Loose powder is one of mankind’s oldest and most popular cosmetic. They say powder appeared due to ancient Egypt noble beauties. Then powder was not only decorative cosmetics, but also a sign of belonging to the aristocracy. When seeing a lady’s pale powdered face, everyone knew what place she occupied in society and what honors she deserved.

Many more centuries later, white woman’s face was connected with such notions as noble origin, purity and chastity.

In those times, powder was made of rice or wheat flour of very fine grinding. Sometimes, they also added spices and even pearls grinded into the smallest particles. However, combined with moisture, such powder swelled and clogged pores, leading to skin inflammation and irritation.

Modern powder is made from natural kaolin, calcium carbonate, talc, ground silk, as well as nutritious collagens and light oils. Each manufacturer of cosmetics adds some specific components in it. This may be extracts from medicinal herbs and minerals, pearl particles, pearl and even gold, not to mention UV - filters. Such powder does not clog pores, but on the contrary, it provides skin care, protecting it from ultraviolet radiation and harmful environmental impact.

Although loose powder is not very suitable for carrying around (nevertheless, some manufacturers still offer comfortable vertical boxes for powder transportation), it is preferable, if you wish to create perfect makeup. Professional makeup artists choose loose powder. Working with it, you have more chances to cover skin evenly, thereby giving face lovely velvety. Moreover, such powder almost does not crumble and keeps makeup longer, combined with any touch-tone means. Therefore, if possible, try to apply just crumbly powder to create make-up. To make powder looking excellent on your face, you should learn to properly apply it.

To create perfect makeup, apply translucent crumbly powder on its side areas using a fluffy brush. Be very careful, not to create light fuzz on face. Use puff to apply powder on nose, forehead and chin. Then remove the excess powder with a soft brush or cotton swab. Remember that you should powder the whole face, not just nose and chin, what is erroneously made by many women.

There are a few rules you need to know when using powder;

1. loose powder should be applied after tonal foundation is completely absorbed,

2. face should be first covered with light powder, and only then apply the darker shades and rouge to the relevant face areas,

3. do not powder wet or sweaty face, first dry it up using a tissue.

To a greater extent, loose powder is just indispensable for those who have oily and problem skin. It helps eliminating unwanted shine and gives skin dullness, removes inflammation and irritation. However, you still should take some nuances into consideration.

Fat and not very healthy skin should be puffed with a clean swab or brush every time. Brush should be cleaned regularly, as its hairs glue together, absorbing the sebum, and then turn into a beneficial environment for bacteria breeding. Make-up, made with such infected brush may create additional inflammation on skin.

Well, there is no need to recall you should thoroughly cleanse face from the remnants of powder every night (and all the rest makeup).

Now, almost all cosmetics manufacturers produce very high quality crumbly powder. So, how to navigate all this diversity?

Start with the fact that the choice of powder should take into account natural skin color and the color of foundation (if you use it). The color of powder itself can match skin color and foundation, but it also may be slightly darker or lighter than the foundation.

You can choose a color close to natural, trying to apply powder to the back of your hand. If its color does not contrast with the color of your hand - then such powder suits you.

Generally, skin is never monochrome, and to recreate its natural color, you should mix three or four shades. 4-color Prisme Libre Loose Powder Quartet from Givenchy provides women of fashion with this opportunity. One powder-box, divided into equal parts with thin walls, contains four magnificent powder tones. Their colors can be perfectly seen through transparent box bottom. Having ultrafine texture, these powders give skin a natural and perfectly radiant look.

However, if you have very dry skin, powder should be used with caution. Sometimes, when applying powder on very dry skin, it becomes even drier.

Many women choose Universelle Libre Chanel Natural Loose Powder.

This powder creates natural matte coating, giving face uniform tone. Universelle Libre still retains makeup transparency and masks the tone shortcomings. It is provided with a very comfortable dispenser that accurately calculates the amount of powder needed for cotton puff. Thanks to it, powder is applied in one motion, not being scattered in the air.

Diorskin Poudre Libre from Dior also represents high-quality powder. Soft and silky powder blends with skin, smoothing out skin tone softly. Its ultra-thin transparent pieces mat skin, stress freshness, velvet and youth face look. It is provided with a soft and comfortable brush.

If you apply make-up in the morning using Moisture-Balanced Translucent Face Powder from Estee Lauder, it will last until the evening. With this powder, skin does not get shiny, but acquires smooth matte texture and looks quite natural. Even looking close at the face, people will not understand your skin is powdered.

Loose powder from the Japanese luxury cosmetics manufacturer Shiseido - The Makeup Loose Powder, also enjoys deserved demand. Light and delicate, it does not clog pores and creates wonderful and natural appearance. Loose Powder is especially good for oily and problematic skin.

Centuries passed, but powder still remains one of the most popular cosmetics among women. An elegant loose powder box near the mirror with a puff carelessly left next to it will remain a symbol of eternal femininity for a long time.