Archived Post

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette Now Permanent!

Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette

A trio of our best-selling Ambient Lighting Powders. Powders capture, diffuse and soften the way light is reflected on skin, brighten the appearance, and conceal imperfections, pores and wrinkles. Unlike traditional finishing powders that use opaque pigments, Ambient utilizes Photoluminescent Technology—micron-size, soft-focus particles that refract light and create transparent coverage. The powders can be applied individually or layered to imbue skin with a multidimensional glow. Universal powders make them suitable for every skin tone, and they can be worn for day and night.  Now available at Sephora!

Ambient Lighting Palette ($58.00 U.S. / $67.00 CDN) (Permanent)

  • Dim Light A neutral peach beige powder that blurs imperfections and highlights a radiant complexion with a balance of warm and cool tones.
  • Incandescent Light A pearlescent powder that highlights the cheekbones and brightens the complexion with a celestial glow (Exclusive to palette)
  • Radiant Light A sun-kissed golden beige powder that enhances the overall complexion with believable, subtle warmth

Availability: Now @ hourglasscosmetics.com; April 15th @ sephora.com, June 2014 at other retailers, Sephora stores

83 Comments

Comments that do not adhere to our comment policy may be removed. Discussion and debate are highly encouraged but we expect community members to participate respectfully. Please keep discussion on-topic, and if you have general feedback, a product review request, an off-topic question, or need technical support, please contact us!

Please help us streamline the comments' section and be more efficient: double-check the post above for more basic information like pricing, availability, and so on to make sure your question wasn't answered already. Comments alerting us to typos or small errors in the post are appreciated (!) but will typically be removed after errors are fixed (unless a response is needed).

We appreciate enthusiasm for new releases but ask readers to please hold questions regarding if/when a review will be posted as we can't commit to or guarantee product reviews. We don't want to set expectations and then disappoint readers as even products that are swatched don't always end up being reviewed due to time constraints and changes in priorities! Thank you for understanding!

Comments on this post are closed.
Jenni Avatar

makes me wonder if the release last year was an ‘arranged’ “Limited Ed” release…coz on my radar there are a few brands who likes to do that…calling something “LE” and then not (and release them as permanent later)…

Stephanie | theFantasia Avatar

I’m so excited that Hourglass is bringing this palette back! I didn’t get a chance to pick it up the first time around, but it shows that they are listening to their customers! I think I’ll wait until the 20% sale later on this year to pick it up since the price difference between USD-CAD is so darn high!

kim Avatar

I have been trying to get this from Ebay since it came out but I refused to pay the outrageous prices people were paying. I ordered the palette as soon as I saw this. I cannot wait to get it!! Thanks so much

Danielle Avatar

I still have yet to try these powders because for a while I just wasn’t loving the way my skin looked powdered. But I have recently got back into it, so now I want to pick this up!

Lily Avatar

Ugh, I finally caved and bought radiant light during the sephora sale. I would have waited and bought this instead if I had known since I wanted dim light too. 🙁

Wwendalynne Avatar

I have this palette. I probably didn’t need it as I already had a few HG Ambient lighting singles. But I will say this: Dim totally rocks my boat!; the most believable of ‘colours’ in this range for my neutral skintone.. I’m about NC20-25 and it imparts a really natural looking ‘warmth’ without pulling orange or yellow. It looks phenomenal over a simple layer of tinted moisturizer and for the past week, this has been my quick and easy base.

Marissa Avatar

OMG wee OMG! (are about the only words I can form)

I missed out on this palette last year and was super bummed. I think it’s also a great Mother’s Day gift.

kjh Avatar

Miki: Can’t post on your blog via any of your choices. Good look. Just wanted to suggest a couple of products I have fond to be VERY effective in the war against acne, which I have been fighting for probably twice as long as you have been alive. Paula’s Choice BHA 2% liquid and BHA 9. Paula is right about the topical BHAs having the wrong pH to be effective (tried every expletive deleted high end and derm line, as well as topical ATBX {antibiotics}…not one helped at all) These products definitely eliminate the oxidation that makes the blackheads black, and over time, gets rid of whiteheads and way damps down the zits. Paula’s Choice only sells online. DO IT! Too bad for me that it took 40 years to get there (I didn’t have acne as a teenager….) I swear by these two, and the rest of the PC products I have tried are also good. But these two are must haves for the acne prone.

Jenn Avatar

So happy this is permanent! I already have mood and one that slips my mind but starts with an E I believe. After the holidays I realized it would have been the perfect combo and worth it since I don’t own either of them. Going to ask for this for Mother’s Day!

TLC Avatar

I am thrilled. I was looking for this at Sephora after Christmas, but they had sold out. I will definitely pick one up when it becomes available.

