One New York salon is leaving beauty to the birds. Shizuka New York in Manhattan offers the Geisha Facial for $180, a 60-minute facial that uses a surprising ingredient: Nightingale droppings. Shizuka Bernstein, who runs the salon along with her husband Robert M. Bernstein M.D., says on the salon's Web site that the procedure is safe because the droppings (which are ordered from a Japanese company) are treated with UV light and powdered before being applied. Combined with Japanese rice bran, the mixture exfoliates and lightens the skin.
Surprisingly, the use of bird poop isn't a passing fad: Nightingale droppings were considered a healing agent by geishas in ancient Japan. But still, the big question is: Does it smell, well, like poop? The salon explains: "Although the [bird poop] has a slight musky aroma on its own, Shizuka's special mask formulation neutralizes this aroma, leaving a mild 'organic' smell from the rice bran."
For a demonstration of the Geisha Facial, check out this video.
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