I have mixed feelings about the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Dim Light. Don't get me wrong - I love that it smooths the appearance of my pores and evens out my skin tone but I don't think the effect is remarkably better than a typical finishing powder, let alone to justify the $45 price tag.

Texture alone, the powder is wonderfully finely milled and I love that it doesn't contain shimmer, talc, parabens, or fragrance (unlike the Guerlain Meteorites). But I just don't see the illuminating aspect of it. It claims to "not simply cloak imperfections like traditional powder, but rather... Deliver a multidimensional luminescence to every skintone, skin appears softer, younger, and lit-from-within." It didn't give my skin any luminescence (it actually makes my skin appear darker and even a little muddy), lit-from-within appearance (it looks very flat in comparison to the Guerlain Meteorites), and it doesn't make my skin look younger (if built up, it does have the tendency to look cakey). I also found that while the Revlon Nearly Naked powder mattified my skin, it actually smoothed over the appearance of my pores better than this did.

When swatched on the arm, Dim Light looks like my skin tone but when applied on my NC25-30 face, it makes my face look slightly darker, pinker, and frankly a little unnatural. I have to apply it with the lightest hand to make it look natural but I do love using it with Korean BB Creams as they are lighter than me. 

As you can see, I'm a little torn about this. I love the smoothing effect it gives but its darker, pinker, more pigmented color makes my skin look unnatural and flat compared to the the universal, fresh, natural, soft, lifting effect of the Guerlain Meteorites. In fact, trying out this finishing powder has only made me realize how beautiful of an effect the Meteorites give my skin and how blurring a typical setting powder can be. While I like using it, I ultimately feel that these fell flat for me and I was honestly very afraid to admit that for two weeks due to the overwhelming hype surrounding these products.

                                    Price: $45, sephora.com, hourglasscosmetics.com
                                    Pigmentation: Sheer neutral peach beige

                                    Texture: Smooth, finely milled, a little powdery

                                    Pros: subtle pearl finish for an all over powder; evens out skintone; finely                              
                                    milled;no shimmer, talc, parabens, or fragrance
                                    Cons: Darkens up my skintone; doesn't illuminate; can accentuate pores if 
                                    not applied lightly; expensive; a little unnatural looking; bulky, plastic 
                                    packaging (a la Physician's Formula)

                                    Overall: B+, Though these are meant as universal powders that create your 
                                    own light, I've found that much of the description is a marketing ploy. These 
                                    deliver sheer color that is appears on the skin so color selection becomes key. 
                                    The effect of these is smoothing out pores and evening out the skintone but is 
                                    subtle at the best. Dim Light doesn't have any illuminating properties and 
                                    made my skin look darker and as though I was wearing makeup.

First, here it is applied on top of a dewy base (Missha Perfect Cover BB Cream #23).

Second, here it is applied over a matte base (Covergirl Outlast 3-in-1 Foundation).

A review of Luminous Light and a comparison between these and similar products are coming shortly.