Lotus Avatar

How handy that these are coming back after I purchased every single one! Well, the incandescent light only comes with this so.. And it’s easy to have them all together.. Yes I want it but why not make a super palette containing ALL of them? Grrr…. Gimmicks… Perhaps they are but want more money on these first? How amazing to have all on one arm in a flip too secure case? Say hello to Christmas time.. Thanks for the update!

Lizzi Avatar

Lol! Now I feel silly for hunting this down at all the Sephoras in the Dallas area back in Nov. At least I can use it up with no guilt now.

Zia Avatar

Of course they make it available the day after the Sephora sale ends for me!!! I will have to consider buying it, but I seem to remember thinking I only liked two of the shades. I now already own one so… we’ll see 🙂 Glad it’s permanent though!

Elle Avatar

This is the best news EVER! I’m obsessed with my palette! I had to have it shipped to me from Barney’s in NYC last fall when Sephora sold out of it. It seriously changed my makeup game. Incandescent is the BEST highlight color I’ve ever used. I’M SO HAPPY!!

Raven Avatar

They are, but there is the LE shade, and you get to try 3 (slightly smaller sized) shades for just a bit more than the cost of a full single sized one.

Mariella Avatar

I’m so glad they’ve brought this palette back. As someone who rarely finishes a makeup product, the fact that these are smaller in size isn’t an issue for me and it’s a change to try 3 different powders at a more reasonable price than buying 3 individual pans. I’ve been iffy about the Ambient Light powders because the reviewers are so “hot and cold” and I am never sure which shade would work best for me so that’s another thing – trying 3 different ones for 3 different effect. During the previous Sephora discount event (not the most recent one), I wanted to buy this palette but it was sold out so I got UD’s Vice2 eyeshadow palette and that turned out to be a very lucky purchase. Now this one is back, so I’m a winner on 2 counts!

Jules Avatar

Yay! I missed this one the first time around. I was thinking of buying Ethereal Light at Sephora with my 15% of coupon, but then I decided against it – glad I did, because I think I’ll grab this instead!

Lotus Avatar

Oh, Jules! Ethereal Light is UNLIKE any colors in this! Please reconsider purchasing Ethereal if your budget allows? No, I don’t work for them, but Icollected them all Ambient Powders, and Ethereal is by far my favorite! (I’m super pale) No other product can dupe Ethereal’s perfecting skin finish. All are lovely! Enjoy whatever you do choose, but please google swatches and what each color is intended for because what Ethereal does is not included in this trio, though the trio is also an A+ To have! 😀

Adrienne Avatar

Sooo…I still don’t really understand how these powders work. I’m NC25….which one can I use? All of them? Are they all highlighters? Like, why would you need 3 highlighters in one palette? I am very puzzled lol!

Raven Avatar

I’m NC25 as well, and I LOVE this palette. I use Dim light (all over to set) and Radiant light (to contour my cheeks), with Incandescent as a highlight on my nose and under my brows. Ended up buying Mood Exposure during the last VIB sale because of how great the Ambient Palette is. And I NEVER wear blush, let alone a $40 one.

Bex Avatar

I’m sooooo glad they are bringing this back and making it permanent. Does anyone know if they are making this permanent in the UK?

I hope they do the same with there new ambient blushers as well as that would be very useful for travelling and versatile.

StrangeOne Avatar

I have diffused light and I’m not the world’s biggest fan. I’m not sure it does anything for me. Maybe these would work better.

Jennie Avatar

Wee! I was going to get Luminous Light during the last sale, but it looked too dark on me, so I got the Laura Mercier highlighter instead. Now this just seems like a higher being wants me to buy the Hourglass Ambient Lighting powders. And who am I to argue with a higher being?

Eve Avatar

I was wayyy too excited when I saw this post. I just ordered mine!! I was so ridiculously sad to have missed out first time around. And during the vib sale I bought and fell in love with luminous light, so glad that shade isn’t in this palette. Can’t wait to get my hands on it 🙂

EvilStepQueen Avatar

I was kicking myself for missing out on it during the holidays! I had just put in an order, recently, for one of the highlighting blushes (it should be here today!) and like 2 days later they announce the palette is back in stock. So the UPS man will be at my house a couple times in the next few days! I’m so excited!!

Ashley Avatar

As soon as I saw your twitter post I went online and purchased it. I wasn’t all that interested before but then I couldn’t pass up a great deal. I’ve never tried or owned any of these so this should be a great starter kit!

We try to approve comments within 24 hours (and reply to them within 72 hours) but can sometimes get behind and appreciate your patience! 🙂 If you have general feedback, product review requests, off-topic questions, or need technical support, please contact us directly. Thank you for your patience!