These luxury creams can set you back close to a thousand dollars. Discover why they cost so much.

Brands like Estée Lauder and Clé de Peau Beauté were the pioneers of super luxe creams; many, many years ago when I was working at the Estée Lauder counter, I remember staring at a jar of Re-Nutriv cream, wondering how skin care could cost hundreds of dollars, and how people (mainly women) were actually buying it. Now decades later, there are not just more options of luxury creams available, but their prices have escalated to a thousand dollars and above — and believe it or not, some of these are constantly sold out.

If you have the money, here are four that just launched and are really, really good.

CHANEL SUBLIMAGE LA CRÈME TEXTURE SUPRÊME

At $644 for 50ml, this CHANEL SUBLIMAGE cream is the most affordable out of these three skin care products. Its packaging is also the most stylish, with the polished glass jar designed in collaboration with a renowned expert French glassmaker. The inner jar can also be removed (you can buy the refill on its own) and it comes with its own screw-on cap so you can easily travel with this cream — it’s very light without the outer glass jar.

With all SUBLIMAGE products, there’s the key ingredient, Vanilla Planifolia that increases cellular rejuvenation. The texture of this cream is rich yet fluid; it feels silky smooth on the skin, and absorbs well and is surprisingly not tacky after it dries down. It’s most suitable for dry skin types (or dry climates) and thoroughly hydrates the skin, making it feel soothed and comfortable. Over time, expect skin to appear smoother and firmer, and wrinkles less visible.

CHANEL SUBLIMAGE LA CRÈME TEXTURE SUPRÊME, $644 for 50g (refill at $547). Available at chanel beauty boutiques and online at WWW.CHANEL.COM.

SISLEY PARIS SUPREMŸA LA NUIT AT NIGHT THE SUPREME ANTI-AGING SKIN CARE

This skin care launched on September 1st and is the newest of the three. At $930 for 50ml, it’s a steep jump in price from CHANEL SUBLIMAGE. This is also a specific night skin care; it’s designed with chronobiology in mind. Skin regenerates at night while we sleep, and Supremÿa At Night claims to unlock the skin’s regenerative power so it can recover from the damage and pollution of the day. The formula’s core ingredient is what the brand calls the Fundamental Regeneration Complex; it resynchronises, recovers and detoxifies skin. Expect to wake up to fresher and more rested skin the next day.

Alongside the new Supremÿa At Night, SISLEY PARIS has also launched a Gua Sha massage tool that helps skin care work even better, and that visibly lifts and smooths out skin. Check out the “how-to” video on the product’s web page.

SISLEY PARIS SUPREMŸA LA NUIT AT NIGHT THE SUPREME ANTI-AGING SKIN CARE, $930 for 50ml / Ginkgo Gua Sha beauty massage tool, $180, available at WWW.SISLEY-PARIS.COM.

LA PRAIRIE SKIN CAVIAR LUXE CREAM

LA PRAIRIE’s iconic Skin Caviar Luxe Cream was first launched in 1987, and has gone through several reformulations over the years. This current version features Caviar Micro-Nutrients with Caviar Premier (an ingredient with potent abilities to nourish and rejuvenate skin). There’s also LA PRAIRIE’s secret [Exclusive Cellular Complex]™, which stimulates cellular activities and invigorates epidermal skin cells. This complex is very potent, and only very little of this cream is needed to wake up and repair skin.

LA PRAIRIE SKIN CAVIAR LUXE CREAM, $950 for 50ml / $1,640 for 100ml, available at la prairie counters including ION Orchard #B1-15A, Metro Paragon, Takashimaya D.S., and TANGS at Tang Plaza.

DIOR PRESTIGE LE NECTAR PREMIER

This is Dior’s first refillable serum and it tops this list of skin care in price. At the heart of the formula is the brand’s Rose de Granville ingredient; a very special extract that’s combined with Rosapeptide to create Rosapeptide Premier, rich in 99 molecules. This targets the ageing process in skin and helps correct it so skin texture gets smoother and more radiant, while the contours of the face are plumped up to appear more youthful.

To harvest the Rose de Granville, this must be done just before it blooms, and can only be picked for a week before the rose buds open. And during that week, there is only one hour in a single day when this harvesting can be done — hence the rarity of the ingredient and high cost of the serum.

The Le Nectar Premier bottle looks luxurious, while the product feels like a dream on skin, with a silky smooth texture that’s instantly comforting.

DIOR PRESTIGE LE NECTAR PREMIER, $970 FOR 30ML / $870 FOR REFIL. AVAILABLE AT DIOR BEAUTY BOUTIQUES, COUNTERS AND ONLINE AT DIOR.COM.SG.

 

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