Ulta’s 21 Days of Beauty Guide – March 2018
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It’s the most wonderful time of the yearrrrrrr! One of my FAVORITE events to use an excuse to treat myself starts TOMORROW and after trying out so many of the products that are going to be on sale this year, I knew I had to share what information I could with everyone else who wants to take advantage of the amazing sales. Ulta’s 21 Days of Beauty is a semi-annual event (held in the spring and fall) where they mark down a ton of high-end products for one day (usually 50% off or more.) Every day has a new sale on a new product and there are “hot buys” for the whole 21 days, where products stay marked down for the whole time. Additionally, Platinum and Diamond members get additional perks and sales and there are usually some last-minute sales added the day of that aren’t advertised!
One of my main goals as a beauty blogger is to reduce the overwhelm you might feel when walking into a store like Ulta wanting to treat yourself to a fantastic new product but not knowing where to start or not wanting to waste your money on a product that doesn’t work for you. So, I’m sharing all the products on sale for the next 21 Days that I have tried out myself and would recommend any day, along with some products that I’ve tried and didn’t like (ones to avoid) and a few of the products that I want to buy during this 21 Days of Beauty Event.
But first, some tips for getting the most out of this sale:
- Most of these one-day deals are offered both in-store and online. There are some deals that are offered only online, however. Although I have yet to see it for this sale, Ulta normally offers free shipping if you buy something from the 21 Days of Beauty sale that day. If you are going to order a product online, the deals normally launch at midnight, so I’d recommend getting on the night before if you’re up to order. If not, try to do it as early in the morning as you can, because these deals go FAST. I usually set calendar reminders in my phone for the deals I want to get to remind me to get on and order them!
- If you are going to shop in store, the same thing applies. I’ve swung by Ulta during my lunch break to find that the product was already sold out.
- I’d also sign up for the Ulta emails if you don’t have them coming to you to begin with. Like I said, they sometimes offer last minute deals that they don’t advertise and that’s the first place to find out about them!
On to the good stuff – here are the products going on sale that I would HIGHLY recommend snagging up! Here is the complete calendar for products that will be on sale, and my top recommendations are below:
- March 19th – ItCosmetics Bye Bye Pores Pressed Anti-Aging Finishing Powder. ON SALE FOR: $14.50 (normally $29.00) This is one of my FAVORITE powders of all time and even though I have a compact that is mostly full, I will be buying another one because this is such a good price. I love to use this powder to set my foundation – it doesn’t have any white flashback in photos and it truly makes your pores disappear and gives your face an airbrushed finish.
- March 22nd – Buxom Full-On Lip Cream. ON SALE FOR $10.00 (normally $20.00) These are my favorite lipglosses of all time and I always snag a couple more colors when they go on sale. They are very pigmented and glossy but not super sticky. They have a little bit of a cooling sensation when you put them on, but not a burning sensation at all. My favorite shades are White Russian (the perfect nude gloss) Dolly (a mid-toned mauve) and Creamsicle (a light peach, perfect for spring and summer.)
- March 24th – Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Liner ON SALE FOR $11.00 (normally $22.00) This is one of THE BEST products from the whole 21 Days event in my opinion and it’s my holy grail liquid liner. While I did find a fantastic drugstore dupe (the Wet n Wild Skinny liner) I’d still recommend this one over it if you are willing to pay a few dollars more. The tip is a bit more flexible and makes winger liner really easy. Plus, this stuff literally does stay ALL DAY and comes out inky, inky black. I’m actually planning on snagging this liner in the forest green and royal blue shades during the sale because I’d love to have some fun colors in the formula.
- March 31st – Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz Pencil ON SALE FOR $10.50 (normally $21.00) If you need something a little bit more aggressive for your eyebrows (beyond tinted eyebrow gel) then definitely get your hands on this. ABH is the queen of brow products and the brow wiz pencil does not disappoint!
- March 31st – Mario Badescu (25% off Entire Brand) This skincare line is one of my FAVORITES when it comes to treating my cystic acne. The drying lotion has saved me countless times from having to suffer long days of waiting for a pimple to come in and then waiting for it to go away. I just put a dot of it on my skin overnight and in the morning it’s either drastically reduced or gone altogether. I also keep the buffering lotion in my bag at all times to treat any spots that start coming in during the day.
