At the start of February, we talked about the power of connection and the crucial role it plays in our daily lives. Whether they be romantic, platonic, or familial, the relationships we nurture and maintain are essential to our personal growth and happiness. So much so, that we’re taking today — Valentine’s Day — to pay homage to these many meaningful connections.
Valentine’s Day 2017 is all about sharing the love. From luxurious limited-edition retreats and relaxing Couples Massage to sweet Sugarfina confections, we’re playing Cupid, “matching” you with ideas for the perfect Valentine’s gift.
With just over two weeks until Valentine’s Day, we’re excited to share this year’s exclusive milk + honey Valentine’s Day retreats. You can purchase these retreats over the phone by calling 512.236.1115 or 713.231.0250, in any milk + honey location, or online, now through February 28. Want to skip right to the good stuff? Go here now. Otherwise, keep scrolling for a breakdown of our Valentine’s Day favorites.
Our annual Valentine’s Day gift guide is here. No matter who you’re shopping for — man, woman, or best friend — in your life, we’ve got you covered.
The 2016 Valentine’s Date Night package includes a 60-minute Couples Massage and side-by-side m + h pedicures.
Set the mood with these Makana candles. Made from USA-grown soybeans, these handcrafted vegan candles will make any place a feel like a romantic getaway.
Treat him to Back Rub 101. You’ll both learn how to give relaxing neck and back massages in a 30-minute hands-on class, followed by a relaxing 60-minute Couples Signature Massage.
For the guy who loves working out, our Active Set is a must have. The set includes the milk + honey Arnica Balm, No. 18 Bath Soak, No. 18 Bath & Body Oil, and Calendula Cream,making sore and achy joints a thing of the past.
If he loves beer and coffee, then Benjamin Soap Co. Coffee Stout Beer Soap is a great gift option. Handcrafted by the Zilker Brewing Company, this luxurious soap is ultra-moisturizing for all skin types.
Indulge your best friend with our 2016 Valentine’s Head-to-Toe Retreat. This spa day includes a 60-minute Signature Massage and Lux Pedicure.
Gift your BFF with some milk + honey staples, such as our Essential Gift Set. This set is packed with beauty greats, including No. 16 Body Cream, No. 14 Body Wash, Everything Roll On, Lip Polish No. 35, and Lip Butter No. 40.
Is your friend a makeup lover? Look no further than Youngblood Cosmetics. From the Contour Palette to the Mineral Matte Lipsticks, this luxurious vegan mineral cosmetics line is cruelty-free, paraben-free, and has become the go-to for celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, and long-time fan, Jessica Alba.
You deserve the 2016 Valentine’s Ultimate Retreat. Enjoy a relaxing day at the spa with an Ultimate Massage, Ultimate Facial, and Ultimate Pedicure.
Want healthy, glowing skin for your big date night? Our HydraFacial, — available only at our 2nd Street District location — cleanses and exfoliates your skin while providing nourishing serums to create flawless skin. Head straight from the spa to your romantic rendezvous without any downtime or redness.
It’s Monday. Mercury is still in retrograde. We’re days away from Valentine’s Day. Let’s put it this way — we won’t blame you if you’ve been feeling a little off lately.
We’re taking extra inspiration from incredible poet & writer/soulful person/insightful being, Maya Angelou, in a conscious effort to appreciate who we are, what we’re doing, and where we’re going. As trite as what we’re about to say may sound, it is true. Loving yourself, giving life and stock to your own ideas and beliefs, and never letting the noise get in the way of doing so is your very own, built-in secret weapon.
Single, taken, in the mood for love, or just feel like a bit of indulgence? Good. Let Valentine’s Day be your excuse. We like to think we show the ones we love how much we appreciate them year-round, but there’s nothing wrong with a little extra TLC come February 14. If you’re with us on that point, then stick around — we’re making it easy to get it right next week.
1. Give an Experiential Gift
It’s not just a gift certificate to milk + honey, oh no. It’s your (or someone special’s) ticket to a luxurious massage, facial, mani-pedi, blowout, etc. Basically, this is a guarantee “in writing” that an awesome treatment is just an appointment away.
2. Pucker Up
“O, then, dear saint, let lips do what hands do; They pray, grant thou, lest faith turn to despair.”
— Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet
This organic, plant-based lip butter is packed with moisturizing virgin coconut oil and shea fruit butter, and fragrant with a warm, spicy mix of cardamom and vanilla. In short, those lips don’t stand a chance. In the best way possible.
3. Set the Mood
Nothing like a little ambiance — preferably one that smells of sandalwood, vetiver, and cardamom — to set the mood. Love is in the air, with a little help from our delicious milk + honey Home Fragrance No. 46 of course.
