Hourglass Vanish Airbrush Primer: A Beauty Editor’s Review

As a beauty editor and on-air host, I test countless products for a living and have high standards for the ones that find a coveted spot in my daily routine. For a little background, I’m a self-professed glam girl through and through, which means I have my go-to staples for foundation, concealer, eyeliner, and lashes on lock — and rarely do I toss in a new variable for fear of messing up my tried-and-true formula.

When Hourglass Cosmetics sent me the brand new Vanish Airbrush Primer, I was somewhat apathetic since face primer is one step that I tend to skip since I’ve never really found one that made a difference. When I discovered that celebrity makeup artist Mary Phillips (whose megawatt client list includes Kendall Jenner, Jennifer Lopez, and Hailey Bieber) was such a super fan of the product, I decided the time was now to see if I could be converted to a face primer believer. 

Everything that Hourglass creates comes in gorgeous, luxe-looking packaging, and I admired this pretty product as soon as I unboxed it. I decided to put it to the test on an overly busy day, which included early hours online, work deadlines, on-camera Zoom meetings, a TV shoot, and an industry event outdoors, followed by dinner with friends visiting from out of town. Safe to say this jam-packed itinerary allowed for zero downtime, minimal (if any) touch-ups, and the need to look and feel my best no matter the hour. 

I applied the hydrating, non-drying primer early in the morning and layered everything else on after, noting how much smoother my skin looked at first glance. I even grabbed a handheld mirror for a closer inspection of my complexion to ensure I wasn’t envisioning things and said a little prayer to the makeup gods that this new product wouldn’t let me down. As I rushed out the door, I skimmed over the primer’s long list of lofty promises like perfecting the skin, controlling shine, and extending makeup wear, while also blurring imperfections and minimizing pores. I made a mental note to keep tabs on its performance, and set out to tackle my day with a full face of makeup. 

Here’s what I can tell you: This stuff works. Throughout my dizzying schedule, which also included battling traffic, wearing a face mask, dining outdoors under a heat lamp, and filming a national TV segment under bright lights, my makeup stayed put. When I sat down for touch-ups in the glam room at the studio by midday, the makeup artist actually commented that I didn’t need her help because everything was in place, and whisked me away to free up her chair for someone else. 

As I scrolled through my camera roll from the shoot, I realized she wasn’t just saying that, and felt so confident about my complexion that I didn’t even object to taking a selfie (sans filter) with friends to cap off our epic evening later on. By the time I made it back home, I stole a final glance at my face to see how intact my makeup was, and to my surprise, everything looked fresh as a daisy (even if my energy level was running on empty.) 

I’m keeping this miracle worker on hand for marathon days, and suggest you do the same.