Kneaded Relief Day Spa & Wellness

I’ve been to Kneaded Relief Day Spa and Wellness center twice thus far having a pedi done both times. Very pleasant and well spoken receptionists, lovely facility and excellent service by nail tech Tammy. What is amazing about here unlike other spas is the noise level being inviting and serene. When you think of «spa» relaxation, peace, tranquility all come to mind. I’ve been to spas where it was exact opposite. The relaxing classic themed music that plays throughout the facility really does bring one a great peace of mind. Sometimes I have to remind myself that I am still in Wisconsin and not at some 5 star hotel spa in the Caribbean! When you walk into the pedi/​mani spa room, you’re not welcomed by a acrylic spell that sometimes comes with spas. There is this warm aromatherapy scent that I cannot describe. Almost like a cool mint. Whatever it is, it really helps set the mood for before your treatment is to begin. Oh! Warm tea is also complimentary!
I really enjoy visiting Kneaded Relief and will continue to be a client of Tammy’s. Thank you for the sensational service to everyone who makes it possible!

I recently had to move out of the area, but I wanted to put in a good word for Mel, who was my aesthetician for several years. I will miss her and Kneaded Relief. The service was excellent and my skin was radiant every time I left. She also provided great massages so in addition to looking great, I felt great too!
The spa is in a great location. Before and after your service, you can relax in a lounge that looks out over the prairie.

Wow. What an awesome experience. I got a gift certificate to the spa and decided to try it out on a lazy Friday afternoon. I scheduled a facial and a massage. My experience from beginning to end was delightful… a word I never use.
I’ve had plenty of massage over the years and Janie is now my favorite. She was calm, communicative and so spot on with every ache and pain. I will be back.
My facial was perfect and so professional. Thanks Nickie.
A great gem right here in fitchburg. I don’t really think anything is 5 star but I can’t pick anything apart about this place so 5 it is.

I don’t know how anyone could say anything bad about this place. I have had manicures, pedicures, massages and facials several times and they have all been great.
The staff is always kind and knowledgable, services and products are top notch.

Very nice place! Their therapists are decent and the atmosphere is extremely peaceful & relaxing. The owner is pretty rad, too!

I’ve been to Kneaded Relief twice now. The location overlooks a little gully full of prairie grass and is quite relaxing.
Both times, I was greeted by two front desk people, they took my coat (as another reviewer noted, the coat rack is in the lobby, but this seems a perfectly logical place to me), gave me slippers, offered a robe, and got me checked in. On the first visit, a mid-​week afternoon, I was given a little tour and led to the Relaxation Room where 2 or 3 other people were waiting for services. It was very quiet.
My first visit was a scalp massage and steam shower. Victoria provided a very nice scalp and neck massage and set up the eucalyptus shower for me afterward. She warned me to watch out for the steam pipe (it is small and located near the door) and gave me a large glass of ice water and another bottle of water. I needed it. I am not one for heat, but the massage and shower was a gift from my mom, so I gave it a go.
It really felt great once I got the cool shower water running to cut the steam a wee bit, but I still couldn’t stay the full 20 minute session.
The second visit was this evening. I have massages periodically, but when I woke up with a stiff neck the other morning my usual place was booked. I called KR on Thursday and they had a 30 minute opening with Andrew on Friday. It was great. He focused on loosening my neck and shoulders and had some stretching recommendations after the massage. I left feeling so much better and scheduled another, longer massage with him for next month.
There were definitely more people in on Friday night than during the day, but the building was still very quiet and the staff attentive. The only reason it’s a 4-​star review and not 5-​star is that it is a little pricey. I am definitely going back though and if the service and massages continue to be as good they will justify the cost and necessitate revisiting my review.

We’ve tried to stop by at the «spa» to pick at it before we make our decision for our wedding services for our family. The first impression was not very bright. The lobby is cluttered and receptionist is very unwelcoming. Neither friendly. We asked about couple of products and where they are made no knowledge of that either. Although it is at least states on the package. We did not bother to ask what ingredients are in it. All the coats from other customers were hung like a huge bulk on one fixture. I didn’t feel that was a professional and relaxing environment to have that like in farm house. Overall just by having few details like that to consider we’ve turned around and left. After checking other reviews unfortunately we will not be back. I hope it was not the right impression.

