Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick Review / Swatches

Hourglass are such a super hyped brand within the beauty community and after falling in love with the Hourglass No 28 Primer Serum, I’ve made it my mission to try more from the brand. I’ve heard so many amazing things about the Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick but I was put off trying it as my skin’s so dry and I had flashbacks of using the Max Factor Pan Stick back at school which made me look terrible but curiosity got the better of me and I finally ordered the Hourglass Foundation Stick from Cult Beauty. 

The Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick is pricey at £42 for 7.2 grams but from the many reviews I’ve read, and videos I’ve watched, a little goes a long way so you need less than you’d need from a typical liquid foundation. There are an impressive 32 different shades to choose from, and after looking at swatches online I decided the palest shade Blanc would probably be the best shade match.

I was really worried about the shade match though as I feel like you can’t mix a solid foundation stick with Lightening Drops like you can with a liquid foundation but I had everything crossed that Blanc would work for me. I tend to stay away from stick foundations as they’re notorious for being quite drying, but the Hourglass Primer Serum has been such a game changer for my makeup and even the most super matte foundation can work on my skin when used with the Primer Serum so I hoped the Foundation Stick would too.

“An award winning revolutionary foundation stick with the coverage of a concealer, the fluidity of a liquid, and the weightlessness of a powder in a longwearing waterproof formula for undetectable full coverage.

The unprecedented concentration of pigment in this foundation provides maximum coverage with minimum product, concealing all discoloration and imperfections for flawless skin with a seamless finish.“

• A foundation and concealer in one, this concentrated formula contains double the amount of pigment versus traditional foundations for instant coverage in one application. 
• Long wearing, waterproof formula provides 12 hour coverage. 
• Innovative formula adjusts to your body temperature to effortlessly blend into the skin. 
• Designed specifically to be used with the Vanish™ Seamless Finish Foundation Brush for the most seamless finish. 
• Available in 32 shades to perfectly match every skin tone. 
• Vegan 

Every single Hourglass product I own is beautifully packaged, but wow the Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick is beautiful. It is packaged within a metallic, triangular prism tube with a twist up mechanism and it feels a lot weightier than I imagined.

It definitely looks and feels like an highend foundation, and I can’t help but feel fancy when using it. I know packaging isn’t important as it’s all about the formula, but if you can get pretty, functional packaging that’s even better. 

I’ve included two swatches for you – one is a single swipe of the stick on my unprimed skin, and the other is a single swipe on my unprimed skin blended in so you can see the colour before and after blending. The unblended swatch looks quite warm in tone, but as you can see in the blended swatch it manages to work for my cool toned skin and the shade matches my super pale skin perfectly which really surprised me.

I don’t have to use any lightening drops at all which is so rare for me but I’m so pleased as I knew drops would be difficult with a solid stick format. Hourglass describe Blanc as being “fairest, cool undertone” which I feel is a pretty fair description even if it does look a little warm prior to blending.

As the swatch above shows, the stick is very pigmented with almost a fully opaque swipe which goes to show how pigment rich the foundation is. I always use it alongside the Primer Serum and ‘draw’ a small swipe on my forehead, cheeks, chin and nose and then blend it in with a dampened beautyblender. I’ve tried the foundation stick with different brushes but in my opinion it’s best suited to a beauty sponge. 

I knew that by buying this foundation there was a big chance it wouldn’t work for my dry and dehydrated skin as many stick foundations cling to my dry patches and that does definitely happen if I use it with any other primer. I can’t use it with my other favourite primer; the Too Faced Hangover Primer or primers like the Benefit POREfessional as it does cause issues with my dry patches, but it works amazingly well with the Hourglass Primer Serum.

I tend to use a £1 coin sized amount of the primer before applying this foundation and they are the perfect duo. The foundation offers fantastic coverage whilst still looking like skin, and it wears really well throughout the day without breaking up or looking cakey and dry. It’s the best stick foundation I’ve tried thus far and I will repurchase as soon as I run out, and I’m so pleased I gave it a try as I’m a big, big fan. 

You can purchase the Hourglass Vanish Seamless Finish Foundation Stick from Cult Beauty.

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