Poudre Universelle Libre Natural Finish Loose Powder

I’m going to be the voice of dissent here, but this powder is really not spectacular. And on my oily, shiny, textured, older skin it’s downright average. The packaging is good quality materials and textures, with a weighty feel that is nice. The powder puff is slightly too big and thick to comfortably get into all the nooks and crannies of my face, it feels a bit awkward having to fold it in half. Sometimes too much powder escapes. The translucent colour is warm and quite flattering on my nc20 skintone, but slightly darker than my neck. It photographs really well. It provides a non-matte finish, which is not great for my skin type. Oil control is very average. My main gripe though, is that it seems to enhance the orange peel texture of my skin. I have never used a powder that makes my skin look more textured than it did before application. It doesn’t seem to go into fine lines, so how it does this to my poor pores is beyond me. So nowadays and for the next couple of years l’ll be slightly shiny with a grainy look to my face. If you’re young with good skin this is probably good for you, but due to a lack of pore-blurring technology l can’t recommend it to anyone oily or older. Edit 20.1.20: upping to 4 lippies as it is much less shiny on a matte fdn, still missing the pore-blur tho!

This is one of the nicest powders with a luminous natural finish that is always flattering. I have used this in the colours 20 and 30 (and also in 40) since its launch in 2000 and come back to it after trying other loose and compact powders (like La Mer and La Prairie). You get an extremely finely milled product in very natural (more yellowish) colours and finish. The container contains much more products than you get from other brands for higher price. A bonus is that it is fragrance-free. Ingredients: Talc, Nylon-12, Silica, Lauroyl lysine, Magnesium Myristate, Boron Nitride, Phenyl Trimethicone, Aluminum Hydroxide, Potassium Sorbate, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Parfum, CI 77007, CI 77491, CI 77499, CI 77891, Mica

I have normal combination skin, oily at the t-zone and normal at the cheeks. I use it with a brush, sometimes sweeping it all over my face to set my makeup or using it to bake undereye. This loose powder provides mild to some coverage, depending on how much you use. It should work best for dry to normal skin, because my t-zone gets slightly shiny about 5 hours later. But it should work better if I use a oil-controlling powder on top of it. The best thing about this is that it doesn't crease under the eyes and how naturally silky it looks and feel on my skin.

Quite simply this is beautiful stuff. So finely milled, easy to apply, lasts all day. And of course, the packaging is sublime. Of course it’s outwardly pricey, but you get THIRTY grams for that. I’ve had mine two years and have barely made a dent in it. Treat yourself!

I never buy anything twice (heck, I seldom FINISH a product before I'm on to the next . . . . I have a problem LOL). Having said that, I have bought this HUGE container THREE times. It is such a no brainer. After makeup I use the puff it comes with and dab over my makeup and it's like I have my own Instagram filter. No caking, no oxidizing, no breakouts, no drying effects, just velvet perfection. I gave it a three for price because, while it is expensive, it is cheap compared to other powders in its category and you get sooooooo much product. I actually consider it an act of spontaneous generosity on the part of the Chanel. When you look at what La Mer did in ruining their holy grail formula and then having the gall to increase the price and reduce the amount of product to a quarter? of what it once was, it only makes me a more committed fan of my beloved Chanel who usually make their products worth the price they charge. Eyeshadows? Swoon. Blushes? Get to the back of the bus Nars! I think I may buy a backup in case Chanel pulls a "La Mer" but I hope they aren't that stupid and greedy. I guess when Estee Lauder bought damn near everything L'Oreal hadn't bought yet, they thought they could get a way with it. La Mer is on my permanent "merde" list and I'm married to Chanel! For reference, I also have the Laura Mercier translucent and find it doesnt control oil like I would like. I have the Hourglass Veil which I love, but find I use it more and only occasionally as a final blurring product, the Too Faced Born This Way Ethereal powder which is very good also, but can be a bit drying and the La Prairie Loose Powder which is excellent also but on some days can appear to sit "on" my skin and finally, the Lancome Absolue because I had read it was most like the old LaMer powder, but it is just too glittery. So, as previously stated, when I don't have time to fiddel (most days) and I want to be sure of GREAT results, it's Chanel alllllllllllllll the waaaaaay!!

THIS IS MY GO TO POWDER. I know it seems pricey, but ITS SO WORTH IT. The container is HUGE and you get soo much product for your money. It keeps my makeup on all day and never cakes and has such a lightweight finish. I love this powder so much. I will be purchasing another when I run out (which probably won’t be for awhile). I definitely highly recommend this.

Love this powder. Was a Laura Mercier fan until I tried the Chanel powder. Doesn't cause foundation to ball-up. Absorbs oil nicely throughout the day, and haven't seen any flashback. Absolute Fav.

I love this powder. Its really finely milled and doesn't make your face look cakey. I bought this on a whim one day at a department store and I honestly don't regret it. I use it every day, including days when I don't use makeup but want oil control. This powder takes away the oil but leaves my skin looking healthy and not flat. This powder blurs my imperfections so that they aren't that noticeable. My face looks natural and glowy and if you use setting spray, like MAC Fix +, the powder melts completely into the skin leaving your face looking beautiful. I've already repurchased this.

This has become my favourite loose powder after trying Laura Mercier - too obvious on the skin - and La Prairie - gorgeous almost creamy texture but shade 1 left an unflattering pink tint behind and didn't control oil. I love the velvety finish Chanel leaves behind, it's never a dead matte and don't really detect sparkles either. Oil control is just ok but eh, no powder is perfect it seems and the price is steep. Doesn't hurt that the packaging is one of the prettiest I've ever seen though!

Everyone admires this as a setting powder. And it is. It is the best. But it is so much more on its own. I use this also as a simple "photo-filter" to even the color of my bare skin over my Neutrogena SPF 45 sunscreen. Yes. Just fluff and dust over sunscreen or moisturizer and your sins will be forgiven. Add blusher or bronzer and you'll never look back. Mind you, you'll need the decent skin you probably still have at your age (Yes.You do.). If you can appreciate a high-definition foundation (MAC Face & Body, Dior etc.) you can use this for casual days. On really bad days, a nip of good concealer can cover spots and you still win. This is what a face powder was meant to do since Madame du Pompadour ruled the court of France - fluff over the flaws and who cares? And Chanel does this. Yes, the initial purchase is a bit much but not actually overall per gram. The big glamorous container will keep you and your dressing table happy for a very long time. Worth every penny. I use Translucent 2 (also called 30 Naturel), I'm NW25 in MAC.