4. Make plans
This year, Valentine’s Day lands on a Saturday. Translation? Reservations are a must. Start with a couples massage at our 2nd Street District or Hill Country Galleria location (book now!), then head to one of our favorite new restaurants in East Austin, Gardner. If Valentine’s Day is actually more of a “Gal-entine’s” celebration, that’s still a valid reason to treat yourself. Head to Gardner with friends, or go for pizza at Bufalina and top it off with delicious cocktails at Weather Up.
5. Have fun
No reason to fret over this day. If nothing else, it’s a Saturday. Enjoy it!
Don’t think about it as one day out of the year where your love is on blast. Instead, look at it as the perfect excuse to treat yourself — and the ones you love — to something unbelievably relaxing and well-deserved. We’ll make it easy on you. Limited-time only Valentine’s Day packages are just the thing to make this Friday anything but dreaded.
Valentine’s Mini Retreat
Signature Facial OR 60-minute Lux Massage
m + h Manicure
Buy Gift Certificate
$129
Cupid’s Retreat
60-minute Lux Massage
Signature Facial
Buy Gift Certificate
$179
Valentine’s Ultimate Retreat
Ultimate Massage
Ultimate Pedicure
Buy Gift Certificate
$259
Valentine’s Dreamy Retreat
90-minute Lux Massage with Exfoliating Back Scrub and Hydrating Hair Mask
Signature Facial
m + h Manicure and Pedicure
Buy Gift Certificate
$319
Date Night
60-minute Couples Massage
Side-by-Side m + h Pedicures
Buy Gift Certificate
$279
Enhance Your Retreat:
These services can be added to any treatment or package.
Couples Retreat
milk + honey is one of those things that is even better when shared. You’ll each enjoy a 60-minute Lux Massage in our couples room, a Signature Facial, and a m + h Manicure. About 3 hours for $449.
Buy Gift Certificate
Lux Massage
A customized, luxurious Swedish-style massage for relaxation that treats your problem areas and releases stress from your muscles. 60 minutes for $100, 75 minutes for $120, 90 minutes for $140, 120 minutes for $170.
Buy Gift Certificate
Lux Pedicure
Yum! Warm foot bath, exfoliation, a warm essential oil wrap, aromatherapy foot massage and hot towel compress. Finish it off with nail maintenance and polish. 60 minutes for $70.
Buy Gift Certificate
Manly Retreat
Your body works hard for you, so say “thank you.” The Manly Retreat includes a 60-minute Sports Massage, Men’s Deep Clean Facial, and Manly Manicure. About 2.5 hours for $259.
Buy Gift Certificate
The Spa Partisan
The signature milk + honey body treatment. Body brushing opens your pores before the skin is polished with a blend of brown sugar, coffee, crushed almonds, and dehydrated milk. Next, a steam treatment moisturizes, and a 60-minute Lux Massage with body butter completes the relaxing treatment. 100 minutes for $190.
Buy Gift Certificate
2nd Street District (spa + salon) | [email protected]
Hill Country Galleria (spa + salon) | [email protected]
Arboretum Market (salon) | [email protected]
Jamie Kelsch Her latest jewelry line, “Flight,” was inspired by her move from Colorado to Austin eight years ago and is marked by elegance and urban appeal. Each and every piece of J. Kelsch Jewelry is made by hand with the kind of attention to detail and quality craftsmanship that turns wearable art into potential heirlooms. “Wearability is important to me,” says Kelsch, “I keep my jewelry lightweight and integrate a lot of hinges to create movement.”
See and shop Kelsch’s pieces at our Downtown – 2nd Street location from February 11 to 13.
Anna Gieselman The Bee Amour collection, created by artist and backyard beekeeper Anna Gieselman, is both a tribute to bees and outlet to help them. Every piece is made locally in Austin, is detail-oriented, dedicated to original design, and donates 5 percent of company profits to bee-loving nonprofits and institutions.
See and shop Gieselman’s pieces at our Downtown – 2nd Street location on February 14, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Valentine’s Day, oh Valentine’s Day. It’s amazing that one day in the shortest month of the year could make so many women cringe, so many men panic about questions such as “one dozen or two?, and simultaneously impress upon us the importance of showing just how much you love someone. To pay homage to the most romantic day of the year, we’re sharing our best — and worst — Valentine’s Day memories. Enjoy.
