Skin that's listened to
heals differently
Anneli is a specialist facialist and skin therapist based in Wanaka. Everything at Ilu Hub is built around a single belief: your skin is a living organ that reflects the health of your whole body - and it responds to being truly cared for, not just treated
TRAINED IN
CIDESCO ·
International Diploma
The Pastiche Method® ·
Florence Barrett-Hill, NZ
Health Science ·
Level 5 Diploma
Skin Education International ·
Advanced certificates
Face sculpting, microcurrent, microneedling ·
Advanced clinical
DRAWING ON
IAC ·
member resources, research articles
Prologic education ·
skin science and corneotherapy, with Rachel
Health Science research ·
stress, ageing, immune response
Longevity science ·
brain and body research
Client conversations ·
questions that shape what I read next
Skin isn't just a surface - it responds to how we live.
Every facial at Ilu Hub is designed as therapy for both skin and nervous system. Facial nerves connect directly to the central nervous system, so the right touch brings you to rest faster than a full-body massage – and a body at rest heals better.
Anneli works corneotherapeutically – barrier first, then everything else in its own time. Actives and technology have their place too; they arrive once skin is ready to use them properly.
That’s the real difference: a barrier strong enough to hold the gains that actives and technology help create, rather than harsh shortcuts chasing instant results. Anneli works with your skin’s intelligence – supporting its natural processes, restoring resilience, and building results that last.
An approach that is different
by design.
01
It starts with an assessment
Every treatment starts the same way – with a proper look at the skin on the day. What happens next – the products used, the techniques applied – comes from what’s actually needed, not just what’s usually reached for.
02
Barrier first. Always.
Corneotherapy starts here: the skin’s protective barrier has to be intact before any active skincare can do its job. Never stripped for a temporary result – always restored so it can finally receive.
03
You'll feel it in your whole body
Clients often say the face massage feels like an upper body massage. That’s deliberate – it draws on a massage therapy background, working into tight or tense muscles wherever they’re found. The aim is to make you feel it through your whole body,
04
Technology serves the treatment, not the other way round
Microcurrent, LED, microneedling – advanced devices earn their place because they genuinely go deeper. It’s not about the latest trend, it’s about what a device actually does for the skin. Everything has its place and time – introduced when the skin is ready, or when it needs it.
05
Prevention is the most powerful treatment
A single treatment can leave the skin glowing straight away – that’s a real result on its own. But the real power of prevention is regular care, both in the treatment room and at home, staying ahead of concerns like sensitivity or premature ageing before they take hold.
06
The truth about your skin, every time
If a treatment isn’t the right fit yet, you’ll hear that upfront. If your current products need a rethink, you’ll know exactly why. Every recommendation comes from what’s genuinely needed, and routines are kept as simple as possible.
The science of stillness
Anneli started in massage and discovered that a well-delivered facial gets clients into a resting state faster than a full body treatment. That observation became a philosophy.
Facial nerves connect directly to the central nervous system
The trigeminal nerve carries signals from the face straight into the brainstem – the same hub the vagus nerve uses for autonomic regulation. That’s what makes facial touch different: it reaches directly the pathway that can shift the body into rest.
A body in rest heals skin better
Stress hormones like cortisol thin the skin’s protective barrier, slow cell turnover, and keep inflammation switched on longer than it needs to be. Calming the nervous system is part of what makes the treatment actually work.
Topical care is more powerful than it’s given credit for
Wellness culture tends to focus entirely on what you eat and how you move, while what touches your skin gets treated as an afterthought. Being trained as both a skin therapist and in health science, I know that topical care, done well – using the ingredients your skin actually needs, delivering active ingredients where they’re needed – can intervene on concerns quicker than people expect.
“I love the moment a client goes fully into rest – that shift into rest and digest, something my spa and massage background taught me to read and work with. But I’m just as drawn to the skin itself – the science behind it, how it functions – and how important it is to actually know how to read it, to hear what it’s asking for. Bringing both together is where the real work happens.”