I held out for as long as I could and in the end, those swirly patterns in the chrome packaging got to me. Even if it never finds itself on my face, the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush ($34) is beautiful on my vanity.
A combination of blush and their original Lighting Powders in a smaller compact, Hourglass is feeding off the hype and success of the original powders to make a blush that promises to make you glow, as if naturally emitting a sheen of health. Ethereal Light and Diffused Light are my favorite of the powders, being much loved for their refined texture and effect on the skin.
I picked up Luminous Flush after much deliberate swatching. One of the reasons why I didn't purchase these sooner (after five eternities spent swatching each shade every time I was inside a Sephora) was because of their similarities.
Ethereal Glow and Mood Exposure are the most unique shades being a light cool pink and warm mauve, respectively. The rest of the shades pull warm on me, including Radiant Magenta which I thought to be a cool mid toned pink. Bah!
Luminous Flush is described as a "champagne rose" but looks very much like a pinky coral with warm gold veining to me. Since my life is an abyss of blushes turning orange/pulling warm, I figured it best to accept my fate and find the most flattering variation of it.
Since these appear to be baked, the swirl pattern and ratio of blush to powder will vary with each pan. I noticed right away that my pan was not evenly filled out, causing one side to rub against the included mirror when closed.
As for the formulation? Top notch. I didn't doubt for a second that these would be smooth, long lasting, and vibrant. My reservation came from the similar color selection alone. Well, that and the hefty price tag because who spends 40 bucks on blush?
In pan the powder feels very soft to the touch but isn't crumbly or prone to fall out.
The formulation swipes onto the cheek especially well with my Wayne Goss brush #12. The color isn't patchy, splotchy, or uneven in any way and glides on softer than my Tarte blushes. Of course, the opacity is intense since the brush I use with it is goat hair and densely packed.
Here it is swatched on top of Tarte Captivating blush. This is two swipes under fluorescent/artificial lighting. It's much more pink on my hand, but with dim lighting and bad eyes it comes across as peach on my cheeks.
Luminous Flush wears solidly for 6 hours before I noticed it fading away, though not leaving in patches. The overall effect is a soft focus glow as advertised with more color than anticipated. I had seen pictures of the product on others' faces, and it photographs much lighter and blown out than in real life.
This is again, under fluorescent lighting.
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This is with natural lighting. It definitely comes across much more peachy on my skin but leans pink with sunlight.
xo Be
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