When I saw an ad pop up on my Instagram Stories for what looked to be a very intriguing and stunning lip product by Hourglass, I was well and truly influenced. The hint is in the name but these somewhat expensive lip products are more than just a glorified lip gloss. As ever I was just meant to be sensible and do a little research. If I really couldn’t help myself then I was only meant to stick at one; but I caved and bought three! These come in at a whopping £48 each, which even for Hourglass is pretty pricey but then they promise all sorts of fancy advanced anti-ageing ingredients meant to justify that price tag. I’ve got the low down on this product including some swatches below. So if you are intrigued, read on below.
So what exactly is this lip treatment oil all about?
The Hourglass No.28 Lip Treatment Oil is an anti-ageing treatment for the lips with a blend of essential oils, vitamins and three powerful active ingredients (Saliporine-8; Volulip™; and Viamerine); these boost moisture levels in the lips, and over time are meant to improve the appearance of the lips such as by reducing wrinkles and improving volume and softness.
The number 28 refers to the fact that it contains 28 beneficial ingredients. This is made up of :
- 14 essential oils (bois de rose, lavender, geranium, petitgrain, lemon, rosemary, vanilla, clove, amyris, orange, ylang ylang, eucalyptus, cedar and rose geranium);
- 10 plant oils: hazelnut, kukui nut, rose hip, borage, olive, green tea, cherry pit, sweet almond, jojoba and evening primrose and;
- 4 vitamins: A, B5, C and E.
And if that wasn’t fancy enough, the tip which dispenses the product is 24-kt gold and anti-bacterial!
As well as containing what is clearly an impressive list of ingredients, this comes in 5 gorgeous shades. But if colour isn’t your thing then you can also purchase the oil alone.
My thoughts on this product
I went for actual colours so I treat them more as a lip product than a treatment. I also don’t use these everyday so it’s hard to comment on whether there’s any noticeable improvement in my lips. On application my lips sure do feel soft and the gold tip is incredibly cooling, but in so far as long term benefits, it’s hard to say. Also, as you need so little, I do wonder whether you would get the true benefit of the many ingredients. Perhaps the clear version would be better if lip improvement is something you are after but for me it was all about the colours.
The product is dispensed in a pump style format but you need ever so little; too heavy handed and that’s some serious wastage. There’s definitely no oily feel as such and I would say these sit somewhere between a lip gloss and a lip lacquer. When it comes to the gold-plated tip, it is incredibly fancy, but it’s not the most practical in terms of application. Unless you are blessed with very large lips, it’s easy smudge it outside the lip area so I tend to squeeze a bit on my finger tip and dab on.
That said, given the type of product this is, the colour payoff is pretty good. In fact it was always the colour-ways and overall feel of the product that was the winner for me. There’s a decent amount of pigment that wears off as the day goes on leaving a subtle stain afterwards. Since my lips are quite pigmented, I like to wear this on top of lipstick. This works best for me and I love the depth and natural-looking shine it adds to my lips.
Some Swatches & Final Thoughts
In so far as a lip product goes I really rate finish and all of the colours are stunning. I probably would prefer a traditional doe-foot applicator but I can see why they went down this route; this is more than just a traditional lip gloss.
The colours I went for and swatched below from left to right are:
- Icon – a blue-toned raspberry red
- Bare – a peachy pink and;
- Cameo – a neutral warm-toned rose;
The price is on the hefty side and not for the faint hearted. If you like to splurge and want something really fancy then go for it, I don’t think you’d be disappointed. However, this is definitely one of those nice to haves, not a must-have. Whilst they market this product as a treatment oil, you’d most probably get that from the clear version. So overall what I have is indeed some glorified lip glosses but some very beautiful ones at that!
What do you think of this product? I’d love to know.
