Pockets of peace: Natalie Eng savours the slow with wine, dark chocolate and Chanel’s Sublimage

This is why taking time to rest, recover and reset is crucial for someone like Eng. But despite the multi-faceted, deeply technical nature of her edible creations, her ways to unwind are surprisingly simple. “At home in Hong Kong, I take pleasure in a glass of good riesling, doing my own manicures, preparing a meal for my cherie, or even rearranging objects and furniture pieces”, she describes with an adorably gentle chuckle. And back home in Singapore, the youngest of three siblings’ recovery activities are simply spending time with family over hearty, leisurely meals.

But no matter where she is, “a long, hot shower” is all it takes to immediately relax her—and an equally simple but efficacious skincare ritual. “I tend to stick to what works for me and that shows visible results on my skin. I recently tried Chanel’s Sublimage range and the La Crème Fine is unctuous and deeply hydrating without leaving any sticky residue, even with my oily skin type. And trust that the La Crème Suprême will be my skin saviour this winter for sure”.

Besides the sensorial, skin-loving functionality this brings to her daily routine, it is a beautiful coincidence that Eng’s newfound skincare favourite also reflects her life ethos of simplicity and refinement. Firstly, Sublimage, Chanel’s most premium skincare collection, is encased in a quietly sublime aesthetic with clean lines and a polished black, white and gold palette—all iconic colours of the house—within which lie some of the most elegant, potent and sumptuous formulas. Powering this skincare range is the Madagascan Vanilla Planifolia, a meticulously sourced, rarefied bloom from which Chanel Research has extracted the most powerful molecules that work wonders to reverse the signs of skin ageing. At Chanel’s open-sky laboratory in Madagascar, an exclusive vanilla polyfractioning process enhances these anti-ageing properties to 40 times its concentration, forming Sublimage’s star active ingredient that is said to fortify skin cell regeneration in the epidermis by three times, zooming in on Chanel Research’s youth parameters that include hydration, comfort, smoothness, elasticity, strength and luminosity. The results? A refined, lifted complexion that glows with radiant vitality from the inside out.

Perfect for Eng’s nomadic lifestyle is Chanel Sublimage’s latest enhancement: new dual-component jars developed for all three La Crèmes—Suprême, Universelle and Fine—which now feature elegant refills that function as travel-friendly jars on their own. Designed to be easily slipped in and out of the Sublimage polished glass jars, these new refill cases are made of ultra-lightweight gold-anodised aluminum sealed with a lid stamped with the double C for easy yet sophisticated, unencumbered portability. 

When it comes to style, Eng describes her fashion choices as “elegant and comfortable, with a quiet sophistication that’s also reflective in my work”. She adds: “I prefer to invest in quality pieces that I can wear for a long time—comfort is vital to me.I love being able to move with ease so a lot of my wardrobe revolves around silk and cashmere”. And as for her personality, while she lists “sensitive, imaginative and caring” as key traits, she also reveals that “there is an air of mystery”... and that’s something we see countless parallels between her and both the house of Chanel and Chanel Sublimage.

Watch the video above for a peek into Natalie Eng’s “Pockets of Peace”. 

The Chanel Sublimage range is available online, and at all Chanel Beauty counters and standalone boutiques.