Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Surreal Light Palette Review

One of the most beautiful holiday releases of the year so far has to be the new Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Surreal Light Palette ($80).  It's visually stunning inside and out and the shades inside are all brand new, which is a big improvement over last year's Ambient Edit (which only had one new shade and the rest were from their core collection).

But it's also one of the more expensive palettes you'll come across, especially for how much product is inside. So is it worth the high price tag? Let's take a look...

The packaging is something totally different than we've seen from Hourglass in the past. Their usual packaging is a deep bronze color and attracts fingerprints like crazy. This palette looks like it's made from marble (it's a very solid, sturdy plastic) and is one of the reasons I bought it because it's so beautiful and unique.

The Surreal Light Palette contains five shades...the largest of which is .14 oz. and the rest are .04. This brings the total powder weight to .30 oz- almost identical to last year's palette which was .294 oz.
Here's how the costs break down:

• A Full size Ambient Lighting Powder is 0.35 oz. for $46.00  ($132.87/oz.)
• A Full size Ambient Lighting Blush is 0.15 oz. for $38.00 ($253.08/oz.)
• A Full size Ambient Lighting Bronzer is 0.39 oz. for $50.00 ($128.21/oz.) 

This palette works out to be $266.40/oz. so it's more expensive per oz than buying the full sizes. However, it's a cheaper option than purchasing all of the full sizes, especially if you want to try the blushes, bronzer, highlighter and Ambient powder all at the same time. 

Many people have told me that they feel that this palette is overpriced (based on the feedback I've gotten on social media), and if you look strictly at the numbers that's definitely true. I feel that this should be priced closer to $60. 

But many other people have told me that it's worth the extra cost to them between the beautiful packaging, and the ease of having all of their face products in one convenient palette. Not to mention, this is the only way to try these new shades at the moment. 

The Surreal Lighting palette contains soft, warm tones that are meant to re-create the ultra-flattering effect of the "magic hour"(the time shortly before sunrise or sunset). This gives your skin a soft, natural glow and the soft-focus technology helps to minimize the appearance of wrinkles and imperfections, while toning down discoloration.

Shades include:

• 0.14 oz Ambient Lighting Powder in Surreal Light (sheer nude) 
• 0.04 oz Ambient Lighting Bronzer in Surreal Bronze Light (neutral tan with Surreal Light) 
• 0.04 oz Ambient Lighting Blush in Surreal Glow (pale peony pink with Surreal Light),
• 0.04 oz Surreal Effect (cool, pink rose with soft, warm peach) 
• 0.04 oz Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder in Surreal Strobe Light (glimmering peach) 

In my opinion, these shades work best on fair to medium skin tones...I don't think that the blushes and bronzer would really show up on anyone who has a deeper skin tone. The shades are very light, soft and natural and the powders are silky, smooth and feel amazing on the skin.

The Ambient Powder in Surreal Light is an all-over finishing powder and is a slightly warmer version of Dim Light (which is one of my favorites because it's so subtle without a lot of "glow"). Surreal Light doesn't accentuate pores or imperfections and gives a beautiful all-over warmth to my cool-toned skin.
The Surreal Glow Blush is a soft, peachy nude that's perfect for every day, while the Surreal Effect Blush is a brighter pink that gives a little more color. They're each beautiful on their own and I also love mixing the two together for a custom shade.
The Surreal Bronze Light is the perfect bronzer for fair to light skin tones...it's not the slightest bit orange and adds just the right amount of warmth to your face.
Finally, the Surreal Strobe Light contains the most shimmer in the palette but it's not a super-intense shimmer, so it keeps in line with the soft theme of the palette. It definitely shows up on my cheekbones and creates that "pop" but you can't really overdo it.

Overall, the Hourglass Surreal Light Palette is quite a splurge but I have to say...I love it! When I wear these shades on my skin, I feel like I look more beautiful...it's kind of hard to explain, but they give my pale, cool-toned skin a healthy glow that somehow manages to look like I'm not wearing any makeup at all. I'm all about looking natural, so that's what I love best about this palette.
In the end, I really wasn't disappointed because I know I'll use every shade in this palette on a very regular basis and I hope that Hourglass will release these shades individually at some point! 

