SHELLY MICKELSON doesn't go to a spa; she lets the day spa come to her doorstep.

Once a month, the 53-year-old San Pedro resident is visited by a local massage therapist who transforms Mickelson's guest bedroom into her own personal pampering zone.

The therapist brings a portable massage table, linens, oils, hot steam towels, aromatherapy, even soothing background music.

The only thing Mickelson has to do is relax and enjoy her treatments.

She receives a 60-minute, full body, deep tissue massage with lavender and tea tree aromatherapy, a 30-minute herbal foot soak and a mini-facial.

"This is so nice," Mickelson says. "We're going so much all the time, to have another place to go to wasn't something I wanted to do.

"Having her come, doing the therapy and then leaving was perfect," Mickelson says. "When you finish, you can keep your robe on, have some more coffee and not have to worry about getting into the car and driving back to your house."

Mickelson isn't the only one enjoying treatments in the comfort of her own home.

Though no one has compiled figures for this new phenomenon, the trade industry International Spa Association and Spa Finder, which helps consumers locate spas, call at-home spa services one of the hottest trends in the $13 billion U.S. spa industry.

In the Southland, a handful of businesses deliver a professional spa experience. These private, by-appointment-only sessions offer a range of stress relieving services, everything from hot stone therapy, therapeutic massage, salt and sugar scrubs to facial massages, body wraps and reflexology.

"People don't need to leave their home,'' says Laura Vasquez, who runs the San Pedro-based salon Ton. "They can be completely comfortable in their pajamas or robe; whatever they' re comfortable with. We bring everything to them.''

If someone wants to enjoy a session on the beach or in the back yard, the practitioners set up treatment canopies.

Individual 60-minute massages range from $70 to $75, while 25- to 30-minute facials run from $35 to $50. Some providers charge a nominal fee for traveling.

But the at-home spa benefits aren't limited to individuals. Around the region, groups host spa parties to celebrate birthdays, bridal showers, holidays or just as get-togethers. They can take place in someone's home, at an office, poolside at a hotel or even on a yacht.

Most providers require a minimum of three or four guests and anywhere from two to six hours of services. Spa party guests receive the same treatments as individual sessions, but most practitioners offer a variety of party packages, letting guests indulge themselves with sugar scrubs, facials, hot stone therapies and deep tissue massages.

"I get a lot of stay-at-home moms and businesswomen who need to get away, but they don' t have time or they have kids,'' says Karen McDowell, who runs Paradiso spa, which has locations in Redondo Beach and Newport Beach. "Instead of traveling, we pamper them this way.
It's more convenient. It's their way of getting away.''

Vasquez also gets a mostly female clientele looking for a little pampering. Carolina Brown has taken advantage of Vasquez's services. She and seven female friends recently gathered at Brown's San Pedro home for a Sunday afternoon of 30- and 60-minute massages.

"It was a kick. People brought their robes. We were relaxing in the back yard and the living room," says Brown, a teacher at San Pedro's South Shores Performing and Visual Arts Magnet. "Two people at a time would go downstairs (for their massages), and then you'd see them come up, and they were like, "Yeah.''

Having individual or group spa treatments in the home, not only lets clients relax but also is less stressful on therapists.

Since they work in blocks of time, instead of an hourly schedule, therapists can give clients more one-on-one time.

"We give them the full 60 minutes, unlike a lot of spas, where it's a 50-minute massage,'' McDowell says. "They give you five minutes to get undressed and five minutes to get dressed."

"And no one's going to be knocking on the door saying,"I need the room next,'' McDowell says. "Here, you can stay at home. You're already tired and in La-La Land, feeling as good as you can feel. You don't have to get up and drive. They can show us the door and that's it.''

"Once somebody has a massage therapist or a practitioner go into their home, they really never want to change back," says Regina Fernandez, who operates San Pedro's Doorstep Day Spa and gives Mickelson her monthly treatments. "It's so much easier to be at home than get up and rush out and worry about a time clock or traffic.''

Mickelson agrees. For her next appointment, she wants to try the hot stone therapy and a "dream-land steam massage."

"I feel wonderful when she' s finished. Mentally, it's so freeing and relaxing,'' says Mickelson, who has purchased packages for her daughter, son and husband. "It' s something special to look forward to.''

Phillip Zonkel can be reached at (562) 499-1258 or by e-mail atphillip.zonkel@presstelegram.com