It all started with a grey cream. Yes, you read that correctly: grey. Unpromising a colour, grey, isn’t it? Especially when it comes to cosmetics. But I had been told by a fellow beauty journalist that it was brilliant, so despite my reservations, I scooped out some grey cream and put it on my skin.
That day, three people I see regularly and who therefore know how my skin usually looks asked me what I’d done to achieve such glow. The only change was the addition of that grey cream, so I decided to do a sneaky little experiment and use it twice a week to see if the praise flooded in on those days. It did and I am now a convert.
The only problem? The grey cream is La Prairie’s Platinum Rare Haute-Rejuvenation Cream, and it sells at £1395 for 50ml, making it the most expensive thing I’ve ever put on my skin.
The lofty cost made and indeed makes me hesitant to recommend it; it didn’t escape me that the price is prohibitive for all but a few and had I not been sent it as a gift by the brand, it would be out of my reach.
Besides, I’d always lambasted very expensive skincare on the grounds that no high street products are actually able to penetrate the skin, the best they can do is work on the outer dead layer, and try to make it strong and glowy.
My favourite serum is the Mortar and Milk PHA Barrier Repair, which comes in at a much more modestly-priced £85 for 100ml. It delivers on its promise to make the skin barrier more robust, and price per use is more than reasonable. So what is it that warrants the extra spend on these mega expensive creams for those with the means to do so?
The brands who stock skincare at around this mark all tell me impressive-sounding things. Many, like La Prairie, talk about more glow, reduction of the appearance of fine lines, and the added youthfulness. (All three I can vouch for in the case of the grey cream.) Beyond that, many mention mysterious potions and ingredients alongside staggering details of the amount of time and effort that’s gone into the formulations.
For La Mer, it’s the trademarked Miracle Broth, which took Dr Max Huber “12 years and 6,000 experiments” to perfect. For Decorté, “patented delivery capsule technology allows the ratio of ingredients to be precisely balanced,” a feat that took Nobel Prize-winning scientists nearly 50 years to crack. Clé de Peau Beauté, which was founded in 1982, has spent 42 years researching and honing its products to create “highly efficacious, scientifically-driven, opulent formulations.”
Those innovations and the time spent on them is unquestionably an expensive pursuit — but does that really mean it’s worth buying one?
I ask cosmetic scientist Sam Farmer for his thoughts, and he confirms my belief that nearly all cosmetics are unable penetrate. “Realistically, most don’t make it beyond the stratum corneum, which is the top 25-50 layers of corneocytes. Skincare can’t physiologically change any part of us or penetrate because then you step into the world of pharmaceuticals and medicine.” A product doing this couldn’t be sold in shops, so that crosses off the idea of any deep cellular impact as a result of a super cream.
But then there’s that glow. I can’t get that glow out my head. I now rely on that grey cream to make my skin look extra juicy, and am considering whether I need a savings account to put a little aside from my meagre income to supply my need for a moisturiser that’s over a grand.
This is where we move into the subjective, and if you want to — and more importantly can — spend that kind of money on a cream. If you can, there’s no question that the experience is elevated. “Certain ingredients on the skin make products feel wonderful — the slip, the glide, the spreadability,” says Farmer. “I suppose it’s a bit like a car — a crappy Ford Escort from 1980 has four wheels, a steering wheel, and an engine — it will get you from A to B. A brand new Bugatti or Rolls Royce will cost you a million quid and has four wheels, a steering wheel, and an engine, and will get you from A to B. One will get you there in great comfort, and the other will get you there but it might not be as comfortable a ride.”
My verdict? It’s a question of luxury. These creams look great, feel great and, sure, some made my skin look great, too. Whether or not they’re worth the price really comes down to you.
And if you think that, yes, you would like a astonishingly spenny cream on your shelf that’ll feel like the skincare equivalent of cruising along in an Aston Martin, here are the ones that really stood out to me...
La Prairie Platinum Rare Haute-Rejuvenation Cream
The cream that I now crack out when I want my skin to look luminous, it contains peptides and platinum (hence the grey shade) in a rich but eminently spreadable blend.
Buy now £1395.00, Space NK
Decorte AQ Meliority Intensive Regenerating Multi Cream
Were I choosing one of these solely based on the packaging, this would hands down win a place on my shelf. But in this case you can judge a book based on its cover; the cream is delightful, feeling like a veil of hydration that Decorte promises will deliver actives via phospholipid capsules to keep skin healthy and youthful.
Buy now £950.00, Decorte Cosmetics
La Mer The Moisturizing Cream
Really this is my mum’s recommendation; she has relied on this cream making her dry skin soft for years, and tells me it is the best thing when very parched. La Mer tell me it contains nutrient-packed sea kelp that’s been through a bio-fermentation process, along with that Miracle Broth™. Note that if you opt for this one, you’ll need to warm it between your fingers before spreading on skin for the desired slip.
Buy now £460.00, Selfridges
Cle de Peau Beaute La Creme
Containing 60 ingredients, this night cream feels like slipping a silky layer across your skin that’ll drip feed it while you sleep. I wake after using this with smooth and plump skin.
Buy now £750.00, Harrods
