USP You get what you pay for. This is not a spa for penny pinchers, the prices are punchy, but they are worth it. The experience is split – half hair, half body/face treatments, and both elements are top class.

AMBIENCE Professional. The huge first-floor hair spa is open-plan and modern, with dozens of cutters and colourists tending to your every need. My cut, with Nando, was the best I had had in years (he persuaded me to go short, and I will never look back), and my colour, with Sarah, was spot on.

The face/body part of the spa is a more intimate space, offering a peaceful retreat from the action. Situated at the back of the hair salon, its three treatment rooms are calm and comfortable, with pale minimalist décor and soothing music to help you relax. I went for a clarity facial, which was an ideal pre-party treatment.

EXPERIENCE Treated like royalty, and felt that I was in expert hands. My hair when I left was head turningly good, and my skin was, as the treatment promised, clear and radiant.

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The fresh-water mud mask was surprisingly sweet smelling, and the orange-flower water and lavender oil massage gave my skin such a nice glow I didn’t feel the need to put any make up on for around 48 hours. My friend had a bikini wax and said it was the most pain-free wax she had had in years.

FOOD There is a snacks menu that caters for kids (fish fingers), models (cottage cheese on crackers) and normal people (club sandwiches), which I highly recommend if you are having any colour done, because it takes hours.

In the heart of a shopping mecca, it isn’t hard to find some fun before and after. If you want to get away from the crowds, wander up to Elizabeth Street and enjoy a coffee in Baker and Spice.

IN CROWD Yummy mummies, models, the odd celeb, and people who want to give themselves a treat.

WALLET WATCH If I could afford it, I would never go anywhere else. My hair cut was £120 and the colour was £140 (though both of these were the top of their range), and my facial was £85. Other treatments include a full-body treatment, £85, a St Tropez body tan, £80, and a full-body hot-stone massage (La stone therapy), £130.

NEED TO KNOW Richard Ward Hair and Metrospa, 82 Duke of York Square, Sloane Square, London SW3 4LY (020 7730 1222; www.richardward.co.uk) e-mail: info@richardward.co.uk

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