The Hourglass Vanish Airbrush Pressed Powder in Translucent Tan ($54, 10.5g) is a sheer, vegan, cruelty-free, talc-free powder, and it partially lives up to the brand’s claims. I had difficulty finding reviews of this powder that went into much detail. It seemed that people either loved or hated it, but I couldn’t find much information about why. At this point, I’ve been using this powder for over 3 months, and I think it is ok. I’ve tested it during both summer high temperatures and, more recently, when it has been in the 20s at times. First, some background about me for context: I’m 42 and have dry, eczema-prone skin. My best foundation matches are Estee Lauder Double Wear in 4W4 Hazel and NARS Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation in Tahoe. The TL;DR is that the formula is fine, controls shine well, and works well for touch-ups, but other powders perform better for me for less money. Now, let’s get into the details. 🙂

The Hourglass Vanish Airbrush Pressed Powder mattifies without feeling dry, and I agree it minimizes imperfections. But for me, it doesn’t blur as claimed. In my opinion, any powder is going to minimize imperfections because that is what mattifying does (assuming it is not drying you out). So, I can agree that it does what a powder is supposed to do in that sense. However, I see more of a blurred effect when I use the NARS Light Reflecting Pressed Powder, especially when comparing how the two products look under my eyes. The Hourglass powder is non-drying, as the brand claims. Unfortunately, this looks drier under my eyes at the end of the day compared to the NARS Light Reflecting Pressed Powder and bareMinerals Mineral Veil Pressed Powder. It doesn’t cause much of an issue except in one instance (more on that later), but it is a noticeable difference to me.

This powder does cling to some dryness when used over the Natasha Denona Hy-Glam Concealer (reviewed here) and the Patrick Ta Major Skin Hydra-Luxe Luminous Foundation. In those instances, I was able to smooth it out eventually, but it is something that made this formula less reliable for me compared to other powders. I did not experience this powder clinging when I paired it with NARS Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation, L’oreal True Match Foundation, Lancome Care and Glow Serum Concealer, or the Lancome Teint Idole All Over Concealer. Despite my different pairings, I never felt like the Hourglass Pressed Powder smoothed over my pores as much as other powders. I already mentioned that I disagree with the claim of blurring, but the brand specifically calls out that the powder will minimize and blur the appearance of pores. Hourglass also says this will give an airbrushed finish, but compared to other powders I use (NARS Light Reflecting, bareMinerals Mineral Veil, NARS Soft Matte), it accentuates some of my texture more. When I pair this powder with the NARS Natural Radiant Longwear Foundation, my texture looks ok. You can see a comparison of me wearing Hourglass Vanish Airbrush Pressed Powder Translucent Tan vs NARS Light Reflecting Setting Powder Pressed Shore by clicking here.

It does pair better with the L’oreal True Match Foundation in terms of smoothing and sitting nicely over texture, but I think that has more to do with the foundation than the powder. This pairs well with the Lancome Serum Concealer, and I had no issues with how it looked under my eyes when worn together. The worst texture combination was with the Lancome Teint Idole All Over Concealer. When I tried to use the Hourglass Powder to set that concealer, it dried out and cracked as the day went on.

Hourglass claims that this powder doesn’t settle into fine lines. I agree, and that is my favorite thing about this powder. It keeps foundations and concealers in place very well. My biggest complaint about my go-to foundation, NARS Natural Radiant Longwear, is that it does sink into deeper wrinkles toward the end of the day. However, when I pair that foundation with the Hourglass Pressed Powder, there is minimal settling in those same wrinkles. I also enjoy the fact that I can use this powder both under my eyes and all over my face. However, I do prefer other powders for my under-eye area. When used for touch-ups, I use my powder brush to add a small amount to my nose and in the middle of my forehead. It mattifies any oil breakthrough without looking heavy. This happens more in warmer weather, but I don’t really need it in cold temperatures. This powder is sheer, so it doesn’t add much color, which helps. As you can see in the image at the beginning of this post, there is an included powder puff to make touching up on the go easy. I haven’t used it, so sorry I can’t give you any info on its functionality. As someone with dry skin, I don’t like puffs and sponges for powder because I feel like they apply it too heavily for my needs.

The Hourglass Vanish Airbrush Pressed Powder is $54 for 10.5g. Assuming this powder gets along with your chosen foundation and concealer, I think it could be a nice vegan, cruelty-free, talc-free option. However, it is too expensive to perform worse than other powders that I have.  The bareMinerals Mineral Veil is the most comparable powder I have since it is vegan, cruelty-free, talc-free, tinted, and has minimal coverage like the Hourglass. But it doesn’t accentuate my texture like the Hourglass and is $35 for 9g.  As I’ve mentioned, the NARS Light Reflecting Pressed Powder is more blurring and retails for $40 for 10g, and it is baked, which tends to make the product last longer. The NARS Soft Matte Powder is more mattifying and smoothing and costs $38 for 9g, although it has more coverage than Hourglass.  The NARS Soft Matte Powder also feels dry when I wear it, so that is something to keep in mind if you are considering it. Update April 7, 2025: The Hourglass Veil Translucent Loose Powder did perform better for me than this pressed powder. It smooths the appearance of texture better and adds a slight radiance. I talk about it more in my Most Surprising Products of 2022 post. To its credit, the Hourglass Pressed Powder is lightweight and comfortable to wear, and overall, it looks fine. I just personally think I look better wearing other products. I can’t say for sure, but I’d imagine that if you don’t consider yourself to have much texture, you may get along with this powder just fine.

---

Thanks for reading!

---

If you’d like to check out more of my content, here are some places to start. 

• Blush Index
• Brands A-Z
• Bronzer & Highlighter Index
• Brush Index
• Concealer Ranking
• Eyeshadow Index
• Foundation Round-Up
• Lipstick Index
• Makeup Storage and Organization Ideas
• My Favorite Makeup
• Powder Round-Up

Disclaimer:  I purchased all products featured with my own money.  This site receives a minimal commission from participating in the WordAds program and using affiliate links (marked with **).  For my full disclosure policy, click here.