La Dolcevita Day Spa and Salon

After five years of creating a great look for clients in Kamloops, BC, Shelley Battistella and Davide Fattor, owners of La Dolcevita Day Spa and Salon, did the same for their business.
By Colette Wright

The first floor houses the salon, with a modern design featuring high-gloss ice-white walls, chrome/metal furniture, flashes of blue light and accents of black. Battistella says it has an energetic, cool vibe but promotes a calm and soothing experience. “The way the lights reflect from the ceiling and bounce off the walls creates a ripple pattern that makes you feel as if you’re floating,” says Fattor.

“We expanded from 2,000 to 2,700 square feet,” says Battistella.“The design of the salon and day spa are completely different from one another,” adds Fattor.

Battistella says the light boxes mounted on the wall in the reception area were inspired by something they saw at a Vancouver art gallery. Above the cutting stations are rows of what Battistella describes as ice cube halogen lights to blend in with the ice theme. Fattor notes that the thick metal casing from the ceiling down to the mirrors had to look stylish to cover up electrical wires connecting to the outlets on the sides of the mirrors.

Between stations are movable plexiglas shelves allowing easy access to products for stylists to use on clients’ hair. Stylists wear tool belts so the salon appears clean and tidy at all times and they can work from any station. Even the black shelves displaying retail items in the reception area are made of mesh. “Those little tiny holes prevent us from having to dust every day,” laughs Battistella.

Take the stairs to the second floor and you’re standing in the day spa, which looks and feels more like a resort spa. Clients in signature robes and slippers are encouraged to stay as long as they want, to chat, read or enjoy a beverage from the coffee bar, resting on cozy furniture by a gas-burning fireplace. Battistella says every little detail in the spa—from wall colours to home-like decor to the high-end quality towels and linens to the lockers and change rooms—makes it completely different from other day spas. “The only thing you can’t do at La Dolcevita is sleep over.”

The treatment rooms have been designed to create more of a soothing and relaxed atmosphere. The entrance is a soundproof double sliding door. “Clients relax more because they are not disturbed by outside chatter or door latches opening and closing.” As the name suggests, they can enjoy a sweet indulgence.

Kelly Funk of Natural Wonders Photography

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