The *Ultimate* Guide to Aesthetic Treatments

...what they do, how much they cost, downtime involved, and even a spiciness rating.

Welcome to Glow Notes! A newsletter that’s equal parts skincare wisdom and a peek inside everything new and noteworthy in the beauty world, written by me, Simone Gannon - an aesthetic practitioner, skincare educator, and beauty journalist of over 15 years.

Here, you’ll find a mix of practical skincare advice, interviews with beauty founders, expert how-tos, deep dives into products, treatments, and the weird stuff that actually works.

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One question I get asked over and over on the 'gram is - "what's the best aesthetic treatment?" And it’s usually asked with no context provided. Just a request for a treatment, as if there’s one magic approach that fixes all our skin issues and ticks every box (which hello, there really should be – it’s 2025 after all).

But here’s the thing: aesthetic treatments are designed to improve, reduce or treat something. And to get those results, you need to know a) what that something is, and b) the right approach to treat it.

So, if you're not able to book a skin consultation at the moment (which is important before trying anything on the list), but you still want to know what options are available for your concerns, I’ve put together an in-depth guide to help.

The Specifics

Each treatment is broken down with specific details so you know exactly what it targets, if it’s the right fit for you, how uncomfortable it is (or not), how much downtime is involved, and how much it’ll set you back.

I’ll be listing the treatments in order of popularity - basically, based on how often I administer them in clinic. The more popular a treatment is, the more universally appealing it tends to be because it works for most people and delivers solid results.

As we move down the list, I’ll dive into the more intense treatments. The spicy ones. These usually come with longer downtime, a bigger financial outlay, and require a lot more thought before committing.

I’ll also include popular aesthetic treatments that do not improve or contribute to the health and condition of the skin, but do improve how it looks, in an effort to clear up confusion about how they actually work.

Where available, because I’ve tried a lot of these treatments myself, I will link to video clips so you can see them in action (some of the links will be to my Instagram highlights - if they don’t open directly, just scroll through my profile and you’ll find them).

So, let’s break down some of the most popular aesthetic treatments available at the moment.