Fall spa treatments

Pumpkin enzyme resurfacing facial at Allyu Spa (600 W Chicago Ave, 312-755-1313)
Pumpkin enzymes contain high amounts of vitamins A and C as well as antioxidants, which help build tissue and keep skin smooth and moisturized. This facial at Allyu does just that—and smells great, too. After spending a few peaceful minutes in Allyu’s tent-like relaxation room, I head to one of the treatment rooms where facialist Hayat prepares my skin with steam and hot towels. She cleanses my face with a nettle exfoliating wash by Ilike. Then it’s time for the main attraction: She applies the pumpkin mask, and the smell of fall fills the room. The mask tingles (that means it’s working), and Hayat gently massages my arms, hands and scalp. She removes the pumpkin mask and follows it up with more warm towels, another cleanser and an application of an apple and lemon whipped moisturizer (I’m given a small sample of this one on my way out). Two days postfacial, my skin is still glowing and super soft. I’m now considering rubbing pumpkin guts on my face when I carve jack-o’-lanterns later this month. $130 for 60 minutes, $160 for 90 minutes.—Kevin Aeh

Carrot and sesame body buff at Bliss (644 N Lake Shore Dr, 312-943-9200)
I had imagined this treatment would include more essence of carrot than the actual raw vegetable slathered on my body, but sure enough, as my aesthetician begins to rub me down, I can feel shredded carrot bits, mixed with essential oils such as lavender and chamomile to help the skin absorb the vegetable’s antioxidants, packed in her hands. Minutes later, by the time I’m drenched in a warm milk and honey bath to moisturize and soften my skin, I feel not only entirely relaxed but somehow cleansed of the unhealthy meals I’ve eaten in the last week. After cloaking me in foil so I’ll soak up all these healthy by-products, Lindsey massages my scalp. I nearly doze off, but when she starts to unwrap me, she gives my entire body a substantial scrub using a salt and sesame-seed mix to exfoliate the dead skin cells. And then the best part: Leaving two small towels to cover my upper and lower regions, she runs hot water all over my body with the four-headed Vichy shower. I can feel how slick my skin is as she washes the seeds and carrots off my normally scaly dry legs. I pat myself dry and enjoy the end of my 90 minutes of bliss: a brief massage to rub in the blood orange–scented lotion on every inch of my rejuvenated skin. $170 for 90 minutes.—Jessica Herman

Vanilla sandalwood mani-pedi at Spa Soak (1733 N Milwaukee Ave, 773-395-9000)
After the years I’ve spent puffing along on the lakefront path, my feet are pretty battered. And let’s be honest: If my boyfriend doesn’t even want to look at the raw patch of skin on my big toe where a nail should be, neither does an aesthetician. Major points for Svetlana, who doesn’t bat an eye when I peel off my socks. After she draws a heated foot bath, scrubs my calves with exfoliating lotion and wraps my tootsies in plastic bags of paraffin wax to soften my callused skin, I’ve almost forgotten about my bum toe. And the Wicker Park spa gets extra points for realizing there’s more to fall than pumpkins, instead scenting the lotion and paraffin with the rich aroma of vanilla. Visions of baking cookies flash through my head as Svetlana gets to work with the polish, carefully applying a rich shade of green that masks my still-regenerating cuticle. After all this attention, a matching paraffin-wax manicure seems extra indulgent—but I’ll take it. $74 for 90 minutes.—Marissa Conrad

Pumpkin and spice mani-pedi at the Spa at Four Seasons Hotel (120 E Delaware Pl, 312-280-8800)
A mani-pedi is a mani-pedi—why spend $150 for one at the Four Seasons when you can get the service at a mom-and-pop shop for as little as $45? Because at the Four Seasons, you can make use of the hotel’s posh pool and gym, its luxurious locker room complete with steam room and sauna, and its tranquil relaxation room before and after your service, and, in the case of the pumpkin-and-spice version offered this fall, you’ll be offered pumpkin tea and three soft, delicious pumpkin cookies midway through your pedicure. Not to mention my aesthetician, Cheng, has a laserlike focus and attention to detail, and the pumpkin-and-spice scrub, lotion and masque she uses smells like a pumpkin pie fresh out of the oven. And, perhaps most important, my fingers and toes are without flaw. Isn’t that priceless? 50-minute manicure $55, 45-minute pedicure $95.—Laura Baginski