BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — A new Brooklyn boutique spa is aiming to empower and pamper young women — in a bid to help them feel "beautiful inside and out," its owner says.
Girlz Time Spa and Party Boutique in Bedford-Stuyvesant offers party packages for children as young as 4 years old, along with a Beauty Boot Camp for teens with workshops on cooking, hygiene and careers, according to owner Wendy George-Bush.
“I was raised as a little girl with the idea that you have to carry yourself accordingly. You have to look good, smell good and act good — that was the ‘Three G’s’ with my mom,” said George-Bush, 44.
“Those were the characteristics that I’d like to bring into Girlz Time.”
The 650-square-foot space inside a brownstone at 746 Halsey St. is decorated with chandeliers, furry pillows and pink tutus accenting the room.
Girls are handed spa robes and slippers once they arrive and party-goers leave with goodie bags filled with accessories.
There are three manicure and pedicure stations along with mirrors and seating for makeup sessions. A small stage sits at one end with pink velvet ropes and a pink carpet gets rolled out for fashion shows, George-Bush said.
“We’re dancing, we walk the runway, we change into outfits,” she added. “It’s a high-energy, high-impact girls’ party.”
Photo credit: DNAinfo/Camille Bautista
Parents can book the space for up to eight girls ages 4 through 14, and packages include manicures, pedicures, facials, makeup and catered snacks and drinks, including non-alcoholic cocktails like strawberry piña coladas. The cost for eight girls is $899, and the spa also offers a la carte treatments that cost between $55 and $125 per person.
Themes include a “Frozen” package with dress-up and karaoke from the Disney movie, a “Tutu & Tiara” celebration, “Party Like a Rock-Star” and “Spa-Jama Party.”
The idea for a girls’ spa stemmed from George-Bush’s youth, she said, as she grew up working in her mother’s salon and was influenced by holiday sleepovers spent at a family friend’s home.
“What I’m hoping that girls get out of it is self-esteem. I want to empower them with knowing once they leave here that they are beautiful inside and out, and once you have a good self-esteem about yourself, no one can take away anything from you,” George-Bush said.
“We have to teach our young ladies. If we don’t teach them the way, we’re going to lose them to all the negative forces of the world.”
Her mother’s friend, who they affectionately called Auntie Evonne, would teach George-Bush and other young girls how to paint their nails, cook and give life lessons on fashion, beauty and etiquette, she said.
George-Bush hopes to pass along those teachings at the spa’s Beauty Boot Camp, which she’ll start offering for girls ages 12 through 14 come September, she added.
The twice-a-week workshops will cover topics like hygiene, healthy eating, sexual education and social media.
“It encompasses so much. Like Facebook, a lot of our girls get trapped in the unrealistic world of social media, not portraying the right images about who they are, taking provocative pictures,” the business owner said.
“It’ll touch on a whole range of different experiences.”
Photo credit: DNAinfo/Camille Bautista
Participants in the 12-week course will learn from entrepreneurs during a career class and visit local colleges, George-Bush added.
“I want to be able to leave a legacy behind, just like Auntie Evonne — learning to care about yourself, learning etiquette, loving yourself,” she said.
“That’s what I want to pour into the young ladies, that it’s OK to be confident, to love who you are, so no one can be able to persuade you to go to another side.”
The Halsey Street boutique also serves as a safe space for girls to have conversations and share personal questions, the owner said.
The business provides space for events and party packages for adults. For more information on rates, visit Girlz Time Spa and Party Boutique’s website here.
