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These are the splurge-worthy beauty items you’ll want the most
We love budget-friendly beauty buys as much as the next person, but the holidays are the perfect time to treat yourself or someone else to a truly top-notch beauty splurge like a high-tech facial toning device or a silky smooth caviar-infused face cream.
The most luxurious hair tools, skin care devices, and designer makeup products (naturally) come with a hefty price tag — but how do you know which items actually deliver on their promises and which ones simply have a higher sticker value slapped on a low-quality product?
That’s where we come in. Over the years, we’ve tested hundreds of beauty products at a wide range of price points, and we know the great from the not-so-great. Whether you’re saving up to splurge on a luxe gift for yourself or deciding which items to put on your holiday wish list, these are the top luxury beauty products we believe are truly worth it.
In this article: Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer, NuFACE Mini Starter Kit and La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream
Why are some beauty products so expensive?
There are a variety of reasons a beauty item might have a high price tag. Perhaps it’s a device that uses revolutionary technology to deliver great results. It could be a skin care cream that uses super-high-quality and rare ingredients. It could even be handcrafted or extra-beautifully designed, making it look and feel more special than other products. Whatever the case, we’ve culled only items with good reasoning behind their hefty price tags.
Best splurge-worthy beauty products
Considered the Rolls-Royce of hair dryers, the Dyson Supersonic is a worthy splurge for anyone who blow-dries their hair frequently and therefore wants to do it as quickly as possible without damaging their strands. This hair dryer delivers on that and more, including an ergonomic bottom-heavy design that keeps your arm from getting tired as you use it and a variety of magnetic attachments designed to suit all hair types.
Perfect for facial toning beginners, this easy-to-use device helps tone the muscles in your face in just five minutes, giving you a more sculpted and contoured look instantly. It also helps minimize fine lines and wrinkles in your face and neck. The set includes a priming gel you apply to your face before activating the device.
La Mer Crème de la Mer Moisturizing Cream
Though a definite splurge, La Mer’s moisturizer is known to deliver results. The key is in the ingredients, the result of decades of scientific testing. They include a soothing Miracle Broth, which infuses skin with the energy it needs to help repair signs of aging. Furthermore, lime tea concentrate contains antioxidants, which protect skin from irritation, and giant sea kelp supports the skin’s natural healing process.
Armani Beauty Luminous Silk Perfect Glow Flawless Oil-Free Foundation
This oil-free medium-coverage foundation truly is a cut above the rest. It has a weightless formula with a natural finish that blends right into your skin and looks like, well, skin. The color pigments lie flat, allowing truly seamless blending and layering.
Tom Ford’s lipstick makes our list for its incredibly luxurious formula that glides on buttery smooth and feels amazing. It comes in over 40 shades that deliver a swipe of buildable color. The satin-finish color is budge-proof for over eight hours.
Charlotte Tilbury Magic Water Cream
This luxe moisturizer is an ultra-hydrating new take on the bestselling, celeb-loved favorite Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream. We love that this product is formulated with niacinamide, which helps brighten and balance the appearance of skin tone and refine the look of pores. It feels cool and gel-like on the face, a refreshing feeling for dry winter skin.
We love this tool because it creates a large variety of hairstyles — all without heat damage. With five attachments included, you can style your hair into loose, voluminous curls, a sizable blowout or a sleek, straight style. The flyaway tamer attachment will smooth any frizz at the end.
Jenny Patinkin Cryo Glow Globes
Can you get cryo globes cheaper? Sure. But will they be this gorgeous, so ergonomically shaped and crafted from handblown glass? Probably not. When chilled in the fridge at least 10 minutes, these globes use cold temperatures to help constrict blood vessels in the skin and promote circulation and oxygenation. The result is a reduction in the skin’s redness and inflammation, giving an appearance that’s firmer, brighter and more lifted.
Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream
In recent years, this product skyrocketed to the new luxury-status mositurizer thanks to its long celebrity fan list. The brand is created by a German doctor and the hero ingredient in the entire line is TFC-8, a complex of over 40 ingredients, inspired by products that heal burns.
Viktor&Rolf Flowerbomb Eau de Parfum Perfume Gift Set
Viktor & Rolf’s Flowerbomb Eau de Parfum has amassed a dedicated fan base thanks to its lavish floral scent for women with notes of cattleyas, freesia, sambac jasmine and rose. In this beautifully packaged gift set, you’ll get the award-winning fragrance in a trio of sizes: one for the vanity, one for the purse and one for travel.
ETOILE Collective Duo Vanity Case
This double-decker vanity case went viral on TikTok for good reason. With plenty of space for a very extensive beauty regimen, Etoile’s vegan leather cosmetic bag features a spacious main compartment with a removable divider for organizing products. There’s also a separate top compartment that’s great for small items like lipsticks and eyeliners. Plus, it includes a travel mirror.
Goop Beauty Clean Nourishing Lip Balm
Gwyneth Paltrow’s line of clean, nontoxic skin care products promises clinically proven, high-performance ingredients. This ultra-hydrating lip balm is formulated with a botanical oil blend and vitamin C. Plus, the rose gold tube is gorgeous.
Wander Beauty Baggage Claim VIP Eye Mask Set
There’s something inherently luxurious about under-eye masks — especially when they come in flashy gold and rose gold hues. Wander Beauty’s giftable set includes 12 individually wrapped under-eye patches that are perfect for travel.
SOSHE Beauty Waterproof Tubing Mascara
Tubing mascara is easier to apply, less likely to smudge and easier to remove than traditional mascaras. This waterproof version delivers fluffy, voluminous lashes in a single coat, but you only need warm water to remove it. It’s formulated with clean ingredients and housed in sustainable packaging.
Caudalie Vinopure Natural Salicylic Acid Pore Minimizing Serum
This French skin care brand focuses on natural beauty products primarily derived from grapevine ingredients, and its pore-minimizing serum is one of our favorite offerings. Formulated for acne-prone skin, it’s infused with 100% natural salicylic acid and niacinamide to address blackheads, breakouts, pores and excess oil.
Solawave Bye Acne Spot Treatment
It’s not a pleasant moment when you start to feel a pimple coming on and you know tomorrow you’re going to wake up with a giant blemish on your face. Stop acne in its tracks with this nifty portable red light therapy device designed to treat breakouts and speed up healing.
Touchland Power Mist Hydrating Hand Sanitizer
The price ($10) may seem steep for a 1-ounce bottle of hand sanitizer, but we swear by this hydrating mist that comes in a variety of delicious scents. Unlike drying drugstore hand sanitizers, it’s formulated with aloe vera and lemon essential oil to nourish and moisturize your skin.
Prices listed reflect time and date of publication and are subject to change.
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