If you’ve never experienced the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders, Blushes or Bronzers before, then this might be the palette for you to pick up. The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Palette, which a Limited Edition Holiday Palette, contains 3 Ambient Lighting Powders (one new) 2 Ambient Lighting Blushes and one Ambient Lighting Bronzer. It retails for $80.00 and is currently available online at Sephora.com for all VIB/VIB Rouge Members and will be released for everyone else I believe either the 22nd or the 23rd on Sephora.com. It will also be released in store at all Sephora locations, Hourglass Cosmetic Counters and Hourglass.com on October 9th. (It has already been released as this is an older post!)
What are the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit products? These products capture, soften and diffuse the way the light reflects on the skin. It gives that lit from within glow. They are some of the softest, most pigmented powders I have ever used. If you are looking for extreme sheen and sparkle, these aren’t for you. These offer a soft glow that gives a really natural look to the face.
When I first started using these powders, I felt like I couldn’t see the difference, but the more I used them, the more I realized their beauty was that they were so natural that it just gave my skin this glow that other powders weren’t offering. With my enlarged pores, these powders are the only ones that I seem to reach for because they don’t make my face scream “HEY, LOOK AT MY PORES.” Instead, my face looks luminous and it glows.
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Palette
Top Row (L to R) Dim Light, Iridescent Strobe Light and Diffused Light
Dim Light (Ambient Lighting Powder) Natural Peach Beige (Can be used all over as a setting powder)
Iridescent Strobe Light (Ambient Lighting Powder) Sheer Illuminating Highlighter (Can be used wet for more intense pigmentation) EXCLUSIVE TO THIS PALETTE ONLY!
Diffused Light (Ambient Lighting Powder) Soft, warm pale yellow (Can be used all over as a setting powder)
Bottom Row (L to R) Mood Exposure, Luminous Flush and Luminous Bronze Light
Mood Exposure (Ambient Lighting Blush) Soft Plum
Luminous Flush (Ambient Lighting Blush) Champagne Rose
Luminous Bronze Light (Ambient Lighting Bronzer) Medium/Tan Shade infused with Luminous Light, champagne and pearl powder. Ideal for fair/light skin tones. (Can be used as contour shade)
Left to Right: Dim Light, Iridescent Light, Diffused Light, Mood Exposure,
Luminous Flush, Luminous Bronze Light
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PROS and CONS of the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Palette:
PROS
Great variety of colors
New, exclusive shade that is only available in this palette
Palette is great for traveling
Nice size mirror
Variety of finishes (powders, blushes and a bronzer)
One of my favorite brands for powders and blushes
Pigmentation on these are incredible, a little bit goes a long way
CONS
The size of the pans is very small
Price has been a major concern at $80.00
I hate the packaging on this (that’s just me and my OCD, it shows fingerprints like crazy!)
Have to use a fairly small brush with this to get individual colors and not mixed
Star Rating:
I’d give this 8 out of 10! If the pans weren’t so small and they included some different blush colors in this palette, I would have given this a 10 with no hesitations. I only give it that rating because of the fact that I have a lot of these colors already in previous palettes. If you’re new to these, you’ll love them!
My overall thoughts on this palette are so mixed and I want to explain. IF you have never used any of the Hourglass Ambient Lighting products before, I think this is a great palette. If features some of their best selling powders, blushes and a bronzer. Literally, this could be all you would need for your face when traveling, besides foundation. It features a mirror and the packaging is very nice. The actual “pans” of color are small (.049 oz), but you are getting six of them to try. I’m not going to get into the whole price issue regarding this palette, believe me there are plenty about that online if you want to search, but normally these products start at about $35.00 and up. To get six of them would probably cost you around $270.00. Yes, they are full size, but if you are wanting to experience these colors for the first time (or you travel a lot) I can see the value of having this palette available.
However, if you are already a fan of the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Products, chances are you probably have these colors already, besides the Iridescent Strobe Light color that is ONLY available in this palette. For me, I have the Ambient Lighting Blush Palette that already includes the Mood Exposure and Luminous Flush colors. I use them almost daily and have still not even put a dent in them yet. If you purchased the Ambient Lighting Powder Palette before, then you already have Dim Light. So, check what you have already and see if it’s worth it to pick up this palette or not.
I do really like this palette. It’s great to have all of the color choices right there available to travel with. However, this palette isn’t perfect. I think that they could have included some different color options and I would have liked to have seen the actual pans to at least be the same size as their other palettes that they have released. A lot of people are complaining about the cost of this palette and believe me, I get it. Hourglass is a luxury product line and with that comes a high price tag for their products. My best advice is to examine the cost of the colors you would use the most. Also, do you have any of the colors already? If not, would you prefer to buy them individually or have them all together in this palette. That’s the best way I can answer the whole “Pass or Buy” when it come to this palette.