The facility is very comfortable with a clean simple look and basic amenities (fruit, water and tea in the separated waiting area) and desk staff is very professional, yet relaxed. The hardwood and leather was comfortable and the feel was one I liked, my initial impression — nice.
The masseuse was personable and interested in how she could meet my needs.
I opted for the 60 min massage with hot stones. The room was smallish with the hardwood and color scheme continued; the only chair was a hard, wood chair; and if you opt to disrobe in the room there are no plans in place to deal with this option. So — the purpose of a massage it to work out the kinks and sore muscles and an added benefit is that you relax and decompress. Initially — I was good. Until the masseuse dropped a stone on the hardwood, the noise really disrupted the relaxation point I had been achieving. sigh — it happens. Then after an apology from the masseuse we continued. The over head lighting is annoying even on dim when you lay on your back (I hate eye pillows — so I won’t use them) Later in the session, she managed to squirt oil across my face (eye, nose and cheek.) Relaxing state — gone.
The Locker room extended the comfort and the amenities with a nice shower and items to help you prepare to head back to to the world. (moisturizer, hair spray, combs, blow dryer, etc).
The massage was technically good as the aches are gone — even the next day. But the tension is still here, it was not removed by the process of destressing. The Check out process tried to make it better by reducing the $ by 10% but when I am paying top dollar ($ 80 for the 60 min massage plus $ 15 for the stones) 10% was nice but not stellar. I might go back but I will not be making this my regular option which stinks because the location is really good for me. I wish it had been a better experience.

So far not impressed. I called this morning to see if there might be an opening for a massage and when I called it was clear the receptionist was quite busy but I was able to get a 45 min one. I arrived and the receptionist was still — too busy to make me feel welcome on my first visit here. No other clients in the waiting area. I am now in the relaxation area and will review my massage later. But my point is really the customers first impression is at the front desk — hire for personality and attitude!

Nichol & Duke at Kneaded Relief have a great business and a great staff. I’ve gotten massages, wax treatments, shellac manicures, pedicures, and even a fitness class at Kneaded Relief. Every experience has been a great one– I’m glad I live so close to them because I’ll be visiting them for years to come. :) Their massage therapists are talented and attentive, and I’ve had a handful of aestheticians who have all been wonderful as well.
I highly recommend them!

Some are complaining about a hot steam room, sloppy pedicures, and too long of a wait time. I’ve been to this spa a few times and have experienced none of the above. Both of my pedicures have been wonderful (spa and regular). While it is slightly more expensive than say your average Asian nail spa, I’d gladly pay more for a comfortable environment (RE: Not in a mall) where I’m fairly certain cleaning policies are followed, including autoclaving nail tools.
Though I’ve never been in the steam room, I would imagine it would be hot… it’s STEAM! What did you expect? As far as waiting, it’s a spa… it’s meant to have wait and relaxation time. If your pedicure wasn’t to your standard, say something. This is the place that would offer to fix anything not up to your standards. If your massage isn’t going that way you want it to, say something. The massage therapist is just that, a massage therapist, not a mind reader.
If you want a rushed, tacky experience, then this isn’t the place for you. If you want a beautiful environment with helpful staff, then Kneaded Relief might be worth a visit.

WARNING: do not try to go to this spa if you believe women should have the right to make decisions about their own body!
This spa requires a note from my doctor to have a prenatal massage — which my doctor will not provide since being required to tell a spa about my medical condition violates some of the HIPAA law. I offered to sign a waiver, but apparently a pregnant woman is not capable of making decisions for herself. I will never frequent this spa — even after I have the baby which is unfortunate as I love spas and just recently moved to the area.
In response to the owner: I have gotten prenatal massages at several spas, many nationally recognized, that do not require the note. They trust me to discuss my health with my physician and make an informed decision. Requiring a note demonstrates a paternalistic attitude, showing a belief that pregnant women can’t be trusted to talk to their health providers on their own and make sound decisions.

I had an excellent massage from John this week. For just the 45 minute massage, he really did a good job to get a lot of the problems I had with my shoulder worked out, and even got a few kinks out of my feet. Great value for just a shorter massage! Additionally, he made the whole experience very comfortable for my first professional massage.
Receptionists were very friendly, and I was very pleased to find ample amenities for taking a shower (hair dryer, shampoo, tampons, hairspray, etc) afterwards in the changing room.

