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I don’t need to introduce La Mer. There are plenty of moisturizers on the market, but this luxury legacy brand has earned its name recognition in spades. It’s a celebrity favorite, whose fans include Kylie Jenner, Jennifer Lopez, and Kate Moss, just to name a few.
So what makes the Crème de La Mer moisturiser so highly sought out? The Miracle Broth is the secret behind this cult-favorite skincare product. It is very time consuming and difficult to make.
The lotion is a fairly basic moisturizing lotion, but with the added ingredients of sea kelp (turned out it could only be harvested twice a year and then had to be processed for months). This algae ingredient is what heals the dryness and has a rejuvenating transformation.
The Miracle Broth is plentiful in antioxidants in the algae extracts, as well as the antioxidant properties of several of the other ingredients.
La Mer Dupes
The La Mer cream is a rich facial cream which promises to help heal dryness, promote soft and supple skin, and visibly soften lines and wrinkles. However, this cream will cost you a lot of money. At $200 for just one ounce, this great moisturizer will cost a pretty penny.
Luckily, there are so many products on the market right now that work so well, it might not make sense to purchase something so prohibitively expensive and with a high price tag.
Scroll below for 5 La Mer dupes that are just as good as the cult-like restorative protective cream.
La Mer Crème de la Mer
Crème de la Mer is formulated to help with dryness due to the inclusion of occlusive emollients like mineral oil, petrolatum, and sesame seed oil.
Petrolatum is what gives Crème de la Mer its thick texture, but it’s this ingredient that causes the cream to sit on top of your skin. The moisturizing feeling is perfect for all types of skin, including sensitive skin.
However, there are plenty of options that are a fraction of the cost that deliver the same results.
The Dupes
Nivea Crème Cream
Nivea cream is the crème de la crème of dupes. It is great dupe for the pricier moisturizer.
The internet has long speculated that these two creams, despite vast price differences, might be essentially due to the same ingredient list.
The Nivea crème is very thick, a bit stickier than La Mer. They also have very similar scents- floral with a touch of citrus. If La Mer is applied without liquifying it first, the two apply very similarly.
The creams share a common base. The primary distinction lies in Crème de La Mer’s inclusion of fermented algae broth, along with additional botanical oils, seed powders and vitamins.
The two moisturizers have a comparable rich and thick consistency, in part due to the inclusion of lanolin alcohol and petroleum, an emollient-rich and occlusive combination that works to soften skin and lock-in moisture.
Weleda Skin Food
Weleda is an all-natural skincare staple which is a hydrating formula that is a good beauty dupe for Creme de La Mer.
Its nourishing blend of skincare favorites like calendula and chamomile is impressive and ultra hydrating. If you have dry skin, or rough patches that need to be smoothed out, then the Weleda Skin Food moisturizer is definitely a great, budget-friendly option.
The consistency is fairly similar to La Mer. Weleda is slightly thicker than La Mer – more of a balm as opposed to a cream.
Similar to the Nivea Creme, Skin Food doesn’t have any of the sea kelp or algae ingredients, but it is packed with other ingredients like beeswax and pansy extract, which is known to help with redness and microcirculation.
Tatcha The Water Cream
The Tatcha Water Cream is lightweight with a gel-like consistency that absorbs almost instantly. The lightweight formula stands in contrast to La Mer.
It is still considered a relatively lightweight moisturizer, and it may not be hydrating enough for those with ultra-dry skin or for cold-weather months.
The lightweight formula is perfect for those who have fine lines , wrinkles, or signs of aging.
In that case, it’s good to note that this cream could be helpful as a prevention tool due to the various antioxidants included in this moisturizer through the Hadasei-3 complex. It is a great way to help fight free radical damage to help with skin aging.
Mario Badescu Seaweed Night Cream
Mario Badescu Seaweed Night Cream gives you similar effects of La Mer for a fraction of the cost.
Using a similar seaweed extract and ingredient list as the pricey La Mer moisturizer, Badescu’s Seaweed Cream delivers many of the same results as its pricier counterpart.
It incorporates similar ingredients to the La Mer version, like seaweed and glycerin. What sets the affordable option apart is that it also packs collagen, elastin and sodium hyaluronate—all of which are incredible anti-aging ingredients.
In addition to being a great moisturizer, the cream helps to calm redness, leaving skin feeling soft and supple.
The oil-free formula also helps to plump and firm the skin with the addition of ingredients like hyaluronic acid and collagen.
While La Mer can be quite heavy and greasy sometimes, the main difference between the two is that the Seaweed Night Cream glides on super easily and absorbs quickly into the skin.
Avene Cicalfate+ Restorative Protective Cream
Avène is a fantastic skin care product that heals, moisturizes, and protects the skin barrier. The French face cream is very creamy and easily spreadable.
La Mer is known for their Miracle Broth ( a fermentation process of sea kelp, minerals, and minerals which are mixed together ) and Avène is powered by their healing Spring Thermal Water (which hails from a spring in the South of France, rich in soothing and anti-inflammatory minerals).
Both products contain Beeswax, an anti-bacterial and skin softening agent, which forms a protective barrier on the surface of the skin.
