With that out of the way, by far the biggest question for us and All Nighter devotees everywhere was: How does this new setting spray compare to the OG? With more than a decade of All Nighter use under my belt, I put the shiny-new iteration to the test.
How does the new All Nighter Setting Spray formula compare to the old?
The new range of All Nighter includes three finishes: Natural, Glow, and Matte. For the purposes of this review, I’ll be focusing solely on the Natural finish, the closest equivalent to the original.
I sent the full ingredient lists of the original setting spray and the new Natural finish formula to cosmetic chemist Kelly Dobos. As far as she can tell, the two are formulaically pretty similar—with three key differences. “I can see there is a more robust preservative system in the new formula,” she explains. Urban Decay has also added an antioxidant called pentaerythrityl tetra-di-t-butyl hydroxyhydrocinnamate, which Dobos says can make for longer-lasting formula integrity. Lastly, “the brand has maybe also moved from using a liquid aloe to a freeze-dried version, which helps preserve that ingredient’s stability until it is incorporated in the product,” says Dobos. Her best guess is that Urban Decay did that because liquid aloe extracts are “challenging to preserve against microbial contamination.”
And what about the signature All Nighter cooling effect? The new formula contains the very same cooling ingredients as the original, according to Dobos. “Methyl diisopropyl propionamide, encapsulated primarily in polyhydroxystearic acid, is the key cooling agent in both iterations of the formula,” she says. “The evaporation of ethanol from the skin also provides a cooling sensation; it’s the same cooling sensation you feel after applying ethanol-based hand sanitizer.” That said, because Skindinavia’s patent on its formula is still active, Urban Decay would be legally obligated to use a different concentration of these ingredients.
Urban Decay’s press materials claim the brand has extended the setting spray’s durability from 16 to 24 hours, but Dobos couldn’t pinpoint any obvious formulaic differences or additions that would provide a 50 percent longer wear time. “Since the formula ingredient lists aren’t too different, it’s hard to say without further laboratory investigation [whether one lasts longer than the other],” she says. “If they were able to increase PVP, the main film former, without detrimental impact to skin feel, I think it’s possible.”
Does the new version of All Nighter perform as well as the old?
In my opinion, the experience of using the original All Nighter was damn near perfect, which is why I’ve used it consistently since I was a teenager. You wouldn’t know it by looking at me now, but I was once a 20-something who’d put on a full beat to bar-crawl until last call almost every weekend—even in the worst weather possible. I’d always set with All Nighter at least twice while applying my makeup (after my powdering my complexion and then again at the end of the full routine), and I think that’s the reason my look would hold up for hours on end through sweaty heat waves, rainstorms, blizzards, and the general mustiness of New York City dive bars. All Nighter’s remained a staple in my routine now in my 30s, even though I don’t wear that much makeup anymore—I want what little stuff I do put on to stay there, and I’ve found that becomes more of a challenge when you get a little older.
