Wow, it’s hard to believe it’s less than 7 weeks until Xmas … the Pohutukawa are in flower in Auckland (which bodes for a long, hot summer) and I’ve even heard of some people getting their Xmas trees up already (admittedly a bit early for me!) 🎄

If you haven’t booked your Pre-Xmas treatment, I would suggest making your booking now! Keep an eye out for some excellent Xmas gift packs from both Environ and AST, and remember that we also do gift vouchers. It might be the perfect gift for you or a loved one – if you are wanting a voucher, make sure you put in some well placed hints to your family and friends 😉 You can choose to give (or receive) either a gift card, or one of our gorgeously updated new physical vouchers, beautifully sealed with a ribbon and hot wax seal with our fabulous new green logo. 💚 We’ve had lots of wonderful feedback about our change to green, and we are completely in love with the new look!

As we are now coming into summer, we will soon stop providing IPL treatments for pigmentation, and it’s worth considering our special pre-Xmas package of needling and Healite treatments as an alternative. Have a chat with your medical skin therapist to find out if this is appropriate for you.

We are delighted to announce that, thanks to your support, we were able to raise about $1000 for the Breast Cancer Foundation to contribute to breast cancer research and support those journeying through breast cancer. Thank you for supporting us, so we can support people with breast cancer – and their families – to hopefully make their journey so much easier. It’s a cause close to our hearts, and every little bit counts!

October 9th was the first anniversary of my dad’s passing, and we had a beautiful (and eventful) celebration with family and friends in Russell, along with the unveiling of dad’s headstone. Dad had been very clear about what he wanted on his headstone: a broadbill – “and make damn sure it’s not a marlin” ; a picture of Poppy (dad’s dog – we sneakily squeezed him in there too ); and, completely in character with my dad’s sense of humour, the notation on his headstone that says ‘That was fun!’.

Dad was laid to rest in a beautiful spot in the Russell Cemetery, overlooking Longbeach. The day of the unveiling started with beautiful weather, but severe thunderstorms were forecast for 1pm, the time of the unveiling and memorial, which made my brother and I nervous. Sure enough, as people started arriving at the cemetery, large raindrops started to fall and a flurry of umbrellas came out as the first resonant sounds of the Reo Māori ‘calling in’ to the cemetery started ringing through the air. Luckily, the sky cleared long enough for a few words of thanks to the community and a short toast to dad, but when the speeches went on too long, we got blasted with torrential rain and huge chucks of hail, and had to scarper to the cars! I can just imagine dad watching it all and having a good old giggle at the carnage!

Leaving my whanau in Russell, I had a day of meetings in Auckland before travelling to Bali to train as a facilitator in an energy practice that I have found incredibly helpful in my healing journey, called Kundalini Activation. I have since facilitated several sessions in Bali and just recently my first sessions in NZ. I was introduced to this somatic, trauma informed healing modality by my friend Anna for our birthdays in Bali in August last year, and have found it helpful in shifting the symptoms of fatigue and depression I suffered after the breast cancer journeys and taking the medication Tamoxifen; so I’m excited to have been able to deepen my practice and I’m excited to share this transformative practice with others. Many people find it a powerful energy for manifestation, and it seems to be working in my life, as we have a lot of exciting new things coming to fruition over the next few months… one of which is the relaunch of our training academy, happening next month!

I first started planning a training academy back in 2005, and our Albany clinic (built in 2006) was all set up for it, however the Global Financial Crisis got in the way and required all my attention. We finally launched stage 1 of our training academy back in 2015, with the Vampire Academy, when I became NZ’s first licensed trainer for the Vampire Facial™️, Vampire Facelift™️, Vampire Breastlift™️, O-Shot™️ and P-Shot™️. As it became apparent that there were significant gaps in the market for training in Hyalase and Profhilo, we added these workshops to the Academy offering, and then this year we held our first Complications Workshop which was a huge success. Over the years we have had so many of our attendees ask about foundational, intermediate and advanced training in Botox and fillers, and so we have been working hard in the background to develop these materials, and we’re excited and delighted to be announcing the new The Face Place Academy will be launching next month, complete with new logo, easier registration, online modules, and the highly practical small group training that our attendees consistently rate as 10/10. We will initially launch our first online modules in December so attendees can complete the online training over December and January, before they can attend our first practical foundation courses early next year. To say we’re excited is an understatement! Our original vision has come to life, and is so much more than I ever envisioned! 

Just two days after getting back from Bali, I headed over to Sydney for our Allergan Training Faculty Meeting for the weekend. These faculty meetings are always a wonderful opportunity to connect with other leaders and trainers in our industry and compare notes on both clinical and teaching practice, as Allergan makes both Botox and Juvederm. We had two days of workshops, including a cadaver workshop, which is always amazing for improving our knowledge of anatomy – we can always learn more about anatomy – and then dinner with the Allergan Training Faculty From Japan. Hilariously the Allergan team had booked dinner at a restaurant called ‘ChinChin’ – not realising it’s a pet name for ‘penis’ in Japanese 😹 . Luckily the Japanese crew had a great sense of humour and took it all on the chin 😉 😻

We are looking forward to announcing some other new initiatives over the next few months, but until then, a few reminders:

• Download the ‘My Face Place’ app in the Apple or Android Store, and register to get easier access to your previous and upcoming appointments, any forms you might need to complete, your treatment plans and photos, and to speedily book another appointment because it remembers what you’ve previously booked! It’s also a great place to find your code to:
• Refer a friend and you both get a $50 credit on your account! Your friend will need to give us your private code BEFORE coming into the clinic, and you can easily find this code in your app. Just look for the ‘referral’ icon on the front page of the app, click on it, and discover your private code to share! (Note that T&C’s apply – for example you can refer as many people as you like, but each referred person can only have one referrer)
• Spend more than $500 at either clinic during one appointment and receive a copy of my ‘Grow Younger With Great Food’ recipe and guide book, just in time for Xmas! They also make great Xmas gifts 💝
• Remember to bring your empty Aspect, Cosmedix, Skin Better and PCA skin product containers back into the clinic for recycling in the big grey box in reception. Before you pop the containers in the box, please let the team know, so they can load a credit into your account for every container recycled ♻️
• If you are a cosmetic injector or potential looking for training in the industry, we are about to announce our training dates for the first part of next year, along with some other exciting news, so keep an eye out on the ‘Training Academy’ tab on our website, and on social media!

My final big announcement is that after two years of focusing on training the team and directing the business, I finally have the energy to start seeing patients again! I will be starting with just a few hours a week at our Takapuna clinic, to make sure my energy remains consistent and I avoid the boom-bust cycle that my A personality type can often experience coming back into work, and I’ll be guided by my occupational therapist over the next couple of months to ensure I’m functioning at my best for my patients while I’m working. I will only be available to see existing patients, and you’ll need to contact Treena or Sophie on 0800 226 869 as we won’t be putting the appointments online. I’m excited to get back to seeing patients, and so incredibly grateful for the support of our brilliant team, and amazing patients over the nearly four years since my first diagnosis.

It’s a wonderful way to be finishing the year, with so many things to celebrate, and I look forward to seeing your faces in clinic soon!

Sending love and hugs,

Dr Cat 😻