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Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders | Luminous, Ethereal & Diffused Light {review}

2/11/2015

2 Comments

 
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Hello world! For the past few months my life has been crazy busy. Even though I have exams and deadlines looming, it actually feels good to just take a step back and write something up. I really should be doing other things that are of higher priority though. 

If you've been reading my blog for a while you know that I am obsessed with powder products and one of the best I've come across are the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders. When I bought mine they cost a pretty penny at AU$56 for 10g of product; now the price has jumped to a hefty AU$66...yikes. Hopefully my own two cents - amongst many many others - of the three I own will help you work out which one you want and which will be worth your hard earned money.

Hourglass describes these as "...universal setting powders that feature cutting edge technology to mimic the effects of the most flattering types of light..." which for the most part is true. These are expensive finishing powders that enliven skin according to the different shades available. I am a huge advocate for subtle highlighting and healthy looking skin; my own skin tone is incredibly dull and sallow so I find that the Ambient Powders work wonders for me. 

It looks like I haven't even touched them but I promise I use these very often, there is quite a bit of product to get through. Packaging wise, they come in pretty plastic compacts which are quite fingerprint prone. Don't count on the powders being intact if you drop them; the case is kind of bulky, not shock absorbent. 
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The textures of these powders are so ridiculously soft, but have little to no flyaway. You don't mindlessly waste product because it's just that hard to overdo with the subtlety these babies give. Keep in mind they aren't marketed as anything oil-controlling and are tinted, so they will change the final affect your base 
makeup has accordingly, in the best way possible of course.
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Ethereal Light - "opalescent sheer, cool white" 

This is a very light, bone shaded powder which I use as an all over finishing powder. Ethereal has the least shimmer, blurs unevenness and helps my skin have a smoother overall appearance. I use this one most often and there is actually a small dent in the powder which I'm overly pleased to report. Ethereal applies easily with most of my powder brushes, but I love using Zoeva's 101 Luxe Face Definer to softly sweep this on.

​Even though Ethereal is very sheer, it does lighten my skin tone a teeny bit, thus making it not very ideal for anyone with a deeper skin tone than medium as it has the potential to wash out the natural depth of your skin. I find that this isn't a very "cool" toned powder,  it is more brightening. Honestly, that's why I love it. 

Rating: 4.5/5
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Diffused Light -  “soft, warm pale yellow"

​I adore Diffused. It has a very similar effect to Ethereal, but the touch of very pale yellow really enlivens my skin, especially on all the highpoints of my face and under eye area. I wear glasses 24/7 and using Diffused just brings out the best in my features. There is no noticeable sheen or shimmer when lightly applied onto skin. This also subtly neutralises a some discolouration around my eye area. 


I use the Morphe G5 brush to apply it to the under eye area, around the temples, on my forehead and bridge of nose. Depending on your preference you could use any highlighting or powder brush. If you're looking for a non cakey powder that is brightening without highlighting, evens out skin tone, prolongs wear time for another half hour or so, and gives a wonderfully natural luminescence to the look of your skin, Diffused is for you. 

​Rating: 5/5
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Luminous Light - "champagne pearl"

​Before Luminous, I was all about heavy highlighting (i.e. Mary-Lou Manizer gave me life). However, since I started interning and working in white-collar environments, I've come to appreciate glowing and healthy skin. Luminous Light was my first foray into softly lit skin and I could not be happier using this as an everyday highlighter.

Although it's one of the more tinted powders in the range as a light beige peach, once applied onto skin it melts in and just gives luminosity. It's a bit more than a sheen and ya just look healthy afterwards. I love using Zoeva's 105 Luxe Highlight for this as my fan brushes are usually reserved for the more striking highlighters. Stunnniinngggg. 

