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Laura Mercier Transluscent Loose Powder Light Catcher review: does the new launch live up to the hype?

 (Laura Mercier)
(Laura Mercier)

When it comes to setting powder, Laura Mercier is at the forefront with its signature Translucent Loose Powder. Sitting pride of place at the top of ‘best’ lists around the world, it is very much considered to be a Holy Grail by those in the know.

Whether you are a professional makeup artists or just dabble in semi-regular application, we can all agree on one thing. This is a cult product that deserves its place in your arsenal.

The iconic workhorse is lightweight, easy to apply and acts as the finishing touch to your routine with its finely milled texture, setting your look and ensuring it stands the test of time - no matter how busy your lifestyle.

Laura Mercier has taken this flawless finishing powder and taken it to the next level with a luminous twist. For the Translucent Loose Powder Light Catcher, the formula has been embellished with a multi-dimensional pearl blend to add radiance, blur pores and smooth out your skin. No matter if you’re heading to the red carpet, a special occasion or you’re a selfie lover, you’ll appreciate the no-glare flashback.

 (Laura Mercier)
(Laura Mercier)

Like its predecessor, this new formulation is equally as lightweight to ensure that it doesn’t sit in fine lines or draw attention to imperfection but works instead to minimise their appearance.

The Light Catcher comes in three shades; Celestial Light for fair to light skin tones, Honey Star for medium skin tones and Cosmic Rose for medium-deep to deep skin tones. We took each one for a spin to see if it would live up to the hype.

Here’s what we thought.

£33.50 | lookfantastic

Meghann Murdock – Deputy Editor, H&P

Shade: Celestial Light

 (Laura Mercier)
(Laura Mercier)

No matter how good the staycation, the summer holiday glow has been in short supply for most of us this year. The Celestial Light shade is the lightest of the three new colourways, seeming to disappear into almost nothing on my porcelain [read: pasty] skin.

It delivers on the lightweight front and, while I haven’t yet tested its staying power in the furnace that is the central line on a Saturday night, the feel is as smooth and the texture as flawless as promised.

Titled Light Catcher, and with words like ‘luminous’ and ‘light-creating’ on the packaging, I was wary of getting into post-run sheen territory. While it’s a little shimmery for my every day use, I’m a huge fan of the feel and plan to use it as a highlighter when I get to the end of my prized-but-pricey Charlotte Tilbury Wonderglow.

Ellie Davis – Shopping Editor

Shade: Honey Star

 (Laura Mercier)
(Laura Mercier)

With my fresh-from-Mykonos tan, it was Honey Star that seemed to match my complexion best even though traditionally I would have opted for Celestial Light. While it’s still slightly darker in appearance than my skin, it added a warm bronze hue that enhanced my complexion and triggered comments from my colleagues on my “glow”.

I’m not usually one for shimmer in my makeup products but this setting powder makes a convincing case for it: you can forgo any highlighter due to the resulting radiance – especially when baking under the eyes. As with the brand’s original Translucent Loose Powder, it melted into the skin on application and had a sweat-absorbing effect that was much welcomed during the sporadic British heatwave.

While it may be a bit garish for everyday use, I’m saving this powder for the seemingly endless weddings in my calendar over the next year.

Abha Shah – Shopping Writer

Shade: Cosmic Rose

 (Laura Mercier)
(Laura Mercier)

I first discovered Laura Mercier's Translucent Loose Powder while rifling through my mum’s beauty kit many years ago, and fell for it instantly. I’ve found it gives a wonderful filter-like sheen, blurring fine lines and minimising pores while imparting that coveted golden hour glow at any time of day. However, I always used it sparingly; the standard one shade it came in was much too light for my medium/olive Indian skin.

You can imagine my delight then, with the brand's latest drop which offers the powder in three varying shades. Cosmic Rose is the deepest. While it looked darker than expected at first twist off the pot, when dusting it across my features with a brush, it became an invisible veil, blurring shine and easing glare back to a diffused, luminous glow. As it's so finely milled, it absorbs perspiration without settling into creases, and you can pack layers over each other on areas like the cheekbones to stand in for highlighter.

As someone who hankers for the glow of the setting sun in her makeup look, I felt the shade was a tiny bit too dark for me, but it will come into its own when I’m tanned from a beach break.

£33.50 | lookfantastic

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