This month I am CRAZY ABOUT CREAMS. Stay tuned for some of my favorite cream makeup products all throughout January.
First, happy hump day to ya. Second, here are a couple fun facts about the $62 Hourglass Illume Trio in Sunset (you know, to get you ready for Makeup Final Jeopardy!).
Like the name implies, it’s a trio. It has a cream bronzer, a blush and a highlighter, and the first time it launched was back in 2010 (my gosh, have I really been writing about makeup that long?). Back then, it was only a duo, and it was $40 instead of $62. It came with just a cream blush and a bronzer in some fun-kay packaging. It had a different logo and this huge swivel mirror that you could turn 360 degrees around.
The new version looks totally different on the outside (no more cray-cray mirror), and now that it’s a trio, it also comes with the cream highlighter.
Quality-wise, I think the trio is just as good as the O.G. duo, and yes, I still have one of the original duos because I am Marie Kondo’s freakin’ nightmare, and I’ve kept it around because I’m a hoarder.
What can I say? I don’t use it anymore…although I probably could. It doesn’t smell or look funny (which is my totally unscientific way of determining if I need to throw something out).
Anyway, the colors in the current trio version are similar to the colors in the O.G. one. You get the same medium peach blush and warm golden bronze, but now you also get a pearly golden beige highlighter.
You know, as pricey as Hourglass products are, the brand does flawless creams (see: their cream stick foundation, which is EPIC), and I love this trio for the same reasons I loved the original Sunset. First, the creams apply seamlessly and actually stay put. These aren’t the types of creams that just slide right off. And second, the bronzer isn’t muddy. Bonus: All three of the colors pull together effortlessly.
I love how natural my cheeks look when I wear this, and it really doesn’t matter what type of base coverage I’m rocking on any given day (sheer, medium, full, whatever!) or eyeshadows I’m wearing. These matte shades work with anything and everything.
When you feel these creams on your fingers, you’ll notice that they have a slightly thicker consistency than most cream blushes and bronzers (so they have more “teeth” than thinner products like the MAC Cream Colour Bases and the MAC Paint Pots), and that extra oomph helps them adhere closely to the skin.
Despite that, these creams still marvelously merge with whatever products you apply them on top of, so you don’t see any edges once you’ve blended them in. The creams have just the right amount of “fade” to them, and all it takes is a light dab using your fingers, a brush or sponge.
SO GOOD.
Granted…for $62, this trio better be all that and a bag of TJ’s Cheese Crunchies! Thankfully, it totally is. I could wear this day in, day out and not be left wanting something else.
Oh, and if you happen to have the Ambient Lighting Powder in Mood (the light lavender shade), by the way, the Sunset trio looks GORGEOUS with a few sweeps of Mood dusted lightly on top of your upper cheekbones.
Welcome, Wednesday!
If it’s also raining where you are, be careful on the roads. Also, don’t forget to wear waterproof mascara today, which reminds me… I’m a little panicked because I think my favorite waterproof mascara, Urban Decay Cannonball, might have been discontinued… RUH-ROH! It’s out of stock in a lot of places, and Sephora says there’s only a few left.
Dang! Why are all the good things always phased out?!
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
