Luxury brand formulation secrets for expensive-feeling lotions

Even though I make most of the skincare products I use, I still enjoy perusing the skincare departments at Sephora and airport duty-free shops—paying extra attention to the luxury brands. I sample, sniff, and examine ingredient lists like a lotion detective. If a single lotion costs 3x my monthly grocery budget, I want to know what’s going on 🧐 What formulation magic has that fancy brand used to create a product that feels like its worth $400?! Fancy actives and proprietary botanical blends definitely pop up quite a lot, but I’ve noticed five cheap, easy-to-implement strategies in heaps of luxury formulations, and I want to share them with you so you can make lotions that feel like magic 🤩

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Ultra-Light Summer Face Cream

If you’ve been looking for a lightweight summer facial moisturizer with a gorgeous, powdery, expensive-feeling finish, you can stop looking. This is it! I’m currently obsessed with this cream—I can’t get over how lightweight and fancy it feels. It smells softly of roses, glides on like a dream, and leaves my skin glowing.

How to Make Ultra-Light Summer Face Cream

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Goji & Açaí Superfood Face Cream

As winter drags on, my skin needs all the hydration and love I can send its way. This formulation pairs two superfood ingredients with a couple fabulously hydrating ingredients and some potent antioxidants to help my skin stay soft and moisturized in the face of dry, wintery weather.

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Soothe and Glow Facial Gel Cream

This beautiful gel cream delivers a double dose of glow—both from boosted skin health and a touch of softly shimmering mica. This formulation includes some of my favourite skincare goodies to deeply hydrate the skin and support barrier function, and a coloured mica (or two) of your choice for some instant, dewy glow. Ooh la la!

How to Make Soothe and Glow Facial Gel Cream

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