The humble face cream is getting an image overhaul. With a recent influx of 'super serums' over the past decade, we were starting to think our moisturiser was just there to lock in hydration and make our skin feel more comfortable while the serum did all the leg work. Yet, several brands have come out in force to show that this isn't the case. That we can get the luxurious texture of a moisturiser with all the savvy of a serum, whether it's for boosting collagen and radiance, reducing the appearance of wrinkles or banishing dark spots.

With rare ingredients, patented formulas and years of research, these moisturisers don't mess around. There's the runaway success of newcomer Cult 51, a night cream which claims not just to reduce wrinkles by 50% over a month but - impressively - works to banish blemishes too. Its creator Richard Mears, an industry consultant and chemist, tellingly remarked to Cult Beauty. 'Current skin regimens demand the use of several products, layered one on top of the other – yet the skin can only utilise so much ‘active’. Also with so many products offering only one or two of the myriad things our skin needs, we end up buying many different products, to use at separate times on different days to gain the overall effect we crave. In today’s world who has the time, patience (or money!) to effectively undertake this rigmarole?'

It seems Mears isn't the only one wanting to simplify our skincare regime - the major brands are also following suit. YSL are currently fixated with glycans (a key component in maintaining the skin's structure) which they've infused into their latest 'miracle cream' Or Rouge, using an extract of saffron. While Chantecaille have their own secret weapon in the form of an exclusive sweet pea stem cell extract, which speeds up skin cell renewal. This has been infused into their new Rose de Mail Cream which also happens to smell like a field of roses. Because let's face it - if we're buying a product containing hard-working actives, who wouldn't want it in the form of a silky cream with a mood-boosting scent?

Click through our gallery of the current top 'super creams' worth investing in.