Glowy, not rosy.

This post is part of Backlog Beauty, a series of beauty reviews I should've published last year or the year before that but I didn't or wasn't able to. Most of the beauty products I'll be reviewing in Backlog Beauty are from previous collections that may or may not be available anymore.

When it comes to finishing powders, I personally still find Hourglass' Ambient Lighting Powders superior. The Ambient Lighting Palette was a game-changer and for good reason- the powders are so soft and silky and they give such a beautiful soft-focus look and glow to the skin. I was skeptical about finishing powders before but this palette converted me.

However, the Ambient Lighting Palette? She's an expensive one. The only reason why I was able to try the palette out was because my sister splurged and got herself one. So really, the MVP of the story here is my sister haha! In all fairness, this palette is worth the splurge- I just can't see myself splurging that much on it. And that's pretty much why at some point in my life, I became invested in getting a cheaper dupe for this one, specifically a dupe for my fave shade, Incandescent Light. I'm highly aware that the quality won't be the same but I'd like to try anyway. So here's my maybe dupe: NARS Blush in Nico.

Just like other single pan NARS products, the blush comes in the classic matte black NARS packaging which also includes a mirror. Unfortunately since it's very hot here in the PH and I stored it in a drawer with no ventilation, the packaging disintegrated on me. The rubber melted in some areas making some parts of the packaging crumble. I know it doesn't look like it but trust me, the mirror flap's barely hanging on to the bottom part of the palette haha! Fortunately, the blush itself is still intact. But yeah, that's my main issue with NARS' rubber packaging. Same thing happened to my nail polishes too. :(

Nico is described as a warm light-medium beige with a pearl finish. When I first saw it, I honestly thought that it was a face powder so I was pretty surprised when I read that it was a blush. There's no way Nico would show up on my skintone but then it occurred to me that I can use it as something else: yep, a finishing powder. 

Nico's texture is quite similar to a powder blush: a little powdery and a little crumbly but still smooth when applied. It's not as airy and fine as the Ambient Lighting Powders but it still gives a nice glow to the skin. Unlike the AL Powders though, Nico has the tendency to lighten up the color base so I have to be careful not to apply or layer it too much. I like that it was easy to blend and that it didn't cling onto my dry patches too much. 

Here it is on my face. Left side only has setting powder, right side is setting powder + Nico as a finishing powder. On top of the setting powder, Nico was able to mattify my skin more (I mean, it's still a powder, so...) but because Nico has shimmer, the matteness doesn't look too flat. It was also able to smoothen my skin's appearance as well although it did lighten my skintone a bit. However, it doesn't have the soft focus affect the Ambient Lighting Powders have.

Nico's a good powder but I can't say that it's an exact dupe for Incandescent Light. Nico is a bit heavier and more powdery which makes me think that it's better off as a highlighter or blush topper. 

Here's Nico on low light. I LOVE how it makes my skin look glowy but still natural!

Nico may not be an exact dupe for the Ambient Lighting Powders but it's still a good product on its own. It gives the skin a nice glow without looking too obvious or harsh. I still find it weird that they market this beige product as a blush but hey, to each their own. I think I'll use Nico solely as a highlighter and if I really wanted to use it as a finishing powder, I'll just make sure to be very light-handed with it.

Guess the search continues!