Monday, October 10, 2011

Chanel Poudre Universelle Libre Natural Finish Loose Powder in Clair

After applying a foundation or BB cream, I would use powders whether loose or compact to set my base makeup. I honestly believe it is an essential step in my makeup routine to help my makeup last longer and also to create a good base for other powder cosmetics I may use, such as blushes, bronzers or highlighters.


The Chanel loose powder comes within a box that is typical of Chanel's black and gold packaging. The jar itself has the iconic Chanel logo printed at the top. Chanel's packaging is very elegant and the jar will look beautiful on anyone's vanity.


Each jar comes with a white, pillowy Chanel puff, which is better than those dinky little unusable brushes that sometimes come with loose powders. Of late, I have been using cotton puffs with setting powders, so the Chanel puff is a welcomed addition.


It has a perforated plastic sifter top which helps reduce spillage and wastage. I plan to transfer some product into a mini-sized loose powder jar because it's easier to travel with. I can't imagine taking the whole full-sized jar out anywhere.


From the above photo, you can tell that Clair matches my skin tone very well. It is a light beige shade with neutral undertones and should be suitable for those ranging from NC15 to NC25. The Chanel loose powders are all extremely finely milled and have an absolutely gorgeous silky texture. They each have some light reflecting properties, which will help minimise the appearance of skin imperfections. It has a matte-satin finish that never looks dull but instead, creates a certain luminosity that makes my skin look a little more radiant.


I have used the powder to set high-end to drugstore range foundations and it works with each of them. I love that it doesn't cake nor appear dry and it does not enhance some flaky bits on my skin. If you have good skin, you can probably get away with using this on its own.

My t-zone gets oily but I find that the powder helps control the greasiness for at least 4 to 6 hours in our tropical weather, which is pretty good in my books. Even when my natural facial oils start to come through, the powder doesn't pool, separate or oxidise. The powder is lightly scented but it's undetectable once applied.

Chanel Poudre Universelle Libre is sold at Chanel counters nationwide for RM152. Each jar consists of 30g worth of product and it will last a good long while as you'd only need to use very little each time. The price may seem expensive at first but when compared to MAC's Prep and Prime Translucent Finishing Powder, the Chanel powder works out to be cheaper at RM5.07 per gram, whereas the MAC powder is RM11.25 per gram. That's right, beauty geeks, after doing the math, the Chanel powder doesn't seem like such an expensive purchase after all.