Yes it is expensive but if you have fair to light skin that needs a little pick-me-up (without looking obvious), it might be worth splurging on. 

The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Surreal Light Palette is available at Sephora now for VIB and VIB Rouge members, and will be available soon for everyone. 

What do you think of the new Hourglass Surreal Light Palette? Will you be getting this one? 

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Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick Review

I've been hearing tons of buzz about the new Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick ($46) lately, and while it's way more than I would normally spend on a foundation, something about it was intriguing me. It claims to be long-wearing with the "coverage of a concealer, fluidity of a liquid, and weightlessness of a powder for invisible, full coverage."
Based on the reviews I've seen, people either love this or they hate it. Those with dry skin say it emphasizes dryness and those with oily skin say that it breaks down quickly and doesn't last. The first time I tried it, I admit I was with the haters...it seemed to cling to all the dry patches on my face and reminded me why I try to avoid stick foundations these days. But I continued to play with it and ended up changing my mind. Let's take a closer look!

First, let's talk packaging... Vanish is beautiful and unique. It comes in the classic Hourglass bronze tube but instead of the typical rounded shape, this one is triangular. If you like to apply your stick foundations straight from the tube, you'll appreciate its ability to get into smaller spaces, such as around the nose and underneath your eyes...just point one of the corners into the area where you want it to go.

It comes in 26 shades, which is an impressive range...almost everyone will likely find a close or exact match. I also like how the shades are described on the Sephora website- they tell you the shade name (fair, light, medium, deep etc.) and then they describe the undertone (cool, warm, or neutral). It made it pretty easy to choose my shade online and when I went into the store, I tested a few of them and ended up with Shell, which was the shade I decided on when I looked online the night before. 

On the downside, you're not getting a ton of product for your money. Vanish comes with .25oz of product, compared to the new Anastasia Beverly Hills Stick foundation (.32oz for $25) or the Bobbi Brown foundation stick (.31oz for $46). But the good news is, you need to use so little of this foundation to cover your face, it should last you a really long time. 

This formula is everything Hourglass claims it to be, and is unlike any stick foundation I've ever tried. It gives full coverage (it's awesome around the eyes...I don't even need concealer most days), it melts into your skin with a satin finish, and is super lightweight. When they say it's as light as a powder, it truly is!

Because the formula is very concentrated and highly pigmented, you only need a tiny bit of product. That was the first mistake I made, which caused me to dislike this foundation at first. I swiped it directly onto my face, like I always do with stick foundations, and then blended out with a brush. It seemed to cling to every dry patch and looked really cakey. I tried it a couple of times with different primers and the same thing kept happening. Then I saw a YouTube review of this (I can't remember who it was), and they suggested taking a dense brush with shorter bristles and swiping it across the top of the stick, then applying it to your face.

Once I did that, it was like, "ah ha!". No more cakiness...just smooth, ridiculously lightweight coverage. The best part is, it doesn't settle into lines on your face because you're barely using any product. It gives a satin finish that keeps your skin from looking totally flat and matte, and there's no shimmer in this formula whatsoever, so you won't look dewy or glowy. The finish is just really natural...like skin.

For reference, I've been using my Cailyn O Wow! Brush and it gives me great results. Hourglass also makes a brush that's meant to be used specifically with this foundation (Vanish Foundation Brush $46) but that brings the total up to $92...yikes. I don't know about you, but if I'm spending $46 on a foundation, I'm not going to spend a lot on a brush to go with it. I also tried my Sonia Kashuk Flat Top Brush ($15.99) and it works great also. Any soft brush with short, dense bristles will work well.

Here's a swipe of the color Shell on my arm...it looks dark because the underside of my arm is lighter than the rest of my skin. It's a near-perfect match for my face (although I might need to go one shade lighter in the Winter). Shell is described as Light with a neutral undertone.
After I took this photo, I took my brush and blended the swatch out and it covered the underside of my arm from my wrist to my elbow...that's how far this goes. You really only need a tiny bit of product.

