The holidays seem to come earlier and earlier each year — and the biggest holiday shopping events? They’re now following suit. So, while the clock is still ticking down to the most official Black Friday discounts, the beauty deals are already coming in hot. Case in point: Ulta’s Early Black Friday sale, which boasts dozens of name-brand products at upwards of 40% off, is truly an early-beauty-bird paradise. Just today, I found steep price cuts on popular skin care from Kiehl’s and Murad, along with markdowns on reviewer-fave hair-care brands that rarely go on sale.
Ulta’s annual Black Friday beauty deals have historically been some of the best of all the major beauty retailers, with the largest lineup of discounted favorites most of us use — and love. And I should know: I scour thousands of beauty deals each year and test hundreds of products each month. In sifting through the current sale, I’ve highlighted the following five steals because all are reliably effective products at the best prices I’ve seen all year.
Here are the items I’m buying now, but watch this space: Ulta is dropping new sales all month, and I’ll be updating our list as they come.
The best Ulta Black Friday deals
Murad’s one of those old-timey, effective, high-quality brands I trust and you simply can’t beat the on-sale price — and targeted combination — of this potent skin care set, which aims to de-puff undereyes, minimize pores and blur fine lines within minutes.
It comes with three travel-size tubes: Targeted Pore Corrector, Targeted Wrinkle Corrector and Targeted Eye Depuffer. Each works to tighten and brighten skin, while also plumping texture; a near-ideal on-the-go skin care routine and a steal at just $17.
Ulta
This lightweight, glow-ifying foundation works double duty, blurring skin imperfections while hydrating and nourishing. It comes in six easy-to-match shades and contains a heavy-duty moisturizing mix of 29% squalene along with coconut water.
The consistency is non-cakey and it’s also non-crevice-settling (useful for under middle-aged eyes!). The dewy product is especially excellent for drier or mature faces and, though the coverage is on the sheer side, it’s buildable, making it ample for most skin types.
Ulta
Say what you will about Drake, but dude actually makes a hell of a candle. I particularly love this “Good Thoughts” scent, which is an earthy mix of balsam fir and citrus and feels perfect for right now as we enter the holiday season.
While candles aren’t always the most original gift, in this case I’d make an exception. The luxury design here (plus a good celebrity backstory) makes them a fun present you wouldn’t buy yourself and — bonus — each candle comes with a gold marker designed so you can personalize and make the gift feel extra unique for recipient.
Ulta
Extremely rare sale alert! Jennifer Aniston’s high-end hair-care line is rarely marked down, and this 30% discount makes for an excellent opportunity to try her mane-transforming products.
The all-natural, cruelty- and paraben-free formula is made from — of all things — chia seeds, and it’s clinically proven to reduce hair breakage by 68% after just one use.
Ulta
I’ve had my eye on this limited-edition pack of two Kiehl’s moisturizers for the past few weeks and, now that they’re on sale, am finally hitting click-to-buy. The classic, best-selling cream is ultra-emollient, made with super-hydrators like squalane and glacial glycoproteins and ideal for treating dry winter skin.
The package comes with two ample 4.2 oz tubs — if you act now, your skin will stay dewy and soft through spring.