HOURGLASS PALETTES 2026: HOPE vs LUCK vs WISH
Three palettes. Six pans each. One rather difficult decision.
The Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked palettes are back for 2026 in Hope, Luck and Wish. Each limited edition face palette brings together finishing powder, bronzer, highlighter and blush, with five NEW shades alongside one bestselling finishing powder. That makes 15 NEW Ambient Lighting shades across the trio.
The details have had an upgrade too. Hourglass has partnered with Parisian jewellery designer Lauren Rubinski, swapping the artwork-led designs of previous years for metal charms inspired by her jewellery. Wish gets a four-leaf clover, Hope a heart-shaped key and Luck an upside-down horseshoe. Consider your makeup bag accessorised.
But pretty packaging only gets us so far. The real question is which palette works best for your complexion, undertone and makeup routine. With a little insider guidance from our buyers, plus a closer look at every shade, here’s how Hope, Luck and Wish compare.
In This Article:
- What Makes the Hourglass Palettes Different?
- Which Hourglass Palette Suits Your Skin Tone and Undertone?
- Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked in Wish
- Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked in Hope
- Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked in Luck
- What Does Each Powder in the Hourglass Palette Actually Do?
- Will Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders Emphasise Texture?
- How to Apply the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked Palettes
- Do You Need the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Brush?
- Quick Questions About the Hourglass Palettes
What Makes the Hourglass Palettes Different?
This year, it's all in the details.
Rather than focusing on artwork across the compacts, Hourglass has partnered with French jewellery designer Lauren Rubinski on a different metal charm for each palette. Wish features a four-leaf clover, Luck a horseshoe and Hope a heart-shaped key.
Each palette also includes five NEW shades, so there is plenty here even if an Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked already has a place in your makeup drawer.
For more on the brand and its signature formulas, take a look at our 101 Guide to Hourglass.
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Which Hourglass Palette Suits Your Skin Tone and Undertone?
Need the quick version? Here’s where to start.
Hourglass Wish
Wish is the lightest of the three palettes and a good starting point for lighter skin tones. Its colour story leans warmer, with bronze, peach, rose and softly mauve tones.
Shade to know: Strobe Lighting Powder in 'Moonstone Glow', a soft pink and light champagne pearl.
Hourglass Hope
Hope sits in the middle of the trio and is a good starting point for medium skin tones. Expect rosier, more neutral shades spanning dusty rose, plum and muted bronze.
Shade to know: Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Rose Quartz', a muted neutral plum.
Hourglass Luck
Luck is the deepest of the three palettes and a good starting point for deeper skin tones. Its richer colour story moves through mauve, terracotta, raspberry and cool bronze.
Shade to know: Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Orchid Flush', a terracotta peach and raspberry pink mélange.
Skin depth is a useful starting point, but it doesn’t need to make the whole decision for you. If two palettes look promising, compare the bronzer and blush tones with the colours you already reach for most.
Even if you know your exact foundation shade, there isn’t a one-to-one conversion that tells you which Hourglass palette to buy. You’re choosing several finishing, bronzing, highlighting and blush tones rather than trying to find an exact base match.
For lighter skin tones, Wish is our starting point. Its 'Diffused Light' Finishing Powder is a warm pale yellow, while 'Ethereal Bronze' is a soft warm bronze. Add rose-apricot, desert rose and neutral mauve blush tones and the overall colour story leans warmer, peachier and rosy rather than cool.
For medium skin tones, look to Hope. Its mix feels rosier and more neutral, pairing a soft pale peach finishing powder with a muted neutral bronze, dusty rose, neutral plum and a lilac-champagne Strobe Lighting Powder.
For deeper skin tones, Luck brings the richest tones of the trio. Think rich plum, terracotta peach, raspberry pink, cool rosy mauve and a matte, cool rich bronze, finished with a bronzed-apricot Strobe Lighting Powder.
Hope or Wish: Which Should You Choose?
If there’s one pairing causing the most head-scratching, it’s this one.
Wish is lighter and generally warmer, thanks to 'Diffused Light', warm 'Ethereal Bronze' and shades including rose-apricot 'Pink Aura'.
