for an hour to get pampered,” she said. “That’s why companies like Avon have stayed in business for so many years — even a little lipstick makes you feel better.”
– The Institute of Aesthetic Arts & Sciences, 800 Main St. S., Suite 110, is open Tuesday to Saturday from 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Call 262-6070 or visit www.IAASCT.com.
Esthetics, Facials, Spa Schools, Spa Training, Spa Treatment