The fingerprints would drive me nuts too. And $80 is up there. But it looks SO pretty!
The fingerprints drive me nuts! Photographing that was interesting! HA!
Alas, a bit pricey for me especially since I already have one of the ambient lighting shades and I don’t wear bronzer. But that blush is soooo gorgeous!
It’s pretty pricey! I will totally agree with you on that one. The Blush is probably my favorite of the entire Ambient Lighting products. They are so pigmented and gorgeous!
got this, I love it. But I’m considering returning it. I feel like I can’t justify the price point, though in all honesty if mood light were a part of this palette, I wouldn’t even contemplate a return. Since I don’t own any of the other powders except one blush, which is included in this, it’s technically a good chance for me to explore, except, I don’t feel like these colours are all that brown girl friendly, plus everytime I look at this tiny tiny palette, I get a little irritable. We’ll just see.
I so agree with you! This palette is a great chance to explore and learn about the Hourglass Ambient Lighting products. Especially if you’ve never experienced them before. The colors are supposed to be “universally”flattering, but I completely agree with you when it come to not being the best shades for all skin tones. It’s a good effort from Hourglass and I think that they could make different “editions” available and we’d all be happy. Also, increasing the sizes of the pans a bit as well!
I wound up returning it today, I just couldn’t justify the price with being able to use only three of the shades successfully.
I think you did the right thing! No use in keeping something that expensive if you can’t use it all! I hope you are able to find something else!
I was thinking of getting one of the new UD palettes, but their quality has gone done so much I’m a little scared. There’s also not much diversity out there in the beauty world right now, fair and dark skinned ladies keep getting left out in the cold. I think I’m off holiday sets this year, maybe just get the fiance a nice wedding gift from the return.
I got the latest Naked and the shades seemed dry again to me. I notice that A LOT with companies anymore. I am contemplating the new Vice Palette though. Although your fiancee might appreciate a nice wedding gift 🙂
I have never tried the Hourglass Ambient Lighting powders due to the high price – I just couldn’t justify spending that much on a palette. I LOVE my Champagne Pop by Becca though and truly see the value in a great HAC combo with blush. Thank you so much for this review – I will definitely be heading to Sephora once it launches to test the product out!
They are definitely at an expensive price point, however, i will say that they are fantastic products! This palette is a great way to try these products, but just know that the pans of product are very, very small. The Champagne Pop from BECCA is beautiful! One of the best that they’ve launched recently!
Could really just stare at it forever! I don’t think I need something this big in my collection, but I do really want want of the ambient powders.
You know it’s actually not that big! It looks kind of bulky in the pictures, but I was actually quite shocked when I saw the size of it!
Ahhh, you got it!! I saw this and my eyes nearly popped out of my head! It’s SO pretty, but I already own Mood Exposure (and i don’t really like it on me). So, I really wish they had a second palette offered with other shades. I’m hoping they release a bronzer trio for the holidays, like they released the blush trio last year. Now that, I would buy!
If they were to offer other palettes for different skin tones,etc-I would be so happy! It’s not that I don’t like this palette, but I have duplicates of colors and I would have liked to have seen them offer something different! Especially in the blushes!
This looks lovely but I can see your point on purchasing it or not. I don’t own any Hourglass, so this would be a great place to start for me!
Kirstina, If you have never tried these before, I think that this is a great option for you. Just know that the pans are very small! Some of these would look fabulous on you!
It is a pretty palette, but it has a couple of flaws that are big ones. I think it would be great for someone new to makeup. The size and price compared to how much product you actually get has held me off. We’ll see, though. I do love the Ambient Lighting products!
Yeah, the flaws are big ones for sure! For someone who is new to makeup or travels a lot, I can see the reason to purchase it!
This palette is so gorgeous but the price per gram really irritates me! So I most likely won’t be getting it haha. It’s still so so pretty though ?
Yeah. It’s been irritating a lot of people, ha! It’s very pretty and offers some great products, but I feel that it could have been better!
I’ve heard from many Hourglass fans that they weren’t really drawn to this because they already had many of the colors already. It would’ve been neat if they came out with all new colors or shades!
I completely agree with you! I would have loved to seen some new blush colors in this palette!
Heart eye emojis. I have been dying to try some of the ambient powders from Hourglass, maybe i’ll have to ask for this for my birthday. It’s beautiful but a bit too expensive. Thanks for the review!
It’s pricey but I think it’s a great option!!
I agree, the price on this is steep, but I like having all of the colors in one palette. Plus, I only owned 1 of the 6 powders so it is a great way to try out other products. I definitely think that this should have been priced somewhere in the $60 range though and not $80! Great review 🙂
xx