Hope sits a little deeper and feels rosier and more neutral, with dusty rose, neutral plum, soft lilac-champagne and muted neutral bronze in the mix.
Have a neutral or olive undertone? Pay particularly close attention to this difference. If peach, warm bronze and apricot usually make it into your makeup bag, start with Wish. More at home in rose, plum and neutral bronze? Hope may have your name on it.
No need to let your foundation shade make the entire decision for you.
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked in Wish
First up, Wish, the lightest of the three 2026 palettes.
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If your makeup drawer naturally fills up with warm bronzes, peachy pinks and softly rosy tones, this is the one we’d inspect first.
What Shades Are in the Hourglass Wish Palette?
Wish contains:
Ambient Lighting Finishing Powder in 'Diffused Light', a warm pale yellow Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder in 'Moonstone Glow', a soft pink and light champagne pearl Ambient Lighting Bronzer in 'Ethereal Bronze', a soft warm bronze Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Mauve Flush', a muted neutral mauve Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Pink Aura', a rose apricot Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Desert Rose', a soft desert rose
The shade getting our attention is 'Moonstone Glow'. Its pink-champagne tone makes a particularly pretty finishing touch when you want light without taking the rest of the complexion into overly frosted territory.
And yes, the four-leaf clover charm feels appropriately lucky. We’ll take it.
Wish in a nutshell: start here if you want the lightest palette and tend to gravitate towards warm bronze, peach, rose and softly mauve tones.
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked in Hope
Next comes Hope, which is recommended for medium skin tones.
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If Wish has a warmer, peachier feel, Hope moves things into rosier, more neutral territory.
What Shades Are in the Hourglass Hope Palette?
Hope contains:
Ambient Lighting Finishing Powder in 'Soft Light', a soft pale peach Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Brilliant Pink', a vibrant rose and soft pink mélange Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Soft Rosewood', a dusty rose Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder in 'Luminous Opal', a soft lilac and muted champagne pearl Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Rose Quartz', a muted neutral plum Ambient Lighting Bronzer in 'Sunlit Bronze', a muted neutral bronze
The one calling our name is 'Rose Quartz', a muted neutral plum. It was also the shade that tipped our buyer firmly into Team Hope:
“I would personally choose Hope as I love the design and the Rose Quartz blush is calling to me.”
We see the vision.
Hope in a nutshell: look here if you prefer rosy, plum and more neutral complexion tones, with a bronzer that is less overtly warm than Wish.
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked in Luck
Completing the trio is Luck, the deepest of the three palettes.
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This one turns up the depth and contrast with richer mauves, terracotta, raspberry and bronze.
What Shades Are in the Hourglass Luck Palette?
Luck contains:
Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Radiant Mauve', a rich plum Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder in 'Topaz Glow', a shimmer bronzed apricot Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Orchid Flush', a terracotta peach and raspberry pink mélange - Ambient Lighting Finishing Powder in 'Eternal Light'
Ambient Lighting Blush in 'Soft Dahlia', a cool rosy mauve Ambient Lighting Bronzer in 'Velvet Bronze', a matte, cool rich bronze
Our standout is 'Orchid Flush', where terracotta peach meets raspberry pink. Also worth knowing: 'Velvet Bronze' is the only bronzer of the three that Hourglass explicitly describes as matte and cool-toned, which may make Luck particularly interesting if very warm bronzers tend to be a miss for you.
And the upside-down horseshoe? The design represents good fortune being shared outwards with others. Beauty with good intentions.
Luck in a nutshell: the deepest palette, with richer blush tones and a cool, matte bronzer bringing something noticeably different to the trio.
What Does Each Powder in the Hourglass Palette Actually Do?
Six pans, four different jobs. Here’s the quick briefing.
Ambient Lighting Finishing Powder
Think of this as the last step rather than another layer of foundation. Ambient Lighting Finishing Powder is dusted over the face at the end of your complexion routine, creating a softly luminous, soft-focus finish. It isn’t the same as a traditional setting powder and isn’t designed to add significant coverage.
