IF you're a beauty junkie and have been scouting for a good waxing salon, check out Apronbay in Bangsar Baru, Kuala Lumpur. There has been a surge in waxing salons of late, especially in the Klang Valley, but most offer poor service and skills. Many of the therapists also don't seem to understand the pain clients go through. But Ashley Loong, director of Apronbay, puts me at ease right away. The salon, she says, has a mix of products customised to every hair type and its therapists are all experienced, herself included. Her speciality is Brazilian/Boyzillian or Manzillian waxing.

Apronbay is the culmination of a dream Loong and her good friend had. Both believe in good grooming and like any girl, love being pampered in a soothing environment where service standards are second to none.

"As frequent customers of brow design and waxing services, we wanted to create a beauty salon that we would also love going to. This salon would have an exciting, fresh concept and provide superior customer service - two features lacking in some of the places we visited," says Loong, a former air-stewardess with Singapore Airlines.

Apronbay is an aviation term for the special area on the runway reserved for the aircraft for parking, refuelling and embarkation or disembarkation of passengers. So, the Apronbay founders want to position the salon as a beauty destination where customers arrive to get exquisite, pampering beauty treatments, just as air passengers do on first class.

"We aim to fulfil this unique brand concept by exuding glamour, luxury and poise that comes from being exposed to cultures around the world," explains Loong. Apronbay offers four types of hot wax (non-strip wax) and two types of strip wax. Hot waxes are generally applied for more sensitive areas such as face, underarms and bikini line while strip waxes are generally for larger parts of the body such as legs and arms. Hot waxes are gentler on the skin while strip waxes are stickier and at times tug on the skin. All waxes used at Apronbay come from France.

The four types of hot wax are: • Rose wax (white in colour) for sensitive and short, coarse hair; • Crystalline wax (orange), which is hypo-allergenic and suitable for sensitive skin and fine hair; • Homme wax (green) for stubborn hair (ingrown); and • Euroblond wax (blonde) for long and coarse hair. If you prefer strip wax (the wax is first applied with a spatula, then removed with a sheet), there are two types: vegetal (plant texture) and mineral-based.

Prices range from RM10 to RM110 (S$4-46) for waxing. For brow designs, your options are tweezing, threading and waxing.

Air travel ambience In keeping with the air travel concept, Apronbay has three cabins for waxing and two cabins for brow designs, its two core beauty services. The three waxing rooms are themed to represent the ambience of New York (contemporary city), Shanghai (oriental suite) and the seaside (seaside loft of the Mediterranean seas). The two brow design rooms represent Old World (Covent Garden) and Country Garden.

Not only are these rooms thoroughly relaxing to be in, their ambience provides a little sense of escapism from the grind of the city. The seaside loft, for example, with its decor of blue skies and crystal-clear waters, gives a calming effect, especially if it's your first Brazilian wax.

Or in the Shanghai suite, there's a picture of an old bicycle to exude that traditional feeling, and is furnished with a bamboo-rimmed mirror and a red lantern light. To complete the air travel concept, outside each cabin you'll see a metal sheet or floorway, and clocks with different time zones (Malaysia, London and Paris) at the lounge.

Besides waxing and brow design, Apronbay ( 03-22878081 ) offers manicures, pedicures and lash work.