Review: NARS Loose Powder in Eden

For the record, I am a fan of NARS. Has to be my fave high end cosmetic brand to date besides Urban Decay. Ever since my mom bought me my first NARS shadow duo in Kuala Lumpur and blush in Deep Throat before we went to Australia for my birthday last year (not to mention the 3 free mini glosses in Sweet Revenge, All Night Long, and Missbehave), I was hooked in spite of their prices.

So last weekend, we headed off to Rustan's to get my brother his birthday gift for his 24th birthday and I couldn't help but stop by the NARS stall and find myself something I'd need as a prelude to Christmas (yeah, Filipinos celebrate Christmas starting in September). And I got myself the Loose Powder in Eden:

I have seen tutorials on YouTube of makeup gurus using NARS Loose Powder to mattify or set their makeup and thought I'd give it a try. It isn't classified as "priming and setting" unlike MAC's products though, but if some vloggers swear by its power, I'm game.

It retails for $35 but sells for PhP1,950 over here. My shade was Beach but opted to get Eden since Rustan's in Alabang ran out of stocks for Beach. Eden is a little lighter than Beach, but I didn't mind the least bit since I have foundations that are a tad dark on my skin and could use some lightening.

Each box contains a powder puff, and the traditional NARS black container with 35 GRAMS of product. I say to you, 35 GRAMS. That is more than my CoverGirl Mineral Powder that I bought in Australia which is 18 grams (the most amount of powder that I have). And it also exceeds MAC's Set Powder by 5 grams! That's A LOT of product that will last you a year or more depending on how much you use. Below is a pic of the NARS powder with that of my CoverGirl:

Placed a PhP5.00 coin to show size comparison

Without flash

With flash

It is very finely milled that it isn't ideal if you're gonna apply it next to an open window or a fan because it's all gonna fly away. Trust me, it doesn't clump and hold most of itself down. It's going to fly off. And since it's so fine, I am thinking of adding clear tape to the holes of the sifter to control the amount coming out with each tap. In other words, it gets a little messy and smudges on the outer part of the lid.

Without flash

With flash

As for its performance, it goes on quite sheer but not transparent unlike MAC's Prep + Prime (nuh duh...that's why they had various shades for NARS and only one for MAC's P + P), and I try not to put too much lest it make me look ghostly because Eden is a a smidge lighter than Beach (which is my appropriate shade). Although I'll try and see how this fares to tone down the deep color of my Revlon PhotoReady foundation in Medium Beige (this makes me look orange). As for its mattifying effect, it does reduce shine for about 5 hours for me but then I'd have to retouch with pressed powder when on-the-go because quite frankly this can't fight off the humidity of Philippine weather.

My humble NARS stash

PROS:


1.) Mattifies and reduces shine up to 5 hours (that's form my personal experience)
2.) Has loads of product at 35 grams per package
3.) Doesn't cake or create a cast because it is very finely milled
4.) Comes with its own puff and an additional sieve
5.) Available locally
6.) Will last you at least 1 year between purchases

CONS:


1.) On the expensive side
2.) Quite messy to use as opposed to pressed powder
3.) Available only in Rustan's within the Philippines

REPURCHASE?:


Maybe since it packs a lot for the price tag, and it's a good alternative to those days when I don't feel like putting on foundation. The only downside is that its mattifying power doesn't last as long as I'd want it to. I blame tropical weather for this.

WHERE TO BUY?:


Can be bought from NARS' online store, Sephora, and Rustan's (exclusively in the Philippines)