Product:  Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion.  Will this moisturizer leave your skin soft or slick?  Is the dupe, Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique, a steal or a waste?

Overall Rating (Clinique) =  2.25 Stars – Just Okay
Overall Rating (Equate Beauty) = 2.75 Stars – Just Okay to Good

Cost (Clinique): $26.00 for 4.2 oz. ($6.19 per fluid ounce)  Price Category:  Mid-range
Cost (Equate Beauty): $6.84 for 4.2 oz. ($1.63 per fluid ounce)  Price Category:  Dirt Cheap

Sold By (Clinique):  Clinique; Dillard’s; Sephora; Major Department Stores
Sold By (Equate Beauty):  Wal-mart

Containers:  Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion – Plastic bottle with pump or twist-off cap (your choice), outer carton.  Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion – Plastic bottle with pump, outer carton.

Description:  Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion is intended for skin types (1) and (2) for those of you that are Clinique customers.  For those who have no idea what that means, Skin Type 1 is Very Dry to Dry; and Skin Type 2 is Dry Combination.   Clinique makes a gel formula of this product for skin types (3) (Oily Combination) and (4) (Oily).  As with all products from the Clinique line, this moisturizer is fragrance free.  However, it is not free of some pore-clogging and disturbing ingredients such as mineral oil, petrolatum and artificial color.  The same can be said for the Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion.

Clinique states, “Dermatologist-developed formula combines all-day hydration with skin-strengthening ingredients to help skin look younger, longer. Helps strengthen skin’s own moisture barrier by 54%, so more moisture stays in.”

Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion is a moisturizer intended to be used night and day, after cleansing, toning, and the application of any other lighter products such as serums.  Always apply your products following cleansing in the order from the most watery consistency to the thickest consistency.

Wal-mart also makes a version of the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion called Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion.  Today, not only are we going to review the Clinique product, but we are also going to compare it to the Equate Beauty version.  These two products are, once again, very similar.  Wal-mart Equate Beauty only has the lotion version of this product.  They do not have the gel version or any other duplicates or copies.

I must admit, in my youth I rarely used any type of moisturizer.  As I have aged, it is something I seem to need more and more.  I have never been able to find a good one that does not irritate my hypersensitive skin or make my nose run like a proverbial faucet.  I first tried this one decades ago before I knew a great deal about cosmetic ingredients.  Back in those days, ingredients were not even disclosed to consumers.  I began using Clinique strictly because it was fragrance free and markets itself as having stringent research and gentle ingredients.  I decided to re-visit this line when I began this blog because I assumed the Clinique products would have changed and improved over the years with all of the advancements and research into the anti-aging benefits of cutting-edge botanicals and other skin-care ingredients.  I am disappointed to say that this Clinque formula is an old and tired one that should be retired.

Morning Review:  Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion is an okay looking and smelling lotion except for the yellow dye.  It has an ever-so-faint-citrus scent that is pleasant.  The lotion feels silky to my fingertips and when I first applied it, my skin felt velvety.  I’m used to my moisturizers being completed absorbed into my skin within a few minutes.  I waited for this lotion to be absorbed, but it never did.  And when I say never, I do mean never.  It just sat on top of my skin and every time I touched my skin it just felt sticky and greasy.  Makeup does not apply well on top of this product at all.  I used this on a separate day from the Equate Beauty dupe.

My morning review for the Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion is also disappointing.  The Equate Beauty moisturizer smells, looks, feels, and performs the same.  This stuff just sits on top of my skin and feels heavy.

Please Note:  Neither Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion nor Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion contain any SPF or sunscreen ingredients.  If you use this as a daytime moisturizer, you will also need a separate sunscreen.  Since I only like to use one moisturizer with an SPF in the daytime, this is not the best for me.  I would advise you only use this at night if you don’t want to wear two products.

Please Note:  If you have Rosacea or any form of acne, please check with your dermatologist before using this.   Mineral oil and petrolatum may clog your pores and make your condition worse.

Morning Rating (Clinique) = 2 Stars;
Morning Rating (Equate Beauty) = 2 Stars;

Evening Review:  After several hours my skin felt the same as when I initially applied the Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion, greasy.  I have to say that I was happy to wash it off and have my face feel clean again.

My evening review for the Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion is, once again, so similar that it is difficult to distinguish between the two products, neither of which impressed me in the least.  In my opinion the Equate Beauty moisturizer is indeed comparable to the Clinique moisturizer for a lot less money.  If you are a die-hard Clinique customer and you like this product, the Equate Beauty copy may delight you.

Overall Review:  Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion is not much better than any other lotion with mineral oil and petrolatum.   It does have some nice soothing cucumber and skin-plumping sodium hyaluronate, but those don’t make up for the other outdated ingredients.  If you have really dry skin this will make it feel softer and it will impart hydration as long as you don’t mind the heavy feel of the oil and petrolatum on your skin.  Personally, I don’t want those ingredients on my face.  This is definitely not an appropriate product for anyone with oily skin.  My male tester with dry skin also said this moisturizer made his face feel greasy and he did not care for it.  It is fine as a hand or body lotion, but way too expensive for that purpose.

Comparing the two products, Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion and Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion, are much more strikingly similar than dramatically different. (pun intended)  If you read the ingredients lists below you will see just how similar.  This is one of the most similar dupes I have seen in terms of ingredients, as well as performance.

I have not tried the gel version of this product from Clinique so I cannot comment on the difference.

Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion and Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion are suitable for the following skin types:  (Not for oily or combination)

• All ethnicities;
• All ages;
• All sexes;
• Dry;
• Sensitive;
• Consistent.

Please see the Help page to determine your skin type.

RATINGS REPORT:

Morning Rating (Clinique) = 2 Stars;
Morning Rating (Equate Beauty) = 2 Stars;

Evening Rating (Clinique) = 2 Stars;
Evening Rating (Equate Beauty) = 2 Stars;

Average from Other Testers = 2 Stars;

Value Rating (Clinique) = 3 Stars;
Value Rating (Equate Beauty) = 5 Stars;

Overall Rating (Clinique) = 2.25 Stars – Just Okay.
Overall Rating (Equate Beauty)  = 2.75 Stars – Just Okay to Good.
(Please review the About 365 Cosmetic Reviews page for the rating info.)

Ingredients (Clinique Dramatically Different Moisturizing Lotion): Water, Mineral Oil, Glycerin, Petrolatum, Stearic Acid, Glyceryl Stearate, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Oil, Urea, Lanolin Alcohol, Triethanolamine, Hordeum Vulgare (Barley) Extract, Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Fruit Extract, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seedcake, Propylene Glycol Dicaprate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Butylene Glycol, Pentylene Glycol, Trisodium EDTA, Phenoxyethanol, Yellow 6, Yellow 5, Red 33.

Ingredients (Equate Beauty Strikingly Unique Moisturizing Lotion): Water, Mineral Oil, Glycerin, Petrolatum, Stearic Acid, Glyceryl Stearate, Sesamum Indicum (Sesame) Seed Oil, Lanolin Alcohol, Saccaride Isomerate, Hordeum Vulgare (Barley) Extract, Cucumis Sativus (Cucumber) Fruit Extract, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seedcake, Propylene Glycol Dicaprate, Sodium Hyaluronate, Butylene Glycol, Carbomer, Tetrasodium EDTA, Sodium Hydroxide, Phenoxyethanol, Ethylhexylglycerin, Yellow 6 (CI 15985), Yellow 5 (CI 19140), Red 33 (CI 17200).

Important:  Please read our full Disclaimer before using this or any product.