The Ordinary is one of those brands that makes me question how much I pay for every other beauty product I own. I am still not quite sure how they can create such beautiful packaging, effective products that inexpensively! Their parent company Deciem makes some of my favorite skincare products under a different brand, Hylamide. Both brands boast incredibly cheap products that are jam packed with skin-care ingredients. I’ve been planning a separate blog post about my favorite skincare products and you’ll definitely see a few from them.
I first became aware of The Ordinary primers from my favorite makeup artist, Wayne Goss. He has to be one of my favorite people to watch on YouTube because he really knows his stuff and has been doing makeup on celebrities for years. There is nothing funnier than him debunking makeup techniques gone wrong.
So let’s get into the three products I’ve been testing.
The Ordinary High-Adherence Silicone Primer
Price: $4.90
Available At: TheOrdinary.com, Beautylish (coming soon)
Let’s start with the product that I loved the most. I had in my head that this was going to be one of those clear, slippy primers that left the skin feeling slightly greasy. Not at all! This looks like a white-colored moisturizer when it comes out of the tube and blends easily onto my skin. It didn’t leave me feeling greasy or too matte and had no discernible smell to it. And it really did make my skin feel smoother. It did leave a slight tacky feel to the skin, but I actually like that because it always feels like my foundation applies better and lasts longer with that tacky base.
Here’s how it’s described on the website:
“This formula uses advanced adaptive silicones to act as a matte, hydrating, blurring primer for makeup that looks higher in definition and adheres for longer. The formula can also be used alone as a non-greasy hydrator that reduces the looks of pores and of imperfections.”
I would absolutely agree with how they’ve described this. I think the closest formula I can compare this to is the Mac Mineralize Timecheck Lotion, but I have to say this product is better. And for less than $5, I can’t think of any reason we all shouldn’t own this! Bold claim, but I think this might be my new favorite primer.
The Ordinary High-Spreadability Fluid Primer
Price: $7.90
Available At: TheOrdinary.com, Beautylish (coming soon)
This is one of those clear, silicone primers that has a lot of slip to it. I do think it meets all the claims on their website. Here’s how it’s described:
“This new generation of primer is a lightweight serum-like formula that increases the spreadability of subsequent complexion makeup to help avoid the unnatural and uneven accumulation of pigments especially around the eyes and on dry skin. The formula also acts as a light, non-oily surface hydrator for a natural dewy look.”
If you like the Smashbox Photo Focus primer, but get frustrated when it balls up on you, this might be a really good primer for you to try. It has more slip to it and smooths easily onto the skin. My biggest problem with this primer was the smell. Even though it didn’t have any fragrance, it smelled kind of like chemically grapes to me. I just couldn’t get past the scent even though I liked how it applied when my skin was very dry. Once again, this primer is stupid cheap, so give it a whirl if scents don’t really both you.
The Ordinary Vitamin C Suspension 23% + HA Spheres 2%
Price: $5.50
Available At: TheOrdinary.com, Beautylish (coming soon)
I love Vitamin C in my skincare. It’s an anti-aging powerhouse that boosts the production collagen and acts as an anti-oxidant to help fade sunspots and brighten your skin. I love it in eye creams because it also help to reduce my dark circles. But you have to make sure you’re getting the right kind of Vitamin C: Ascorbic Acid. This form of Vitamin C is proven to be the most effective in skin care. Here’s the challenge: it hates water and will lose it’s effectiveness over time. This is one of the reasons I’ve purchased the Philosophy Turbo Booster C Powder for years. It allows me to add a pure shot of Vitamin C in a powder form to my serum so I know I’m getting the full benefit. But it’s also $39.00.
I was incredibly excited to try this product after I read how The Ordinary describes it:
“Vitamin C is an effective antioxidant and its pure form of L-Ascorbic Acid has been shown to reverse multiple signs of skin ageing while brightening the skin when applied topically. This water-free, silicone-free formula provides 23% pure L-Ascorbic Acid which remains completely stable due to the absence of water. The system is supported with addition of dehydrated spheres of Hyaluronic Acid to offer visible surface smoothing alongside the benefits of Vitamin C.”
Does that just sound incredible! And thankfully, it really does live up to that hype. I would never guess that this formula didn’t have water in it because it feels like a lightweight moisturizer when I apply it. I’ve been using this at night right after toner, but before my oil-based retinol treatment. I definitely can feel a tiny bit of grit which I’m guessing is the dehydrated hyaluronic acid. But by the time I blend it in, the slight texture is gone. For me personally, I haven’t noticed a huge change in brightness or fading of spots mostly because I’ve been using such high concentrations of Vitamin C already. However, I don’t see myself purchasing another $39 bottle of powder from Philosophy. This will definitely become my go-to Vitamin C treatment and $5.50!!! Once again, how is that possible!?!?
I feel like another order of products from The Ordinary is in my future. They have so many interesting productI want to explore! Have you tried anything from The Ordinary? Let me know what’s catching your eye.