Creme de la Mer

The stories about Crème de la Mer are legion. The skin cream is famously luxurious, having developed a devoted following almost solely by word of mouth. A friend of mine met a wrinkle-free 60-something who credited her smooth skin to the original Crème; she bought a jar the next day. I've met more than a few celebrity makeup artists who won't start their work before massaging Crème de la Mer into their clients' skin. At $150 an ounce, it's not for the light of wallet — but for its fans, nothing else will do. So what goes into a jar and why is this cream so famous? Read on to find out.

No, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you — that actually is an enormous tribute to Crème de La Mer. It's part of filmmaker John Waters's solo show, Rush, currently showing at Rena Bransten Gallery in San Francisco. Waters, who uses La Mer, created the three-foot-high sculpture out of Styrofoam, latex, urethane, and plaster. And how much would this jar cost if it were filled with the pricey Crème itself? A whopping $880,000 — which makes the $130 one ounce jar seem like a bargain in comparison.