Ambient Lighting Bronzer
Bronzer adds warmth and dimension. Sweep it around the temples, hollows of the cheeks and jawline. The exact tone varies between palettes, which is worth checking if bronzers have a habit of turning too orange or too grey on you. Wish's 'Ethereal Bronze' is warm, Hope's 'Sunlit Bronze' is neutral and Luck's 'Velvet Bronze' is a cool rich bronze with a matte finish.
Ambient Lighting Blush
Blush brings colour to the cheeks, but the 2026 palettes give you plenty of room to play. Wish moves between mauve, apricot and rose, Hope explores pink, rosewood and plum and Luck takes things richer with plum, terracotta, raspberry and cool mauve.
Ambient Strobe Lighting Powder
This is your targeted light. Apply Strobe Lighting Powder to the high points of the face, including the tops of the cheeks, bridge of the nose and brow bone. 'Moonstone Glow' is pink-champagne, 'Luminous Opal' introduces lilac-champagne tones and 'Topaz Glow' goes warmer and deeper with bronzed apricot.
Will Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders Emphasise Texture?
The Ambient Lighting formulas are designed to diffuse light and create a soft-focus finish rather than a flat matte effect.
If visible texture is something you prefer not to draw attention to, start light and build. Use finishing powder in a sheer layer and keep Strobe Lighting Powder targeted to the areas where you actively want more luminosity.
No need to introduce every pan to every inch of your face.
How to Apply the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Unlocked Palettes
Hourglass has a job for every powder, but you certainly don’t need to use all six every morning.
For the full routine:
Finish: dust the finishing powder over the face as the final step of your complexion makeup.Bronze: sweep bronzer around the temples, hollows of the cheeks and jawline.Blush: apply to the apples of the cheeks and blend.Highlight: tap Strobe Lighting Powder onto the high points of the face.
Keeping things minimal? Choose one or two. Want the full works? Layer away.
That flexibility is also why these palettes make sense beyond special occasions. One compact can move from a little blush and finishing powder on a low-key day to a more layered complexion when the mood calls for it.
For more on the formulas behind the palette, take a look at our 101 Guide to Hourglass or explore the full Hourglass Ambient Lighting range.
Do You Need the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Edit Brush?
Need? No. Nice pairing? Absolutely.
The 2026 Ambient Lighting Edit Brush II is double-ended, with a slanted head for blush and bronzer and a domed, tapered end for highlighter. It’s designed to work alongside the palettes, but if you already own powder, blush and highlighting brushes you love, there’s no rule saying they need replacing.
There are three designs at Cult Beauty:
Wish has the four-leaf clover charm. Luck has the horseshoe charm. Love has a heart charm and is the brush designed to complement Hope.
Mystery solved.
Quick Questions About the Hourglass Palettes
Is Hourglass Wish warmer than Hope?
Overall, Wish has more obvious warm cues, including a warm pale yellow finishing powder, soft warm bronzer and rose-apricot blush. Hope combines a pale peach finishing powder with neutral bronze, dusty rose, plum and lilac-champagne tones, giving it a rosier, more neutral feel.
Which Hourglass palette has the coolest bronzer?
Luck contains Ambient Lighting Bronzer in 'Velvet Bronze', a matte, cool rich bronze. Hope's 'Sunlit Bronze' is muted and neutral, while Wish's 'Ethereal Bronze' is warm.
Is Hourglass Ambient Lighting Finishing Powder the same as setting powder?
No. Ambient Lighting Finishing Powder is used as a final complexion step to create a soft-focus, luminous finish, rather than simply functioning as a traditional setting powder.
Can you use the Hourglass palettes without the Ambient Lighting Edit Brush?
Yes. The double-ended Ambient Lighting Edit Brush II is designed to complement the palettes, but you can use your existing complexion brushes too. A larger powder brush works well for finishing powder, while smaller or more tapered brushes give you greater control with blush and highlighter.
Still deciding? Compare Hope, Luck and Wish with the wider Hourglass palette range, including the brand's complexion and eye palettes.
