Ulta's Inexpensive "Double Duty Primer & Foundation" Gets Reviewed

 Again I was lured in by the promise of great deals.

Ulta's sale catalog often works well on me, enticing me into the store with the promise of 2 things I really like:

saving money

&

loads of beauty products!

They had a buy one, get one free on the Ulta line, and my skin is changing color, lightening from the lack of sun, so my BOGO choice was foundation.

I swatched about 12 different ones in varying types and shades and ultimately bought the

Ulta Double Duty Primer & Foundation

and the

Double Duty Wet & Dry Pressed Powder Foundation.

I haven't tried the powder foundation yet, as my skin has been slightly flaky due to the weather change happening here in lower Alabama.

I did try the liquid/cream one and I really like it.

Here's why:

 

I have a lot of freckles and sunspots. I also am still battling hormonal acne (yes, even at 40). I like something that doesn't necessarily "cover" completely, but provides some coverage and basically "softens" my flaws (I don't want to look like I have a mask on).

I got just that kind of coverage with this foundation using my stippling brush.

What about the shade?

At Ulta, you can swatch their shades for the Ulta brand (there were a few shades they didn't have testers out for, so I asked the associate if I could open some for those colors and was given the go ahead...so if they don't have a color open that your interested in testing, ASK).

They have 12 shades in this one formula, so the color selection is decent.

 

So, I squeezed out some of this OIL FREE (important for us oily girls!), fragrance free (important for us acne girls), and paraben free (sounds good to be free of) cream directly on my face:

Then began blending in swirling motions, one section at a time:

 

Here's what the coverage was like:

 

It provides a matte finish. It does NOT stop my oil from eventually coming through, but neither does it increase my oiliness, unlike some multi-function foundations (BB & CC creams, etc.), which have moisturizers in them.

NOTE: This is NOT a BB or CC cream, because it doesn't claim to do anti-aging, color correcting, or the like. It just claims to be a primer & foundation in one.

 

Here's what the back claims:

"Medium to full coverage foundation combines silicone and soft focus complex that is used in foundation primers to smooth, mattify and provide lasting coverage."

 

It smoothed my complexion, color-wise, and provided pore and line minimizing equal to what I've gotten from the prestige brand primers...check!

It mattified it for about 2 hours (reasonably long considering my usual results) before my T-Zone got oily...check!

It provided lasting coverage, still looking basically the same (except for my oil) after about 10 hours...check!

 

And this is for $6.25!

 Thanks to that BOGO offer, I scored a great deal (still going on if you hurry). But I'd be willing to pay $12.50 for it anyways. That's much cheaper than the "prestige brands", and while it may be more expensive than a few of the drugstore brands, it's worth it to be able to actually SWATCH the colors and see which one WORKS. No wasted money on wrong colors, or having to take it back and swap out if the store allows that. That's where the Ulta brand shines. You get to swatch it like you do with prestige brands, but you pay much less, like the drugstore brands.

AND, if you do like me and wait for a sale (or use the $3.50 coupon they seem to send out monthly to their mailing list), you can get it for LESS than some drugstore brands. The size is 1 oz, which is the same as Revlon Color Stay ($11.99) and Cover Girl Clean Makeup ($6.99).

 

Bonus:

• NOT tested on animals.
• Has a squeeze tube, NOT a "pour out" system. It's neater & cleaner.
• No increased crêpe-iness around eyes, as some fuller coverage products tend to do.

 

Have you tried any of the Ulta branded products? Which one and how did you like it?

(I reviewed their primer HERE and their mascara HERE).