Rating: 5/5 
2 Comments

Definitely On A Spending Ban Now {haul}

2/9/2015

5 Comments

 
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I am terrible with my finances, but also a really good consumer. So hoping I can get through the next few weeks without buying more makeup. Here's the list of some pretty new things I've accumulated over the passed month or so. This doesn't even include the new clothes and accessories and backup skincare. Yes, my wallet is crying, and very light. 


Nars Blush in Sin 

Sleek Blushers in Antique, Coral, Suede, Sunrise, Flamingo, Rose Gold & Flushed 

Dior Cosmopolite Face Illuminator 

Laura Mercier Baked Highlighter 
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MAC Warm Neutrals Palette 

MAC Paint Pot in Painterly 

MAC Vanilla Pigment Sized To Go 

Too Faced Shadow Insurance in Original & Champagne (deluxe sample sizes) 

Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow in Midnight Brown 

Burberry Cream Eyeshadow in Pink Heather 

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre's in Illusoire & Emervielle 

Morphe Single Eyeshadows in Deep Skin, Secretive & Bridesmaid

Inglot Gel Eyeliner in 90 

Inglot Eyeshadows (I don't actually remember which ones I got to complete the palette, but there were about 8 or so new additions) 

Bobbi Brown Telluride Eye Palette 
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L'Oreal Infallible 24 Hr Matte Foundation in 20 Sand

Nars Sheer Glow Foundation in Fiji 

MAC Strobe Cream Sized To Go 

MAC Oil Control Lotion Sized To Go 

OM She Pure Magic Primer 

Natio Glow Skin Brightening Face Balm 

Nuxe Reve De Miel Lip Balm 

OGX Kukui Hydrating Oil 

Essence Lip Liners in Satin Mauve, In The Nude & Red Blush 

Luk Beautifood Lip Nourish in Tea Rose (won in a giveaway) 
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Inglot 14 Brush Travel Set 

Zoeva Luxe Complete Set 

Morphe Gunmetal Brushes in G5 & G8



Definitely going to start saving for the holiday gift sets now. xx
5 Comments

Makeup Brush Storage | Small SpacesĀ 

16/8/2015

3 Comments

 
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If you know me, you know that I'm the kind of person who loves a constant change in scenery; especially when it comes to my makeup collection. In foresight, continually purging my collection and "upgrading" in brand names and packaging quality is probably a very bad monetary decision. More on this later. Today's post draws attention to how I store my brush collection which has been purged recently. 

I am going to start investing in more high end brushes - eventually - but; (a) they're so expensive, I'm still smarting over a $38 brush from Illamasqua that I never use but I can't seem to let go, and (b) I really should go on a spending ban because over the last two months I have spent over $1000 on beauty products alone...
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Honestly, I'm not entirely satisfied with any of these containers, yet they are functional and somewhat visually appealing. They just don't match is all. I had a few other containers before, but changed them around because these allowed my drawers to actually slide out the whole way, as you can see in the bottom image. My brushes pretty much consist of Zoeva, Inglot, Models Prefer, a couple from Morphe and Jessup, one Illamasqua brush, one ELF, one Real Techniques blush brush and a small handful of Ovonni brushes. 

I keep my main girls in this really pretty candle holder. These are pretty much all the face brushes I use within a week and some extra. Excessive, but clean. I learnt the hard way that using dirty brushes continually are awful for my [anyones] skin. 
This cute tin that once held tea has become the resident eye and brow brush holder. It has an elliptical circumference and slides perfectly into the space between the storage and the wall. Just so you know, my makeup area is literally some storage shelves within my closet. I have to make the most of what ever space I have so clean outs happen more often then the normal beauty obsessed person would allow. 

The blue container is actually a relic from my younger years. It's a pen container that spins quite well and houses all my other face brushes that I don't use often or are back up brushes. 

This collection may seem too much for one face, but I love brushes and once had over 80 odd brushes or so. This set up is very manageable and functional, which is the way I like it. Until I start replacing some with higher quality brushes, I don't think this collection will be changing any time soon. 
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    A. Tran



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