Best use for hot towels

[rpeg]

I got a hot towel cabinet for Christmas, it holds 24 towels, wet or dry. So far I'm only doing massages and don't offer any spa services yet. I just started a few month ago. But I would like to incorporate the towels into my massage, e.g. warming up tense muscles with it before massaging that area. I was hoping to get some great ideas from you. I'm not totally against offering a spa service, as long as it is something simple. My space is so tiny, I can use all 4 walls for leverage :. Also, couldn't I use that cabinet to heat stones? I was always wondering why stones needed to be heated in water? It is so messy.

 

[vampyre4blood]

I mainly use hot washcloths to wipe the feet after a session. I for one don't like having to put my socks back on with oil or lotion on my feet

 

[Bloatedtoad]

Try rolling one up and place it under the neck when supine. You can sprinkle a few drops of an EO on it as well.

 

[Private S. R. Sexy Hehehe]

Won't the clients hair get a bit wet as well as the sheet?

 

[Ethiopian ruler]

I mainly use hot washcloths to wipe the feet after a session. I for one don't like having to put my socks back on with oil or lotion on my feet

Ditto. Also here in Florida many, many people wear sandals (even in winter) so I like to wipe their feet off so they don't slide.

Try rolling one up and place it under the neck when supine. You can sprinkle a few drops of an EO on it as well.

Another ditto. My clients love this!!

Won't the clients hair get a bit wet as well as the sheet?

Perhaps a bit but my clients don't mind. Before I place the towel under their neck I brush their hair back away from their neck. Also, I usually do scalp massage so what's a little dampness along with a little lotion?? And as for the sheet it really doesn't matter as this is done towards the end of the session so it's not like the client is laying on a wet sheet for most of the massage. I place it under their neck when I turn them over. The heat permeates while I massage their legs and hands. I remove the towel to do their neck and head. The damp part of the sheet is under their neck and my hands are under their neck so they don't really feel the sheet.

I also like to start the massage with a hot towel on the back. I like to do compressons thru the towel. It feels yummy!!

Angie

 

[Wayne A]

Hot Towels raise the bar of standard comfort for the client and is something I do my best to include in as many services I can. Simple things like this tend to stand out in a client's memory and it not only gives your bodywork an extra edge, but also opens up the opportunity to introduce Warm Stone Massage for those who've never tried it. Client says, "Wow that feels great!" while you say, "You should see how it feels with warm stones".

I tend to use DRY or only slightly moist towels as opposed to damp towels as drier towels have less of a noticeable transition from hot to cold...because when a hot & wet towel gets COLD & wet, that can feel uncomfortable. Here are some ideas. Feel free to pick and choose:

1) Place a Hot Towel on the client's back as soon as you turn them over into prone position then re-cover them as you work from the bottom up. The client gets a nice dose of heat on their back before you get to it making your bodywork in that area that much more effective.

2) If a client has ticklish feet, cover the foot with a hot towel and use compressions.

3) After Footwork, cover the feet with hot towels (dry) before redraping. Feel free to try this with hands as well depending on client preferences. It isn't too hard to figure out if clients have a tendency for cold hands/feet. If they don't let you know, then palpation will make it obvious.

4) When doing chestwork, replace a normal breast draping towel with a DRY, heated one. A WET heated one may burn the nips...not exactly something the client's gonna have an easy time explaining to their loved one! :O

There are plenty of other ways to incorporate them into services and I'm sure you'll find them on your own with time. I only use one or maybe 2 of those examples I listed per session unless it's a high-cost service.

Something I try to let others know in our career is that simple improvements can make a difference. You should see how many Germans I've talked to since coming to this country that turned a blind eye to a higher auto ameneties package just because the car had heated seats!

 

[Squirtle]

Thanks Moogie for explaining all that much better then I could!

 

[golly_gina]

Try rolling one up and place it under the neck when supine. You can sprinkle a few drops of an EO on it as well.

Second vote (or is it third???) for this technique!

Also, if you are working a particularly hypertonic area, use it before massage to warm it up -or- to keep it warm for a while as you move on (or both

Lay on your table and consider where you would like to have a nice warm towel ~ chances are, your clients would, too.

 

[blondeee]

I love these suggestions! I just pulled out my mini crock pot and set it up with a couple of washcloths on the warm setting. Any downside to this? I put a small amount of water in the bottom and wet the washcloths. I have limited space so a cabinet is not an option.

In warmer weather I offer a chilled washcloth to each client when they arrive, so I have plenty of them around.

 

[Layla]

I love these suggestions! I just pulled out my mini crock pot and set it up with a couple of washcloths on the warm setting. Any downside to this? I put a small amount of water in the bottom and wet the washcloths. I have limited space so a cabinet is not an option.

The crock pot method works just fine. I have used one when doing in home spa parties since its ez to cart around compared to the cabby.

 

[xfire_2]

I start nearly every massage with a hot towel wash of my client's feet. I also leave a hot wet towel in the cabinet for the client to wipe down with while getting dressed if they choose. 8) I have received nothing but positive response from clients as to the use of hot towels.

 

[Cinnamon Returns]

Okay, I set the crockpot on "warm" at the start of the massage with one wet washcloth in it. At the end of the massage it was waaaay too hot to handle. So for today's massages I'll turn the crock off when I turn the client and hope for better results. I guess I could use tongs and wave the cloth around until it cools a bit, but I wasn't prepared for how hot it got. Good thing I didn't tell my client I was adding the service to my routine.

