Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette ($58)

The days are shorter, the air is drier and my complexion is really taking a hit.  So what’s a girl to do if she wants to breathe some life back into her skin?

Hourglass came onto the scene and made a big splash with their color-correcting, illuminating Ambient Lighting Powders.  They give skin a soft, candlelit glow that conceals imperfection and makes even tired skin (like my, oh-aren’t-I-lucky-I-slept-four-hours-last-night face) look vibrant and alive.

In this palette, you receive three nearly-full-size powders: Incandescent Light (a complexion brightener), Dim Light (my favorite–blurs unevenness, tiredness into a soft finish) and Radiant Light (a warm powder to give you just a kiss of natural-looking bronzy glow).

I use the Dim Light powder every day under my eyes and as a highlighter.  I also use the Radiant Light as a lighter alternative to contouring powder.  And I use Incandescent Light on those days, like yesterday, when sleep is elusive and my skin has that lovely Crypt Keeper quality to it.  That’s hot.  (I also own a separate Mood Light, which is a pink glow that I apply when I need to reboot my makeup before going out at night.)

Hourglass recommends that you use this large, fluffy brush designed to ensure that the “makeup performs at its full potential.”  Frankly, that’s a bit more pretension that I like from my makeup manufacturer.  I use this $5 Avon Kabuki brush that I bought to apply bronzer.

If you need a drugstore highlighter that compares, I really don’t know of any powder that smooths imperfections the way this one does.  I’m not exaggerating when I say that my experience is like having Photoshop for real life.  However, there are a couple of similar products that I have used in the past and can recommend.

The first is Physician’s Formula Mineral Wear Corrector (just blends and smooths everything while correcting for redness and sallowness).  The second is actually from Wet n’ Wild, which is really hit or miss, but their Color Icon Bronzer in the shade Reserve Your Cabana is a great alternative for Radiant Light.  I bought it to use on other people when I do makeup for friends, and when you put the two products side by side, they’re pretty similar.