“For Valentine’s Day in 2006 — I had been with my boyfriend for 2 years at this point, and we had just bought a house — he surprised me with exactly what I wanted: a treadmill. It WAS exactly what I wanted. The card said ‘Not because I think you’re fat. I love you, Travis.'” — Summer Langhorne, general manager
“One of my favorite Valentine’s Day memories is of being a kid and getting all of those cute little store-bought V-Day cards from all of the kids in my class. They would tape up homemade envelopes on the blackboard with each person’s name on it, and you’d drop the cards in them. I remember giving the ripped up mangled one to the boy in our class that was a mean bully, and scratching out the eyes of Snoopy or whom ever was on the card because my mother said I had to give one to everyone. And, I loved when my Dad came home from work on Valentine’s Day with those “red hot” hearts, balloons, a stuffed bear holding a heart, and chocolates. Oh, those were the days!” — Alissa Bayer, founder and owner
“My friends and I decided to have an anti-Valentine’s Day party. As part of it, we actually lit a heart-covered box on fire in our long driveway. It felt very rebellious at the time, but we must have put too much lighter fluid on it because a neighbor called the fire department… and they actually came to put it out. Ha.” — anonymous
“I spent Valentines Day one year drinking a bottle of red wine out of a thermos on the Pedestrian Bridge while overlooking downtown Austin as the sun set with my two best friends. We all held hands and watched all the couples strolling by. It is still one of my most favorite Valentines Days!” — Laurana Kuhlman, licensed massage therapist
“Valentine’s Day 2005: I found out that the first boy I had truly fallen in love (ah! first love! which happened to coincide with my first year living in NYC as a college freshman) was cheating on me with a girl living in an apartment two floors above mine. What a day! Thank goodness for amazing friends. That was also the day I discovered one of my favorite bars in the East Village, so all’s well that ends well.” — Marisa Tom, marketing manager
“Worst? He bought me a toy-size keychain board game. As in, it was my favorite board game (sweet!) on a key chain. Best? Going out for drinks with my girlfriends.” — Cara DuPre, concierge
“The Valentine’s Day before my and my now-husband’s wedding, he sent me flowers from 1800flowers.com. I was livid with him, and could not believe I was going to marry someone who could not even go to the store, buy me flowers, and give them to me in person. I think you should only send flowers like that if you can’t give them in person. He ended up talking to my mother about it, and she told him that being in a relationship with me would never be easy or predictable. He was just confused as to why a girl would be mad that she was given flowers. Boys. It took me several days to not be mad at him. After that, I didn’t get flowers or anything for years!” — anonymous
“First time I was single in a long while, Valentine’s Day comes around, and I am feeling super down. So, I buy myself a homemade red velvet cupcake, get a bottle of Tisdale Sweet Red, and watch an entire season of Firefly. I felt fabulous.” — Erin Catherine Brannen, concierge
There is no better way to spend Valentine’s Day than relaxing at milk + honey. Purchase a gift certificate for yourself, someone special, or better yet enjoy a couple’s spa treatment with someone you love. Skip the flowers and chocolates. Our Valentine’s Day Retreats are calorie free and never go out of style. On Saturday, February 11 and Sunday, February 12 both of our spas will be open from 8am to 10pm, making sure those early risers and night owls get their spa time too. We recommend scheduling your appointments now before all of the prime spots are taken!
Spa Gifts for All Types
Here are some of our most popular Retreats. For a full list of our Valentine’s specials, click here.
For the Spa Newbie
If he or she has never been to the spa, they may enjoy our Valentine’s Mini Retreat which includes a Signature Facial or a 60-minute Lux Massage and a m + h Manicure. $129. Buy Gift Certificate
For the Spa Junkie
The experienced spa goer might enjoy something a bit more dramatic such as our Valentine’s Dreamy Retreat, which includes a 120-minute Lux Massage, our Signature Facial, and a m + h Manicure. $269. Buy Gift Certificate
The Couple that Does Everything Together
milk + honey is even better when shared. With the Couple’s Retreat you’ll each enjoy a 60-minute Lux Massage in our couples’ room, our Signature Facial, and a m + h Manicure. $425 for two. Buy Gift Certificate
For the Educated Couple
Bring your partner to milk + honey and you’ll both learn how to give a great back and neck massage with our Backrub 101. With just a few techniques, you can be a massage master to your loved one. After you get a 30-minute lesson, you will each receive a 60-minute Lux Massage in our couples’ room, provided by the experts. $290 for two. Buy Gift Certificate
For the Manly Man
Don’t be fooled, boys enjoy their time at the spa too. We recommend the Manly Retreat, which includes a 60-minute Sports Massage, Men’s Deep Clean Facial, and Manly Manicure. $245. Buy Gift Certificate
Gift Certificates Any Way You Like
Our gift certificates are available for any service or increment and are accepted at all locations. Click here to mail a gift certificate to that special someone, or if you can’t wait, you may purchase an instant gift certificate by clicking here, to print or email it right from your computer. You may always place your order by calling us at 512.236.1115, or by visiting any spa or salon location.
Hey Cupid, Give Him a Hint!
Does your honey need a nudge to make sure that milk + honey is part of your Valentine’s Day festivities? Email [email protected] with your honey’s name and your request. Cupid will send him or her a gentle reminder.