I use a baby wipe on client's feet at the start, mainly because most of my clients are warm/hot when they arrive due to the local climate. A cool wipe feels good to start. Also, I like that I can use as many as I like (some clients come from the beach with sand, some live barefoot!) and just toss them. Yes, I know, not very green, but I do try to make up for it in other ways.

 

[littlemoomaid]

Barefoot,

I also have that problem when using a crock pot. That is why having a towel caddy helps but I don't have space for that either. lol

The towels cool off quickly so a couple waves through the air typically does it.

 

[bytchass]

Agree on the hot towel under the neck.

In my case, the therapists at the spa I worked at would actually use 3 towels and put them up like a little pyramid and then put them under the neck. Hair did get a little wet, but the spa goers didn't seem to mind (probably because not only how wonderful it feels, but also because they would be there all day anyway).

I like the hot dry towel idea, though I have never tried it. I'd suggest putting a few dry towels around the wet ones and see if that helps a bit with the wet hair, if there is a concern.

Also, they are great for the feet, and if you don't want the table to get wet, you can put a plastic bag around the foot one the towel is around it.

Otherwise, I've used them for the back with good results, too.


All that said, currently I don't use hot towels. I don't have a lot of time for the extra work it requires to keep things up to the standard I'd like with those. So, for me, it's better not to use them at this point.

 

[John V]

For barefoot and others who want to use hot towels but don't have a cabi, here's what I used to do. Fill your crockpot or skillet with water. I like using a skillet for this method because it heats up a lot faster, but crockpot will work as well. Keep a stack of dry folded (fold once length-wise, and then in half) hand towels beside your hot water. When it's time to use a hot towel, dip half of the towel in the water and then wrap/roll the dry half around the wet half and wring it out this way. This keeps your hands from getting burned (they're only touching the dry part) and still wets the towel nicely. Thongs as you mentioned are another option.

I've got a hot towel cabi now, because I love using them so much. I use them for feet for every massage. I also sometimes use them on the face. That can be such a refreshing way to end the massage. I do it more with men, because women tend to wear makeup, but sometimes for women also. I've used them to do castor oil packs - Layer on the castor oil to affected area, cover with saran wrap (I've ruined too many towels!), layer on a hot wet towel, cover with a dry towel, then the sheet. I use them for all my Ayurvedic treatments to remove excess oil from body/face/head.

I also use my hot towel cabi to store my rice pack in. I have a long tube sock filled with 4lbs. rice that I use as a heat pack. I warm it initially in the microwave before the client gets there. (In my cabi it would take about 1 hour to heat up all the way. Microwave = 5 mins) Then I start them face up with the pack under their neck and work the limbs. When I get to their neck, I place the pack in my cabinet while I work on their neck. So when they flip over it's still nice and warm to place on their back while I work the legs.

 

[R. P]

yes, Ms Simon, I keep my stones in the towel cabby. They get really hot in there, so I set them on top of the blanket and the heat penetrates really well. I keep enough stones in the bottom of my cabby to do a stone back massage. You probably could keep them all in there but the get much hotter than a stone warmer makes them.

 

[Alice D]

My experience with hot stones has been this...when I am doing a full body stone massage I use the hot water bath...I have found that when the stones are bathed in hot water and preheated they completely heat all the way to the center, more evenly, and tend to retain their heat for longer. The heat feels like a nice steady heat...There is a different quality to the heat than when I heat them in the towel cabi...

I use my towel cabi for heating stones when I am just going to use a one tool stone and a couple smaller ones for incorporation into a massage to help warm up the fascia more quickly....spot treatments. The quality of the heat from the cabi is extremely hot on the outside but I suspect not as thoroughly heated because they cool down extremely quickly...but for quick spot treatments it works...

I use the stones in my hands as I work with the strokes so it might be different if incorporating them for laying on as in chakra work etc...

I love working with the stones...

 

[Frankydoodle]

Hot Towels

I have been using my towel cabinet for quite some time now and love it here is what I do......I found a pair of footies that have rice on the bottom of them form Bed Bath and beyond really cheap there! I wrap the clients foot in a small thin towel...fresh one each time....I also wet a hand towel down and fold it long ways over and over so it looks like a neck warmer. I then place the damp towel in a small white trash bag or a paraffin hand bag fold it over and tape it....this way it retains the heat I also put an eye pack in the towel warmer and use all 3 of these during my massage I always start prone and when I flip them over I put on the booties then work the neck and shoulders place the warm towel (I wrap a dry towel around it a couple of time so they are not laying on the plastic) under the neck work the face place the eye pack on and finish with the arms and legs and finally the foot massage for last. This really wins over new clients and spoils my regulars they love it! I also in the winter time us a back heater on the back of the client to warm up the core my gals love the hot pack on when I flip them over too along with the other warming goodies.

 

[loveslolafoevergirl]

I use a crock pot I got for $17 at Walmart (I think it's 5 or 6 quarts ... a large one). I put a dampened (but squeezed "dry") towel in the bottom and turn the crock pot on before the session. Many clients I start supine, then when I flip them over I turn the crock pot OFF. By the time I'm done and ready to lay the warmed towel on their back (covered by another hand towel I've used during the session, to keep the blanket from getting wet) it's cooled enough for me and the client. If I forgot to turn the crock off, I pull out the towel and wave it around (as someone described above) until it's an appropriate temperature. Yes, it can be hot to the touch when it first comes out!

A therapist friend also suggested using a folded up cheap metal pie dish to separate the wet towel (on the bottom) from dry towels on top, when heating both in the crock pot. I haven't tried using dry towels, but you all are inspiring me to do so.