As far as staying power goes, it's hard for me to say how this will work on oily skin. The Sephora website has reviews of people saying it broke down on them after only an hour or two and others with oily skin say it lasts all day. Due to the creaminess of this product, I would definitely suggest setting it to prevent it from sliding off.
Since I have dry skin, I don't have any issues with it wearing off prematurely. I set it with Mally Beauty Poreless Face Defender (which I prefer to powder since I have drier skin) and it lasts all day for me.

Overall, it's hard to say whether or not this will work for everyone, but I would recommend it based on my personal experience. The formula was a little tricky to work with because it's different than anything else I've tried, but I'm glad that I stuck with it and experimented a bit.

You can purchase Hourglass Seamless Finish Foundation Stick at Sephora.com

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Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Surreal Palette | Now Available

More Holiday new releases are starting to drop! The latest is the new Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Surreal Light Palette ($80) available at Sephora for VIB and Rouge members. It's definitely on the pricey side, but at least this year the shades are all brand new. Last year, a lot of Hourglass fans (including myself) were disappointed that most of the shades were repeats that they already had in their collection.

The packaging is totally different from the usual deep bronze colored reflective compacts (which are a total fingerprint magnet)...this one looks like white marble!

The largest shade in this collection, Surreal Light is a sheer nude setting powder that creates a soft focus glow on your complexion and evokes the magic hour where the sun brings the softest, most flattering glow to the skin.

It also includes:

• Ambient Lighting Bronzer in Surreal Bronze Light (light golden bronze)
• Ambient Lighting Blush in Surreal Glow (medium to dark golden bronze) and Surreal Effect (rose-pink golden bronze).
• Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder in Surreal Strobe Light (medium-warm bronze)

Here are some swatches from Beautezine that I saw recently:

Photo: Beautezine

I love how soft these look on the skin...there's no obvious shimmer or sparkle, just a beautiful subtle effect.

Will you be splurging on this one? 

Grab yours now at Sephora.com (VIB and Rouge only for now).



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Hourglass Ambient Light Correcting Primer | First Impression

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I recently splurged on the new Hourglass Ambient Lighting Primer ($44) because I love the powder version so much (it's my holy grail high-end finishing powder) and I had really high hopes for this. Unfortunately, anticipation can sometimes lead to disappointment and I may be really unpopular for saying this, but...I wasn't all that impressed by this.

Here's why:

Dewy skin has recently become popular again so it's only natural that we'll start to see products that claim to give us that "lit-from-within" glow. The thing is, there are products that were released the last time dewy skin was in that give the same effect for a lot less money. One example off the top of my head is L'oreal Magic Lumi. I still use that primer all the time!  Another one is Pixi's Flawless Beauty Primer. Both of them give your skin a subtle glow that peeks through your foundation to help your look flawless and glowy.

That's basically what this new Hourglass primer does for me...but it's $44 for a little 1 oz. tube. One thing it has going for it is that it comes in three different shades. Luminous Light gives your skin a beautiful glow without adding a lot of color, while Mood Light has a pink/lavender tone to correct a sallow complexion. Dim Light (which is the one I got) has a peachy brown tint and warms up my skin a little bit. You can see in the heavy swatch below that it looks almost bronzer-like against my pale skin, but once you spread it out (just above the heavy swatch), the effect is more subtle.

It feels really thin and lightweight...not at all like a traditional silicone primer. It goes on more like a lotion that absorbs almost instantly with no greasy or sticky feel, so those with oily skin types will probably love that about it. For me, it's actually a negative because my dry skin absorbs this as I'm trying to apply it which means it doesn't spread easily and I have to use a lot to cover my face. At $44 an ounce, that's not what I want to happen. Also, another thing I look for in a primer is the ability to fill in pores and fine lines and I didn't notice much of that with this because it's not a thicker, more "spackle-like" formula.
Overall, it did give my skin a nice glow that was still visible even through my foundation...but for me, the effect was so similar to Magic Lumi (which also has a similar, lightweight texture by the way) I just can't justify spending the $44 on it. Glowy primers are not really a "new" concept but now that they're becoming popular again, I guess companies assume that you've forgotten about the older formulas and will be on to the next best thing.

