Fluffy white towels, expensive creams and relaxing music just aren’t enough these days. Beauty junkies want jewels mixed in with their treatments. In response therapists have ditched the hot flannel and carted out the gold in a bid to create the ultimate – and most expensive – beauty treatments.

One central London clinic offers the ‘Red Carpet Facial’ using diamonds in a technique Rene Zellweger and Madonna are said to be fans of. The DiamondTome wand is tipped with real diamond chips and exfoliates the skin while an attached vacuum sucks up the dead skin cells.

But that’s just the tip of the iceberg with jaw-droppingly luxurious treatments. Here some of the most decadent:

The gold facial

USP The ultimate in cosmetic bling - a facial infused with 24-carat gold developed by Swiss skincare company La Prairie at the Ritz Carlton in New York – the perfect antidote to a hard day's shopping.

Wallet Watch: Pure Gold Radiance Facial and Caviar Firming Facial $275 – 90 minutes. Refining Microdermabrasion Facial $275 – 60 minutes

Read the full review

The gold leaf facial

USP: One step further is the gold leaf facial from UMO Inc. The face is covered in a sheet of 24 carat gold, in the hope that it will absorb some of the precious metal’s properties. But you’ll have to travel across the world to get it, so far it’s only available in America and Japan.

Wallet watch: $400 for 90 minutes at Veronica’s Skin and Beauty Centre, Malibu www.veronicaskincare.com

The Evian bath

USP: Available at the Victor Hotel in Miami, Florida, the bath is filled with 1000 litres of still Evian water. Daisies and floating candles are then launched into the water while you relax in the mineral water.

Wallet watch: US$5,000 at Victor Hotel www.hotelvictorsouthbeach.com

The Perrier facial

USP: If bathing in mineral water isn’t enough, the seven-step Perrier facial involves three face masks, facial cleansing and massages all containing the sparkling water. While the masks work their magic on the face, the hands and feet are soaked in the mineral water as the bubbles ‘stimulate pressure points to aid the detox process’.

Wallet watch: Perrier facial £150, Shenaz Shariff at The Face and Body Clinic on London's Harley Street www.thefaceandbodyclinic.co.uk 020 7436 3936

The caviar facial

USP: State-of-the-art spa on the banks of Loch Lomond combines urban luxury with rural tranquility – along with a caviar facial.

Wallet watch: Kerstin Florian Signature Caviar Facial, 90 mins, £125

Read the full review

The champagne facial

USP: Caviar and diamonds usually come with champagne and in the world of luxury beauty it is no different. A Champagne Facial at Polished: The Skincare Lounge in New York uses products containing extracts of the luxury tipple on the skin. All the fun of a Saturday night without the hangover.

Wallet watch: Champagne Facial, 60 minutes, $85 www.polishedskincare.com

Times recommends

• McDonald’s: the world’s local restaurant
• Help me to be a mum: a foyer to fulfilment
• A life online: God likes a laugh