The Urban Muse: gifts-spa-gallery 
Walking into The Urban Muse relaxes you immediately with its Asian décor.  I was greeted and treated by the lovely Denise Joy, and oh what a joy it was, thanks again Denise. They have a full menu of spa services and use eco-friendly products, plus a full range of holistic services, including Reiki, Angel Readings, Nutritional/Life Coaching and Intuitive Counseling.

What sets The Urban Museapart starts with the owners, Kristin and Tracy, who were working as graphic designers in NYC during the 9/11 crisis.  They were motivated by that tragedy to follow their dreams, which turned into The Urban Muse.  Their believe in nurturing everyone that works there, which invigorates a ripple of joy that extends to their clients. They schedule a full half hour between appointments for the therapists to rejuvenate themselves, or spend a little more time with the clients if necessary. Oh, and when you schedule a one-hour appointment, it really is 60 minutes, not the 50-55 minutes you get at most other spas.  That extra 5-10 minutes means a lot.

The other thing I discovered, which impressed me, was their workshop for cancer patients.  Once a week they meet with a group of cancer patients that are in treatment or within a year of treatment.  Having cared for a dear friend for 7 months as she went through her chemotherapy treatment recently, I am acutely aware of the benefit of such a workshop. So big kudos to the ladies at The Urban Muse for such an enlightened approach.

By the way, The Urban Muse is my new favorite card store and gift shop.  I am still old fashion enough to like to send cards and am always on the lookout for good greeting card collections. They rock in that department! But if you want to find a loving gift for someone, including yourself, they have a creative array of things to muse over (pun intended).