What I'm Not Buying: Hourglass Surreal Light Ambient Lighting Edit Palette

Hourglass has come out with another palette of their loved ambient lighting products for holiday 2016, and this one was the biggest disappointment of the season for me.

And I won't be buying.

The cost of this palette is a whopping $80 for .30 ounces of product. To put that in perspective, one full-sized Ambient Lighting Powder is $46 for .35 ounces of product.

So this Edit palette costs nearly double the price for less product than one full-sized powder.

According to Temptalia's review, the Edit palette contains $53.30 worth of product. For $80. That is one hell of an upcharge.

The palette contains:

• Surreal Light, an Ambient Lighting finishing power
• Surreal Glow, a blush 
• Surreal Effect, a blush 
• Surreal Bronze Light, a bronzer
• Surreal Strobe Light, a strobe (highlight) powder

There are a few things I would like to address.

Let's start with the positives.

I like the packaging. I've heard some people refer to it as "bathroom tile" packaging, but I personally really like the marble look to it, and I prefer it over the typical Hourglass packaging that quickly becomes covered in fingerprints.

I like that you get to sample so many different finishes within the Ambient Lighting line. You get a finishing power, blushes, a bronzer, and a highlighter. For the very few people this would work for, it would act as an excellent travel palette as you have everything in one small compact.

Now onto the negatives.

Frankly, this product is a blatant ripoff, and as a consumer and longtime fan of Hourglass, that tactic does not impress me.

Typically during the holiday season, brands will give customers a value with their seasonal offerings, with some claiming to be as high as a $350 value for $49. So it truly baffles me that Hourglass does the opposite. They give you a $53 value for $80. That I just cannot understand or support.

What is especially frustrating about this is that I absolutely love Hourglass products. My all-time favorite finishing powder is the Ambient Lighting Powder in Dim Light:

All-time favorite blush is Mood Exposure:

And all-time favorite bronzer is Luminous Bronze Light:

I love these products. I have used Dim Light daily (literally) since I purchased it, Luminous Bronze Light is by far my most used bronzer, and I wear Mood Exposure almost exclusively during the colder months (about half the year). 

I would have loved to own a travel palette from Hourglass so that I wouldn't have to carry these three large compacts with me, but I absolutely cannot justify the price. 

Another point worth mentioning is that I've heard reviewers say that the colors only work for very fair skin. That also is so disappointing. 

With all-in-one palettes, it can be difficult to figure out the right audience. The palette is either going to absolutely perfect for one specific skin tone only, or different parts of it will work for different people with all people being able to find something that works for them. The biggest problem with the second scenario is that most people won't be able to use the entire palette, only the parts that work for them. 

I honestly don't know which is better. In a perfect world, there would be complete palettes of the same idea that come in different classifications for different skin tones. It would be great if a palette such as this could come in a light, medium, and deep selection. But I am yet to see that from any brand. 

I do find it inherently obnoxious, however, that when brands do decide to go with the first scenario and make a palette perfect for one skin tone, it is always for a light one. I have a light-to-medium skin tone, and most of the shades in this palette wouldn't even show up on me, let alone the spectrum of medium and deep skin tones. 

The only value I could see in this palette is if you have the exact skin tone this palette has targeted and you personally find value in having your Hourglass powders in one compact. If you are willing to pay $80 for that convenience, this would probably interest you. 

But to me, it feels like a ripoff with no consideration for diversity, and I won't be buying.