I noticed the other day that Sephora had added travel sizes of all of Hourglass's Ambient Lighting Powders to the selection, which seems, on the surface, like a good option if you have been considering trying one of them but not sure how much you'd like it. Previously they had Dim Light in this size, but not the others. They're $22, less than half the price of the full-size powder ($46).
But check this out: the full size contains 10 g/0.35 oz. of product and the travel size contains 1.4 g/0.049 oz.! So you get about 15% of the product for almost half the price? In other words, the regular powder is $131 per ounce and the mini is $449 per ounce. Um, no fucking thanks. I get that sometimes the price per ounce/gram isn't that important factor to consider if it's a bottle of nail polish or a lipstick that you think you'll never finish, but these are supposed to be everyday face powders that you presumably would use up and replace. It's worse than their holiday palette.
Just in case you ever doubted that the cost of the product itself makes up much less of the price than the cost of the packaging (not to mention arbitrary profit margins).
I noticed how tiny these things were a couple of weeks ago, but this post I saw while browsing the Makeup Rehab subreddit today inspired me to write about it.
(I've tried the ALPs from samples I got from So Choix, where you get five samples for $15. I wonder if that would come out to 1.4 g between the five, but I don't really have a way to weight and calculate that. I'd say I get at least a dozen uses per sample.)
Haha I love your post titles, they get me clicking every time. :) :) You always keep your blog honest, and you're very knowledgeable and break everything down, and I just wanted to say as a reader, I appreciate that and commend you for it, girl! Hourglass seems like a great brand, but I just don't think I would be drawn to them, even if I had the money to blow lol. Nothing from them seems innovative or interesting. Their face primer is meh, too. Thanks for always keeping it real! (I don't like that phrase, but ah, I just used it, I'm lame lol) xoxo
ReplyDeleteThank you for reading! I've been curious about the primer, but it's so expensive, and I've heard mixed reviews, so I've never tried it. So thanks for that!
DeleteNow that's what I call a headline! XD
ReplyDeleteHa, I wonder why I don't get press samples sent to me . . .
DeleteI remember there was a lot of hoopla when the first Ambient Lighting Edit palette came out for similar reasons - they contained a shockingly small amount of product for I think $80 USD. I don't love the ALPs, anyway!
ReplyDeleteI actually had the mini Dim Light in my cart for a minute before I figured this out, because it's kind of nice, but not THAT nice. I thought those holiday palettes were stupidly prices but these are almost twice as bad!
DeleteSo I actually purchased the travel size of Diffused light thinking it would be a good way to dip my toes in the Hourglass product without fully committing and I don't know if I just don't like the product but it's nothing. Like I don't notice any difference on my skin. I don't look airbrushed or anything and I don't see any subtle sheen in it. I found your blog cause I was searching for reviews on the travel size cause I didn't know if those are just duds and the full size is good. Might just send it back and give up lol.
ReplyDeleteI got a sample of Diffused Light from So Choix and it doesn't do anything for me either. I'd read that it's good for counteracting redness, but I don't see any difference. The only one I've tried so far that seems to have any effect is Dim Light, which seems to create that subtle airbrushed glow, but it's very, very subtle.
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