We had bought each other the double massage and steam room on a weekend, we were very excited and hugely disappointed. The attendent told us that the steam room had hot parts that were very dangerous, it was dark, and you couldn’t see where the dangerous parts were, one of us opted out immediately, the other stayed in and barely got out. The heat was turned way, way up and there was no way to control it. She had said that the shower was cold, but it was actually cold and hot, so I burned myself on that. But I did miss whatever the dangerous hot part was.
We were supposed to have the double massage room to privately wait in when the service was described to us, but instead it was occupied. So we were in the public waiting room and I was uncomfortable, because I am larger and my robe was too small. The attendant kept insisting it fit me when it clearly didn’t. So I am in a public place with mixed sexes, unsure my robe closes and so warm from the steam room of death, I am starting to feel sick. We then waited for 45 mintues, the deal had been a 20 minute steam room with hour massages, so I don’t know why we had this long wait.
We had carefully picked out people to do our masages, one had quit by the time we got there. The other one, who I had picked, insisted that she was working on my partner, not me.
At that point, we were done. We left, the owner was supposed to call us, and he never did.
We wasted an incredible amount of money for nothing. My partner said that the whole place was creepy, I was intially taken in by the new age hype, don’t be.

I’ve been here twice now, once for a massage and once for a wax, and both times it was exceptional. The masseuse was fantastic and gave me pointers and stretches to do regularly to ease the knotting and tension in my back after the amazing massage, and the esthetician I saw made me more comfortable than I ever thought I could be in such a situation. The relaxation retreat is so much nicer than just waiting in a waiting room, with music and tea and a beautiful view to help you relax a bit. I will definitely be going back regularly! Also, if you sign up for the emails they send out 3 times a week, you can save a bunch of money, sometimes 25% off, which is lovely.

I’ve been going there for a few months now. I’ve been seeing Mary for my massage on a monthly basis and I love her. She’s so sweet and made me feel so comfortable from the second I met her. She gives a fabulous massage. Because I’m a hairstylist I get a lot of tension in my shoulders and the day after my massage I can really feel the difference. Every time I see Mary she always asks if there’s anything special she can do, any specific area’s to focus on. She doesn’t assume I always have the same problems. I haven’t had any other massage therapists there, so I can only recommend Mary.
I also had a Spa Pedicure with Rae. She was also very sweet. She made sure the water temperature was comfortable, she helped me select a polish color and didn’t mind stopping to get me a different color 15 minutes into my service when I changed my mind… because it can be a hard decision! She did a great job shaping my toenails, my biggest pet peeve is when they cut them too short (I have small toenails so I like a little length left) and she left them the perfect length. I’m not a big talker when I go to these services, since I work with people every day I like just relaxing and reading a magazine during my service and Rae didn’t push me to talk to her like some nail techs do. She offered conversation in the beginning, asked me how I was doing, offered magazines, made small talk but then backed off and allowed me to do my own thing.
This place is rather pricey, which is why I only gave 4 stars instead of 5. But you can sign up for emails on services that are sometimes 20% off. I would say the services are worth the cost.

My review is based on one visit, but I did have «the sampler» which included a few services. I was very happy with my services except for the paraffin hand dip. The employee didn’t seem too happy when I asked to wait until the burning hot wax had cooled a bit. I did think the services were a good value for the price.
I thought the facilities were nice though not on par with higher-​end hotel spas. The spa was nearly empty when I was there on a Saturday afternoon, which surprised me.
The employees were very nice and friendly. The aesthetician was almost too friendly. She was a little over the top with encouraging me to return and hugging me good bye.
Overall, I’d say 3.5 stars.

This places is probably hands down on of the best places to get a massage in Madison! The masseuse applied just the right amount of pressure and worked all the knots out of my body!
Following up the massage with a steam shower with euca;yptus oil was the perfect way end the session. I’d definitely recommend this place if you’r looking for a great massage!

I’ve experienced several spa services at Kneaded Relief and I just can’t justify the cost compared with other spas around town. The prices of their massages and waxes are higher than what I am used to for similiarly skilled talent in Madison.
It’s a lovely environment, but I can’t help but feel like I’m paying a bit too much.

I’ve been coming here since I was 19 and in need of a massage. Back then, they were located in this itty bitty building shared with «The Curve» diner. I’m still amazed that you couldn’t hear the noise from the diner inside of Kneaded Relief. It was such a quiet, cute little place with an amiable staff.
Over the years, I’ve continued to come here for massages and waxes. They’ve continued to be wonderful in terms of service, as well as their services being offered at a reasonable rate.
They have now moved into a HUGE building in Fitchburg. I’ve been there once, and wow, what a different experience from all the other times in the old building! You get a big, fluffy bathrobe and get to lounge around in it in a pretty, sunshiney room full of water, fruit and magazines. They move you from that room to your service room. After my massage, the masseuse asked me if I wanted to spend more time in that first relaxy room! I had to decline, but how nice is that?
Ah, Kneaded Relief. I love you still. :)