I arrive in Grasse, an area in the South of France known for its fragrance making, on a warm summer’s day and am taken directly to our accommodation. I’m here, along with media and content creators from around the globe to take part in Lancôme’s Longevity Retreat – a three day retreat which is set to culminate with a viewing of their recently refurbished Lancôme Domaine de la Rose. However, before we headed there to see exactly where Lancôme’s famous Roses are grown, we were introduced to a whole lot of beauty tech. And as someone who has written about beauty for over ten years – I’m pretty excited to test it out.
Day one: Skin Screen
The first thing I’m introduced to is Lancôme’s Skin Screen. Launched in 2020 the Skin Screen has recently had an upgrade with a new feature – projective ageing. Like its name suggests, by measuring and grading the ageing of your face, it will be able to give you a glimpse into your future self – in 15 years time. It does this by using a combination of tri-polar light technology and cross-polarized light with UV flashes, as well as AI and computer vision algorithms to measure 12 key clinical skin parameters including texture, redness, brown spots, visible ageing, hydration… the list goes on. In addition to facial analysis, a new AI-powered eye diagnosis feature also looks at the needs of the (shall we say, delicate) eye area. It sounds like a lot, but fortunately for me, there was little I had to do. I simply pushed my head forward and rested my chin and forehead on the pads, and the machine did the rest. The results? I’d love to say I looked incredible in 15 years time, but honestly, the Skin Screen was a much-needed wake-up call to add hydration to my (clearly parched!) skin.
Day two: Absolue Cryo-Sculptor
I don’t think there is any better start to your day than a morning facial. On day two at Lancôme’s Longevity Retreat I’m given a robe and escorted into a beautiful room overlooking the location’s idyllic pool. I’m here to test out the Absolue Cryo-Sculptor – one of their newest beauty tech devices. This signature service has been developed to complement Lancôme’s premium skincare range, and at first glance it looks like it’s going to do something good. Made up of two hand-held heat-conducting petals (housed in signature Absolue gold) the facial begins with a hot facial massage of around 43 degrees. It feels sleep-inducing and relaxing but also like it’s doing something beneficial as my skin is pushed around and lifted gently. The treatment then continued with the cold massage or cyro-therapy. Switching to a chilly 8 degrees the shock of the cold works to tighten the skin and helps to re-sculpt, firm and plump the skin. While I didn’t want it to end, it was the perfect cold burst to envirorate my senses and set me off on my day. And I swear, afterwards not only did I look rested, but my cheekbones looked sculpted and lifted.
Day three: Absolue Duel-LED Youth-treatment
After being introduced to the Absolue-Duel LED I gave it a whirl in my hotel room on my final day at Lancôme’s Longevity Retreat. The breakthrough beauty device uses patented LED light therapy while simultaneously dispensing their luxury formula via a massaging ball (in a bid to reduce wrinkles and fine lines!) The aim of the energy-rich light waves is to delve into the deep layers of the skin, which with the ampoule of product, will work to exfoliate and thus rejuvenate the skin. Helpfully, once you’ve passed the device over one section of your skin (like say, your cheek area) it will beep when it’s time to move on to another area. For me, the highlight of this device is that you can use it at home. And while it’s not going to be released until 2025 – it’s certainly one to put on your wish list now.
