Hey guys,
Today’s post is about my second palette from Hourglass Cosmetics. It’s a limited edition so if you want to know if you want to buy it, read the review!

The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Volume 4 is a part of the Hourglass Holiday collection. I previously bought their holiday Unlocked palette and review it here. However, Sephora.fr currently has a sale going on and I saw this baby had a huge discount so I couldn’t resist and I threw it in my online basket. It got reduced from €75 to €45 and seemed well worth the money for that price tag and the fact that the shades seem a bit more suitable for paler skin. January is the month where I get extremely pale due to the lack of sunlight and never going out, haha. I bought this a week ago and only got it in the mail yesterday, so it might seem a bit early for a full review but it’s a limited edition and I find powders easier and faster to review due to their consistency. Foundation usually takes up a bit more time due to having to test it under different circumstances. I have been wearing this palette two full days (yesterday and today) and I have gathered quite some thoughts ready. Let’s start!

The packaging is a beautiful metallic pink compact. It might look a bit silver but that is due to the lighting. The Ambient Lighting Volume 4 has four of their best selling shades and two new and exclusive powders. It features two Ambient Lighting powders, a Strobe Powder, an Ambient Lighting bronzer and two blushes. The darkest blush has a Strobe Blush formula. I love the packaging because it’s a well-rounded palette to use and very travel-friendly.

Dim Light
Dim Light is a finishing powder that you can use all over the face. The lightest shade in the Unlocked palette was a bit too dark for underneath my eyes this one has that issue as well. Luckily, the shade Dim Light works nicely when I apply it to the rest of the face. I tend to do this with a big fluffy brush instead of a sponge. Dim Light gives a beautiful subtle glow to the skin and sets the skin without giving it the mattified look.

Diffused Light
This is also a finishing powder and absolutely perfect for my skin tone. I love this to set my concealer or the entire face. I do prefer it underneath the eyes though. It gives the skin the same luminosity and natural finish like Dim Light. It doesn’t emphasize dry areas whatsoever and gives a lit from within look. I do have to mention that I think that these are not suitable for oily skin since they are finishing powders and not setting powders. It works for my dry skin but I doubt it would keep any oils at bay.

Euphoric Strobe Light
This is a beautiful peachy-champagne highlighter with a glossy finish. Contrary to the shade Champagne Strobe Light in the Unlocked palette, Euphoric has a ‘regular’ Strobe highlighter formula whilst Champagne Strobe Light is a Metallic Strobe Highlighter. Hence why Euphoric is slightly more natural and less metallic in finish. However, it is perfect for everyday wear and has glossy-goodness.

Filtered Bronze Light
Filtered Bronze Light is an exclusive shade to the palette and also a new shade. This is the first shade with a marble effect and has quite a bit of shimmer in it. The bronzer in the Unlocked palette also has shimmer but not as much as this one. It is quite a warm toned bronzer and also very pigmented, so I, as a pale person, have to quite careful with this one, but the formula is absolutely beautiful, blends out like an absolute dream and the shimmer further enhances the natural glowy finish

Luminous Glow
This is the most beautiful coral shade. I wish I could show you how pretty this looks in real life because my pictures are not doing it any justice no matter the lighting. This one is very pigmented so you have to be careful whilst applying it but the formula is so easy to blend even when you go heavy handed.

Euphoric Fusion
This is another exclusive shade to this palette. It’s a bit too dark for me, so I tend to be extremely careful whilst applying this shade. It still blends out just as seamless as the other shades. I noticed that this blush is a bit more glowy than Luminous Glow and apparently Euphoric Fusion has a Strobe Blush formula, so I’m guessing that’s why.

Swatches

Application

Different Lighting

I was hesitant on buying the Volume 4 since it seemed so similar to the Unlocked palette. However, you can tell the difference when used on the face. If only I could show you! The colours may vary slightly but it’s the finishes and amount of pigment that do the trick. All of the shades seem a bit more pigmented, apart from the highlighter, without losing their amazing blendability. I think this will be my go-to palette for the winter whilst Unlocked will be better suited for spring/summer. I googled a bit and it seems that this palette is still available on Cult Beauty and Beautylish
What do you think about this palette? Will you buy it last-minute?
Lots of love and see you soon!