Unfortunately, it's going back to Sephora. It's not a bad product by any means...I just can't justify the cost for what it does (and doesn't do), especially when there are drugstore products out there that can give me the glowy base I'm looking for.

You can find the Hourglass Ambient Light Correcting Primer at Sephora.com

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Swatches & First Impression

The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit ($80 at Sephora) is perhaps one of the most highly anticipated releases for Holiday 2015. For me, the fact that it contained Hourglass' famous face powders, blushes and a bronzer all in one beautiful compact meant that I had to get it the minute it launched. But is it worth the splurge? Read on to find out...

The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Now Available at Sephora!

Just as I was typing my last post about the swatches and video of the new Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Holiday 2015 palette, I was also checking out Instagram (how's that for multitasking, haha!) and saw that it's now available at Sephora.com! This is for VIB and VIB Rouge only at the moment, so if that applies to you, I wouldn't wait to get this because the craziness is about to go down! It'll be available to all Beauty Insiders on September 15th, and the general public on September 17th. 
Here's a screenshot of my cart...and just a hint...you can grab a free deluxe size of the new NARS Audacious Mascara by using code NARSLASH at checkout.
Also Ebates is offering 8% cash back right now, plus they have tons more coupon codes you can use, in case you're not wild about the Nars mascara one. Just go to Ebates first to get a free account and then click through to Sephora and you'll earn 8% cash back to your Paypal account on anything you buy.

Hourglass Ambient Edit Swatches!

Holiday 2015 sneak peeks are upon us and we've all been drooling over the upcoming new releases. But there's one that seems to be getting the most attention, and that's the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit palette.

Karen from Makeup and Beauty Blog (one of my favorite blogs ever) just posted a bunch of photos including swatches and a video review so you can get a good idea of the size, the shades, and tips on how to use it! So head on over to her blog and get ready to want this more than you already do!

The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Holiday 2015 Palette is Almost Here!

Last month, I posted a sneak peek of a new Hourglass Ambient palette that's set to arrive for Holiday 2015 but I didn't have much information about it to share with you. Now I have all the details including this link to get on the waiting list...and if you're wanting this I highly recommend signing up because there is major interest in this palette and I don't see it lasting more than a day! 

It's called the Ambient Lighting Edit and will cost $80, according to the Hourglass website. It's a limited edition and features one brand new shade called Iridescent Strobe Light (top middle).

New Hourglass Palette Coming For Holiday 2015

I know it's waaay too early to talk about holiday-related stuff, but I just saw a new Hourglass palette on Space NK's Instagram page that's coming out for Holiday 2015...and it's too gorgeous not to share with you guys.

According to their description, this palette is blush, bronze, highlight and finishing. They didn't mention the name of it in the description box, but they hashtagged #ShadowandShimmer so I'm going to guess that the palette is called Shadow and Shimmer...but don't quote me on that! 

Photo Credit: Space NK Instagram

I haven't tried any Hourglass blushes or bronzers yet because they're just too darn expensive at $50 a pop, but if this palette is around $58 like the Modernist eyeshadow palettes or the Ambient Lighting Palette, I might just indulge! But I'm guessing it'll be more in the $75 range. I don't have pricing information yet, but I'll add it to this post once I get it!

**Update! This will retail for $79 (thanks to reader Rachel for the info) and I have also confirmed that this contains one new shade, Iridescent Highlighter (the lightest shade) and that each shade is smaller in size than the Ambient palette.**

Will you be picking this up when it hits stores?

Hourglass Modernist Palette Review and Swatches

Recently I was in Sephora and spotted the beautiful Hourglass Modernist Palettes ($58) on the front table where they set out all the new products. There are actually 7 versions of this palette so it was really hard to choose just one (Lord knows I can't afford any more than that!). I ended up going with Infinity, which is described as "warm neutrals". 

The palette case is really sleek and modern, with a deep, dark bronze color and mirrored finish. It's not too large, about the size of an iPhone so it's perfect for travel or taking with you in your purse.