Laura Mercier is one of those brands that enjoys unwavering adoration from Beauty Editors.
It’s much loved for its light reflecting foundations and concealers, radiant primers (beloved by none other than Duchess Meghan Markle) and of course the signature Caviar Sticks, the loveliest smudgiest eye crayons in expensive-looking neutral tones.
So we couldn’t contain our excitement when we heard that the sellout brand is launching a brand new skincare range.
The ten-piece collection named Skin Essentials has landed and it is every bit as beautiful as you would hope.
Credit: Laura Mercier
It very much reflects the brand’s effortless, ungimmicky approach, inspired by French skincare routines and packed with natural ingredients.
Each product in the line up contains the Skin Essentials Complex made up of three key ingredients: French spring sea water, which hydrates and strengthens skin as it’s rich in algae, Rose water that uses antioxidants to protect and soothe, and ultra-nourishing Starflower oil that prepares skin for flawless makeup application.
As well as packing the products with kind-to-skin ingredients, the formulations are free from a long list of ingredients that were not felt to be beneficial to the skin, including sulfates, parabens, formaldehydes and mineral oil.
What’s in the Laura Mercier skincare collection?
Laura Mercier Skin Essentials is divided into a three-step regimen, cleanse, prep and targeted treatments.
Each step offers several products to pick from and everything works nicely together, meaning you can go as simple or complex as you like (although, this being Laura Mercier, even the most in depth routine isn’t really complex at all).
Cleanse
This is the largest category with four options; The Balancing Foaming Cleanser, Conditioning Cleansing Oil, Soothing Eye Makeup Remover, and Purifying Micellar Water.
If you want to go full 10 step skincare fanatic with it you could whip off heavy makeup with the eye make-up remover, refresh and clarify with the micellar, deeply cleanse with the conditioning cleansing oil then finish with a refreshing foamy wash.
But really, who has the time or inclination for all that? In reality you could massage the Conditioning Cleansing Oil into skin for a minute every night then gently remove with warm water and a clean face cloth.
The gorgeous milky lather created by macadamia, kukui and moringa oils leaves skin peachy-soft and fresh and clean.
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Laura Mercier Soothing Eye Makeup Remover, £22, Johnlewis.com
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Laura Mercier Balancing Foaming Cleanser, £26, Johnlewis.com
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Laura Mercier Purifying Micellar Water, £26, Johnlewis.com
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Laura Mercier Conditioning Cleansing Oil, £33, Johnlewis.com
Prep
This is your skin nourishing step, with two products for the face, The Perfect Cream Multi-Tasking Moisturizer and Mattifying Oil-Free Moisturizer as well as an Illuminating Eye Cream.
It’s a bold move putting the word Perfect in any product name but this certainly delivers on its promise when it comes to creating beautiful canvas for makeup.
As well as plumping the skin with hyaluronic acid and protecting it with antioxidant-rich black tea ferment the texture is beautifully light and spreadable, meaning it sinks in fast with no claggy residue leaving skin plumped, comfortable and ready for whatever comes next.
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Laura Mercier Illuminating Eye Cream, £50, Johnlewis.com
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Laura Mercier Mattifying Oil-Free Moisturiser, £54, Johnlewis.com
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: The Perfect Cream Multi-Tasking Moisturizer, £59, Johnlewis.com
Targeted Treatments
These are the added extras on top of a basic cleanse and hydrate routine, carefully curated down to what really matters.
That means gentle exfoliation with the Refining Crème Polish, deep replenishment with Nourishing Rose Oil and something for a too-often neglected area, a Hydrating Lip Balm (AKA our star buy).
Yes, it’s a bit basic to pick a lip balm as a star buy, it’s also a bit eyebrow raising considering this is a £21 lip balm, but this deeply luxurious slick of moisture is a saviour for poor parched lips via plum oil packed with fatty acids and moisturising squalane from olives.
Plus the very fancy little tube will look great on any dressing table.
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Laura Mercier Refining Crème Polish, £28, Johnlewis.com
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Laura Mercier Nourishing Rose Oil, £56, Johnlewis.com
Credit: Laura Mercier
SHOP NOW: Hydrating Lip Balm, £21, Johnlewis.com
This collection is gentle, skin loving and the perfect antidote to all those aggressive skincare products that a lot of us are using far too often and too intensely to be doing our skin any good.
It’s fair to say that now is the time for kindness, to our skin and ourselves. So in the words of the great woman herself, in a 2019 interview, “Love who you are and try to make the best of what you have.
“This is completely printed in the philosophy of Laura Mercier, and it will be until I die.”
