A Beauty Editor’s Must-Haves From Ulta Beauty
The exact products from Ulta Beauty in her festival survival kit.
The older I get, the more festivals are about strategy rather than spontaneity. In my 20s, I’d grab a last-minute wristband and wing it. Now, I need time to plan ahead — catching up on sleep and hydration in the week leading up, and curating a well-packed bag of beauty essentials, is non-negotiable. Sure, it’s less carefree, but way more sustainable (and it’s nice to still feel like a semi-functioning human by day three).
As a beauty editor, I’ve tested just about everything, and I take claims like “long-wearing,” “rejuvenating,” “all-day odor protection,” and “fast-absorbing” seriously. These five Ulta Beauty finds actually live up to their promises and have officially earned a spot in my festival kit.
Most dry shampoos I’ve tested do a decent job at disguising dirty hair, but tend to clog the scalp with gunky buildup in the process. My hair might look good, but I don’t want to run my fingers through it. This cleaner formula swaps out the usual culprits that leave gunk behind — talc, benzene, butane — for a blend of rice starch, wheat bran, and micro-algae. It absorbs oil, adds volume, and keeps my follicles healthy, so I can focus on one more day of stage-hopping.
Nearly all my friends have made the switch to natural deodorant, and I’ve been the lone holdout — mostly because so few actually work. But lately, I’ve been leaning into the clean girl aesthetic with bare nails and air-dried hair, so giving up aluminum feels like a logical next step. This is one of the rare formulas I've tried that actually checks all the important boxes: glides on clear, absorbs quickly and keeps me dry, and has a natural scent that's luxurious enough to serve as my fragrance. If any aluminum-free deodorant could hold up for hours under the sun, it's this one.
There are a few face sunscreens I love so much, I never think twice about reapplying every couple of hours, even over makeup. But when it came to body sunscreen, nothing I tested ever came close — there was always some stickiness left behind. That changed when I found Kopari’s Sun Shield Body Glow Gel SPF 50. It goes on with zero greasiness or tackiness and feels just as luxurious as a high-end body serum. Infused with antioxidant-rich oils like macadamia, avocado, and hibiscus, plus a subtle shimmer, it nourishes, protects, and leaves arms, legs, and collarbones glowing.
If I know I’m going to sweat my makeup off, this is what I call in for reinforcement. One spritz of Morphe’s Continuous Setting Mist locks everything in with a weightless finish that somehow makes my makeup look fresher, dewier, and better than when I first applied it — without the tight, stiff feeling most long-wear sprays leave behind.
A beauty editor’s hot tip: You can keep these gels in the fridge for the cooling effect, but if you’re camping at a festival, toss them in your cooler and pull them out whenever your eyes need a quick revival. The HydraSurge5 Moisture System delivers ingredients faster and more effectively than a cream, including caffeine to boost circulation and reduce puffiness; hydrolyzed collagen and sodium hyaluronate to hydrate and plump; and Centella asiatica to calm, brighten, and support collagen production. After just five minutes, your eyes look refreshed and ready for yet another application of face gems.
