Chanel Poudre Universelle

I'd been nearing the end of my face powder for a while and wanted to try a new one. With a gift voucher threatening to burn a hole in my pocket it seemed like a trip to the Chanel makeup counter was in order to take some of the heat off. 

I've noticed this powder, Chanel Poudre Universelle Libre, around the blogsphere quite a few times and have also seen Pixiwoo using it in videos. So, I figured I'd give it a whirl myself. It was either this or another 3 nail polishes to add to my collection, which by no means needs anymore expanding! What appealed to me most about the powder, is that according to the official Chanel description it has photo-reflective pigments which help to smooth skin and 'disguise imperfections without emphasizing lines'. Let's be honest, who wouldn't that appeal to?! Anyway, since it's been around a while and no doubt a lot of you will have already read about, or even used this powder yourself, I'm going to attempt to keep this brief by breaking it down into a simple 'the good', and 'the bad'.

Let's get the BAD out of the way first:

- This is quite a chunk of Chanel. It's certainly not a dainty, lightweight little compact that you're going to slide into your handbag. This powder is probably best staying on your dressing table. The screw lid is also asking for disaster too since it's not really easy to open and close like a compact. Which leads me on to point two....

- The powder comes with a puff for applying it which I find useless since it picks up large amounts of powder and your left clumsily trying to apply it to the right areas. You could fiddle around tapping off excess powder to then lightly sweep it over your face but basically, that's a bit of a pain! I prefer to be dusted, not caked so I'm using a stippling brush instead, MAC 187, which helps with a more accurate and delicate application.

Onto the GOOD:

- Provides light coverage and sets my foundation well, giving a soft matte finish without looking cakey.

-Keeps the shine well and truly at bay, no easy task here in Korea with rainy season and crazy high humidity. I don't have oily skin, but previously (even on a normal day) I'd still feel like my t-zone could do with a little powder touch up. With this powder I haven't needed to. A lucky fact, given that I'm unwilling to cart this doorstop around with me!

- It's translucent and doesn't give me any kind of weird color (grey/yellow/orange) cast which some "translucent" powders do. It also means that even when my summer tan fades away I'll still be able to use this. 

- Price! Although it may initially seem pricey at 36 GBP or 52 USD, it's 30 grams, which is about triple the size of an average powder compact. So, do the math and you'll find it's actually cheaper than most high-end brands and only a few dollars more than some drugstore brands per gram. 30g will also last a LONG time!

- And, as for the photo-reflective pigments, I actually think it's true! Although the difference in my skin's appearance isn't profound to me, I've had several of my friends comment on how well/good I'm looking since I began using this. Coincidence? I think not. 

So, overall....it gets a thumbs up from me. Thank you Chanel, there's a new fave over here. Please just make a small compact version I can actually fit in my bag!

x x x




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