If you were asked to name the top three most popular loose setting powders, I’d hazard a guess that most beauty obsessives would include the Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder in their ‘top three’. The Laura Mercier Setting Powder is a product I’ve heard seriously amazing things about, but I’d never tried it myself.
Three or four years ago, I rarely used powder as I assumed it would make my dry and dehydrated skin, even drier. Now, however, I love using powder with a very light hand to minimise any shine, and help prolong the longevity of my makeup.
I featured the Deluxe Mini size of the Laura Mercier Translucent Powder in my Feelunique haul last April, and today I’m going to tell you my thoughts.
BUY HERE: Cult Beauty / Feelunique / John Lewis / Lookfantastic
This powder is so hyped within the beauty community and has only become more popular since the whole ‘baking’ trend became more mainstream.
Now most brands; both budget and highend are creating their own loose powders, I decided I needed to try the iconic Laura Mercier powder for myself.
The full size Laura Mercier Translucent Setting Powder version is £29 and contains 29 grams of product, which is very generous for a powder, but I chose this mini size as it’s only £20 yet it contains 9.3 grams.
Mini sizes like this are just perfect as you can try a product to see what you think before splashing the cash on a full sized version, and let’s face it, powders last forever and even after a year this mini size looks practically brand new.
What’s even more impressive is not only are you getting 9.3 grams of powder which is the full size amount of loose powder for many brands, you’re also getting a miniature size of their Velour Puff too. The full size puff is £13.50 so it’s amazing that they’ve included one in this deluxe miniature kit for just £20.
“What is Translucent Loose Setting Powder? With multiple major awards and counting, Laura Mercier’s “best in beauty”, cult-favourite bestseller is your go-to setting powder.
Loose powder feels luxuriously dense in the jar, feels incredibly soft and silky-light on your skin. Pros love the super smooth application: goes on evenly, blends effortlessly, provides great wear. Sets makeup without adding weight or texture.
Modern Matte Finish. Creates a modern matte finish with a touch of sheer coverage. The translucent shade works on virtually all skin tones. Soft-Focus Effect for a More Flawless Look.“
Like all Laura Mercier Setting Powders, it has a soft-focus effect that subtly blurs the look of fine lines and imperfections. Doesn’t settle into fine lines or pores and never looks cakey.
I’m a real convert to velour puffs for applying powder, and it was this mini size puff which inspired my purchase of the BeautyBlender Powder Puff.
They can give such a flawless, soft focus effect on the skin and after trying this mini velour puff, I would possibly purchase the full size. The puff is specially designed with texture that molds and conforms as needed to pick up, hold and apply powder, and it feels extremely soft against the skin.
Although this is a mini size, it’s perfect for touching up your makeup or for application of powder under the eyes or around the nose.
I know some brands like Louise Young sell miniature powder puffs, and I’d definitely like to purchase some smaller puffs as they’re so handy to have; especially for your makeup bag. I keep my puff inside the lid of this powder to try and minimise any mess from the sifter.
I know swatches of a translucent powder might seem pointless but I like to include them anyway as I know it’s something I like to see when reading powder reviews. Some powders can look so heavy and powdery on the skin, but that’s definitely not the case with the Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder.
For a translucent powder, it does have a subtle yellow tint which worried me at first as my skin’s very pale and any tint would be very noticeable, but the powder doesn’t impart any colour or tint to the skin – it truly is translucent and would work well for any skintone.
Laura Mercier does have multiple loose powders to choose from, including a ‘Glow’ version if you want more of a luminescent finish to the skin.
I particularly would like to try the pressed version of this powder, as pressed formulas are just so much more convenient, especially when you’re short on time and don’t want to be faffing about tipping out powder.
Before trying this Laura Mercier powder, I’d only ever tried the Laura Mercier Matte Radiance Powder but that’s definitely more of a highlighter than it is a setting powder, but it’s absolutely stunning regardless.
It is a very mattifying powder which is great for those with oily skin, but I have to be very sparing with it otherwise I can make my skin look even drier.
I tend to concentrate the powder on just my T-zone anyway which is my least dry, but if you like to apply powder all over and you have dry skin, this formula may be a little too matte.
I really can understand the hype as it’s such a great, effective powder which really does blur the skin which I’m hoping you can see in the swatch photo, the fine lines on the back of my hand are a lot less noticeable.
It’s not a powder I use everyday but for the times I want my makeup to last, and I want my skin to look particularly nice, this is my loose powder of choice.
I’ve tried a number of loose powders from the drugstore, and I can hand on heart say there aren’t any affordable powders which dupe the formula of the Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder. It does such a great job at mattifying shine, setting your makeup and blurring the skin, whilst never looking cakey or heavy.
I can’t recommend this mini size enough, as it’s really not that mini at all, and when do you ever finish a whole powder?! I know I very rarely do.
I do have a review of the Hourglass Loose Powder coming up on my blog very soon, but I’m really pleased I finally tried this powder for myself, and it’s very much worth the hype. I definitely want to try more Laura Mercier base products, so if you have any particular recommendations, I’d love to know.
BUY HERE: Cult Beauty / Feelunique / John Lewis / Lookfantastic
I’d love to know if you’ve ever tried the Laura Mercier Translucent Loose Setting Powder? Which is your favourite loose powder?
All products featured on Gemma Etc. are PR samples or gifted items, unless otherwise indicated. This post may contain affiliate links. If you wish to find out more, please see my Disclaimer within my navigation bar.