- April 7th – Mac Prep + Prime Fix+ ON SALE FOR $13.00 (normally $26.00) I feel like I’ve tried almost every setting spray under the sun, and Mac Fix+ still holds my heart as the best of the best. I love using this stuff to prime my skin before makeup and to set my skin after makeup. However, this spray really takes the cake because it does the best job foiling metallic eyeshadows. Every other spray I use to foil an eyeshadow always makes the shadow too damp to apply or too wet or not wet enough. Mac Fix+ is the only spray I try to use now when it comes to making a shimmer eyeshadow more vibrant and foiled.
- April 7th – Too Faced Better Than Sex Mascara ON SALE FOR $11.50 (normally $23.00) You guys know that this is my holy grail mascara and has been my holy grail mascara for 3 years now. Nothing I use compares to this. I love it that much.
Here are a few of the products that are going on sale that I would say “SKIP” to! I’ve tried these ones and they just didn’t deliver or weren’t what they were hyped up to be.
- Smashbox Primer Water – I didn’t notice anything particularly amazing about this primer/setting spray. It didn’t make a huge difference in the way my makeup lasted or how it applied. And since Mac’s Fix+ is going to be on sale during this event, I’d definitely recommend skipping this spray and getting your hands on the Fix+ instead.
- Urban Decay Eyeshadow Singles – Even though these are 50% off, I still don’t think it’s that good of a buy. You could buy 5 single shadows for $50.00 or you could buy a Naked Palette with 12 shades for $54.00 – ya see what I mean?
- ItCosmetics Confidence in a Compact – This isn’t my favorite ItCosmetics face product and I would recommend skipping out on this for the CC cream or Bye Bye Foundation tinted moisturizer UNLESS you are 50+ years in age. This would be an awesome product for mature skin.
- Benefit Cosmetics POREfessional Face Primer – I feel like this clogged more pores and created more problems for me than giving me smooth skin. I’d recommend getting the ItCosmetics Bye Bye Pores powder over this primer.
- Butter London Glazen Lip Glaze & Eye Gloss – Hard pass on this. I picked up the eye gloss in the shade Frosted at a 21 Days of Beauty event a couple years ago and the glitter gets EVERYWHERE after a couple hours. It’s way too messy. If you want something glittery for your eyes, get your hands on the Stila Glitter and Glow liquid eyeshadows. Those things do not budge and are also WAY more glittery than the Butter Eye Gloss.
- Benefit Rollerlash Mascara – Not my favorite Benefit Mascara to begin with (I prefer the Bad Girl Bang) but since the Too Faced BTS Mascara is on sale during this event, DEFINITELY pass Rollerlash up and get that one instead.
Here is what I’m buying during this 21 Days of Beauty event. There are definitely a few products I’ve had my eye on for a while that are going to be marked down, so I want to get my hands on them to try them out! Here’s my wishlist:
- Velour Lashes ON SALE for 50% – These lashes look SO luxurious and are also reusable for up to 25 times (which is a lot in the false lash world.) Definitely want to snag a couple of these lashes during this event.
- ST TROPEZ In Shower Gradual Tanning Lotion ON SALE for $12.50 – In the self-tanning world, ST TROPEZ is supposedly the cream of the crop. I really want to get my hands on one of their products to see if the buzz is real.
- Dose of Colors Marvelous Mauves Eyeshadow Palette ON SALE for $16.00 (regularly $32) I’ve been eyeing the Dose of Colors Queen of Hearts palette for what seems like years, but I just haven’t found the gumption to pull the trigger. It’s really cool to see Ulta carrying an “Indie” brand and I’ve heard amazing things about their eyeshadows, so the Mauves Palette seems like a great way to try them out without paying the full price.
WHEW! There you have it! A makeup collector’s guide and recommendations to the 2018 Spring Ulta’s 21 Days of Beauty Event. I’ll be updating my Instagram Stories and Facebook page any day there is an awesome deal to help remind any of you who want to take advantage of these prices, so make sure you are following me there!
Let me know what deals you are most excited about in the comments below (and hey, if this post was helpful, will you do me a huge favor and PIN it?)