Who is Carissa?
L.M.T., P.M.A., I.D.C.T.,C.M.M.T., European Day Spa’s Owner & Founder
Meet Carissa
The most important thing to Carissa for European Day Spa is to share her passion for the spa philosophy and utilize the body’s natural ability to heal.
“We understand the importance of you giving your time to us and are dedicated to providing our best efforts. We always use the finest products that not only give exquisite results externally but also benefit you internally. We believe in holistic therapies and treatments that affect your whole being. We don’t want you to just feel good from our services, but also be good. We promise to provide a divine experience that will transform all of your body, mind, soul, and spirit.”
Carissa is a licensed cosmetologist, certified paramedical aesthetician, licensed massage therapist, certified medical massage therapist, intradermal cosmetic technician, reiki master, certified energy medicine master, bioenergetics Practioner, Shamanic Priestess.
The journey has evolved in many forms
Carissa has been serving the cosmetology field since 1993 and the field of massage therapy since 1996, although her passion and knowledge started long beforehand. She was severely injured when a child causing back problems and was a teenager with very troubled skin. Her mother believed in natural methods and took Carissa to alternative doctors and practioners. Carissa gained alot of insights and also saw the need for various modalities to be offered in one location where they could work in sync and compliment each other.
Carissa is also a Reiki practitioner, lymphatic specialist, and craniosacral therapist. She has developed her own method of combining the different modalities, often working on a cellular level. Over the years she taught beauty basics at a modeling school and has trained many therapists in the Fredericksburg area in spa techniques. Carissa was the first in Fredericksburg to study at Spa DeSante and introduce their teachings to many therapists. To this day, Carissa travels the world to the industry’s leading shows, seminars, and continuing education classes with the top experts, always expanding her and her staff’s knowledge base.
How the spa started out
Carissa started her massage business in a quaint two-story Sunday House in 1999 which they quickly outgrew and moved into a large two-story house with a full-service salon. Many years were spent on the property of a small resort across from Enchanted Rock-Trois Estate. Along the way, Carissa raised two children as a single mother and was honored to watch them grow up and thrive. She has been blessed to become a grandmother. In 2013 she moved to Austin to help a family member but instead of closing she downsized her business and commuted several days a week back and forth in order to keep her amazing staff, continue to provide services to the many loyal clients of several years and maintain her roots in the community.
In the early ’90s, alongside cosmetology school, Carissa trained extensively in the realms of skincare, make-up artistry, and camouflage aesthetics. She also trained at the Scott & amp; White Memorial Hospital Division of Plastic Surgery and Medical Aesthetics program. In the mid-’90s after massage therapy school, Carissa worked with and assisted Dr. Jin, a Chinese Acupuncture Doctor. Under their guidance, she greatly expanded her knowledge of the body’s meridian systems and acupressure points. She also volunteered with The Look Good, Feel Better Program in Dallas, and worked with Cancer and Burn survivors within the realm of clinical aesthetics and camouflage. Wanting to work more extensively in that area, she spent the next several years training in Manual Lymphatic Drainage. She has trained under experts from Spain, Germany, and France with well over 100 hours in MLD, making it one of her specialties. In 1996 she demonstrated MLD and presented its benefits to Doctors at an Alternative Cancer Clinic in Mexico.
Carissa has many interests
Carissa’s interests include metaphysics and the healing arts. She apprenticed with many shaman healers including one from Greenland who with the community of their circle, worked on a global movement of “Melting The Ice in the Heart of Man”. In 2015 she became a Mesa Carrier based on the Q’ero teachings in Peru after attending a year-long journey with the Austin Shamanic Center.
In 1996 Carissa managed and helped create the very first day spa in Fredericksburg. Just a few months after its spa program launched, SELF magazine featured the spa as one of the top day spas in the country. In 1998, Carissa opened her own businesses- Spa to Go and European Day Spa of Fredericksburg. The original pioneer of spa services in Fredericksburg, Carissa started the movement of spa services in the Bed and Breakfasts and today several have on-site mini spas. Many Fredericksburg therapists and nail technicians have worked and trained at European Day Spa, utilizing Carissa’s techniques and product knowledge and have taken them into the community.
Where can you receive a treatment from Carissa?
Carissa offers off-site services and has mini spas set up in several Fredericksburg Bed and Breakfasts, including Tres Lunas Resort, and Palo Alto Creek Farms. She also provides mobile services for private clients. Kingwood Suites hosts European Day Spa with a fabulous, tranquil reception area furnished with leather couches, a fireplace, and complimentary mimosas, coffee, or herbal tea.
Policies
Services are provided by appointment only and require advanced notice for groups. There is currently only one treatment room but it can accommodate a personal service, couples, or a group of three.
A credit card required to hold reservations. We implement a 24-hour notice of cancellation. For respect of our time and possible other appointments, a 50% charge will occur if you do not show up or do not cancel with 24 hours notice. We also do not give cash refunds to recipients of gift certificates though they are transferable. Please leave a voice message, email, or text if you do not reach us by phone.