“Lügn.” A Swedish word that means calm, quiet, tranquil or serene. “Esthetics”: the science and art of caring for skin.
When you go to Lügn Esthetics at 102 E. Front Street in Traverse City, be ready to disconnect and experience good things for your body and general well-being.
Owner Madison Malmstrom opened the full day spa in July 2026, five years after she first started Lügn. She is a licensed esthetician, educator and holistic wellness practitioner with over 15 years of experience in integrative skincare and somatic healing.
There is a menu of whole-body wellness options at the spa such as massage therapy, hydrating facials, cosmetic offerings (nails, lashes, brows) and more, combining the “power of touch, sound and science” so that clients feel radiant, pampered and safe in a peaceful calming experience.
Malmstrom’s determination to build her capacity to provide that experience is shown in the skills she has acquired.
She is a certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, a certified Oncology Skincare specialist and a practitioner of Sculptured Facials and HydraFacial Therapy; LED Light Therapy; Somatic Touch, Nervous System Reset; and Trauma Informed Practices. Currently, she is completing her 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training.
“I learned about the science and art of esthetics and the imperative to put customer goals first ahead of all else, treating each as though they were my only guest,” she says. “If you’re uncertain about the services you want, tell us how you’d like to improve and feel better. We’ll match what we do with your goals – you’ll feel and look great!”
Owner Madison Malmstrom, center, has created Lügn Esthetics as a spa that blends, “cutting-edge skincare with holistic healing”, where “every treatment is designed to restore radiance to your skin and peace to your nervous system.’”
Malmstrom and business manager Josh Golnick want Lügn to be much more than a facial or massage.
Golnick brought seven years of experience in the wine and hospitality business to help develop the customer base.
“People deserve to be taken care of,” he said. “We love this community and the neighbors and visitors it supports. Our business strives to be an anchor destination for the well-being of each and every client and the community as a whole.”
“We were glad to be a partner in their growth with West Shore Bank, their primary source of capital,” said Laura Galbraith, President of Venture North Funding and Development, a nonprofit that offers low-cost lending and no-cost technical assistance to small businesses in northern Michigan. “They have really figured it out. Great services that are customized for each guest and a customer service ethic that consistently places quality over quantity. We look forward to their continued growth.”
Malmstrom has a vision for more growth in northern Michigan, a plan that will include members of her team that has grown to include four service providers including specialists in the fields of esthetics, massage therapy and cosmetology.
“With any growth plan also comes an imperative to take care of our team,” she said. “Their personal needs must be met, including taking personal time they need to relax and disconnect – a week of vacation every quarter. The spa industry can be stressful because we use our bodies to achieve results…it’s not uncommon for people in our field to develop premature arthritis, lower back problems and even tremors. We are vigilant about taking care of ourselves and each other.”
“Beyond that, first and foremost in any growth plan, is the need to sustain our pledge to consistent, five-star customer service,” Malmstrom said. “I’d like to have another location in this region. Perhaps a wellness center where we could also host one day retreats. We could have sound baths, saunas, infra-red tables and concentrated nutritional counseling. It would be fun, healthful and a great way for folks to develop and nurture friendships.”
Finally, Malmstrom has a wonderful back story about the name of her business which, she acknowledges is a “little weird.”
When she was seeking a business name, her late father was in the final chapters of many years battling terminal cancer. Her parents lived on a little lake and always loved the loons that nest there. In the morning and around sunset, you can hear their calls and look out onto the lake and become filled with an amazing calm that reminds you to breathe and let go. In his last few weeks, dad would remind Maddie to listen for the loon after he passed and know that was him saying “hello.”
“I wanted to capture that calm, that love and the gratitude my Dad carried for life into my space and pay that kind of energy forward,” she says. “So when I came across the Nordic word “lügn”, I knew I had found a name that embodied the depth and breadth of what I wanted to accomplish.”
So, go to Lügn Esthetics – a space filled with love, positive energy, gratitude and grace.
Lügn Esthetics
Skincare With Soul
102 Front Street | Traverse City
M: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. T, W, Th: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
F: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sat: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Ph: 231.389.6567
Online Appointments: lugnesthetics.com
Calm, Tranquil, Personal, Healthful
Massage forward facials, tension eliminating massage therapy, nails, waxing, brows,
skin hydration, holistic healing with empathy.
Contact:
Contact: Tim Ervin - Ph: 231-794-0089 - Email: timervinassoc@gmail.com
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