January 7, 2011

Guerlain Meteorites Compact Pressed Illuminating and Mattifying Powder Review, Swatches, Photos

A skin colored Meteorites powder? That can’t be right! Have our famous pearls lost their groove? Naaa! They just reinvented themselves for Spring 2011 into a compact powder in various nude shades to correct skin, set makeup, mattify, and just make you look flawless and perfect.

Are they good?

Check out my review!


Guerlain’s legendary Meteorites in a skin colored pressed powder format!


I dunno about you but I’ve been awaiting the arrival of skin colored pressed Meteorites for a decade! Bless be! The makeup Gods have heard my prayers plus they granted me a cheap price tag to go along with it. The pressed powder is $56 about $10 cheaper than the normal Meteorites pressed range, super sweet price in my opinion however if you’re more of a budget shopper that isn’t used to splurging on higher end this could of course sound very expensive but I personally feel like it’s a deal and I think fellow Guerlain followers and fans will feel the same.

What is it? Why do you need it? Is it any good?

It’s basically the same concept as pressed or ball Meteorites in the fact that it perfects the face, eases dullness, illuminates, and blurs imperfections but it’s now in a newer formula that feels like a pressed powder and acts like one by setting makeup and maffiying your skin for a more flawless complexion and yes, it does so in spades!

Mind you, it’s not terribly pigmented for a pressed powder and you can find any number of powders that are way more pigmented however the texture runs silky smooth with a perfect finish on my dry skin (that’s saying alot considering pressed powder on dry skin is a death trap) and it does just the trick at making my skin look beautiful and flawless. It has the customary violet scent I so commonly associate with Guerlain. I can’t really smell violet without thinking Guerlain…mmm!

As I said the powder is super silky and blends flawless and seamlessly however if you’re looking for a bit more extra coverage or you normally wear pressed powder as a base sans anything else this might not do the trick a more pigmented powder would do. However, if your skin is in very good shape sans drama you can easily use it to even out your complexion, slip a little blush and gloss on and call it a day for natural, lightweight coverage.

In terms of mattifying I can’t yet say since my skin is very dry due to the harsher cold weather however come Summer I’ll see how it goes….I am impressed the powder is so lightweight and easy to blend that it doesn’t age my dry skin, cake, or look flaky and badly as most pressed powders due when my skin is busy being dry.

I got Teint Beige as Rose proved a tad too light and if I’m honest Beige was still pretty fair to so be warned they do run pretty light!


Only three shades are available that will suit fair to medium skin however olive, tanned, or darker won’t be able to indulge in some of these shades. I feel like the formula does come across transparent however after swatching it on my best friend’s skin I noticed it looked a bit on the chalky side so def be aware prior to your purchase if your skin runs a bit darker.

I was disappointed slightly in the compact weight. My normal Meteorites Compacts feel a bit more weighty however this feels a tad on the flimsy side and almost..dare I say…plastic? It really has no substainial weight behind it which surprised me considering most Guerlain compacts have a good weight to them and at $56 I do expect a bit more behind the packaging…

I was also disappointed in the puff it came with. It’s thin and a bit flimsy as well. I expected a more luxurious puff and actually would have liked it the compact might have had a two way compartment to store it as I don’t love the idea of storing the puff on top of the powder.

  • Those who already love Meteorites and always wanted a skin colored powder from the brand!
  • Guerlain fans will easily adore this!
  • Anyone wanting a pressed powder that will perfect their skin and give a flawless finish to makeup and face!
  • Those who want a lightweight powder to perfect skin and allow it to breath!
  • Those who want to blur very minor imperfections and allow skin to looks its best!

  • Those unwilling to indulge in high end price tags ($56 will not prove cheaper to most).
  • Those who like their pressed powder to have a solid color pay off to it!


Guerlain Meteorites Compact Pressed Illuminating and Mattifying Powder was an excellent choice for me. I’m quite happy to have it as part of my daily makeup regime and will proceed to buy another after I’m through with this. I was impressed with the lighter formula which wears well on my skin and perfects it beautifully. It’s a luxurious purchase yes but I also feel like it’s a rather good price by Guerlain standards!

Gorgeous stuff and deserves a Muse Approval!

Is it on your wish list?

Have you already purchased it?

Loving it?

Do share!

About the Muse

Isabella MuseIsabella is just an average everyday geeky girl who doesn’t blend her eyeshadow correctly, wears too much blush, and hopes she never finds her holy grail products because she likes the thrill of the chase so much. Her mission is to bring you super honest reviews on makeup, skincare, fragrance and all things beauty. She’s in no way an expert on the topic and she sure as hell isn’t a super model. But she’s passionate about makeup and is seeking like-minded individuals that like pina coladas, getting caught in the rain, and ones that enjoy spending hundreds of dollars at Sephora without feeling buyer’s remorse. If you’re that person feel free to reach out and leave a comment or follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Bloglovin‘.

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Comments

  • Cj

    Hmm so there are cons to this 🙁 Do you have Laura Mercier’s puff? I wonder if it would fit in the compact as a replacement. Can’t do anything about the weight I suppose, Still going to get this tho 🙂 Just gotta figure out which shade is for me :/ I’m pretty fair skinned but not like ghostly white pale lol

    • the Muse

      I do but that’s way too big to fit in here CJ ;( You can use it to apply but just not travel with that puff ;( I’m medium fair I guess…beige was good for me but that was pretty light too. so def head in and swatch ;D!

      • Cj

        We don’t have a nordstrom where I live 🙁 Ulta sells Guerlain right? Maybe they have it in stock. I hate living in Ocala lol no good stores!

        • the Muse

          oo no cj 🙁 ulta doesn’t. just some fragrances from guerlain but not the makeup sadly 🙁 u can always buy from sephora when it comes in stock and return if it doesn’t work ;D!

          • Cj

            Yeah I guess that’s what I’m gonna have to do :/ I hope Sephora gets it soon lol

          • Cj

            So one of the other blogs I read got one of these and said that the compact is actually plastic, and just coated with a metal looking color :(, btw how big (as in inches) is the puff? Maybe I can find a better quality one that’ll fit 🙂

          • the Muse

            mmm not fully plastic cj I wouldn’t say…..but def not up to par with other guerlain compacts I own 🙂 Not really sure in inches tbh……!

  • Karyn

    SIGH. I want to try this so bad but if it won’t show up on olive skin why bother? Guerlain there are darker skinned people with money too! *shakes fist*

    • the Muse

      karyn def urge you to try on counter hun. It might work out in the darkest shade ;-D!

  • LINDARRANAR

    ohh muse this looks amazing but! if the compact is made out of plastic then I don’t know if it will feel like guerlain (you know what i mean >??) i just associate guerlain with the best packiging and thats such a shame but!

    i love the pattern and hopefully this can be a replacement for my guerlain violes compact!!

    • the Muse

      linda do check it out curious whatcha think of the compact design. I find it very flimsy when compared to other compacts from the brand. Really no weight behind it at all!

  • KristyQ

    God, I wish you hated this!! 🙂 I was hoping to cross it off my want list, but apparently I’m going to have to get it! Sounds fab to me….I’ll be throwing out the puff anyways.

  • Mary the Muse Militant

    Wow, a new venture for Guerlain, away from their traditional !
    I do love the metal compacts as they are so luxe.
    “Plastique”, so maybe no refills? Just a new complete compact when you repurchase?
    The Mythic pressed powder unfortunately dries out my already bone dry skin and it was a waste of money for me, so this would be a pass for me.

    Love their compact Terracotta moisturising bronzers though – not at all drying, compared to most bronzing powders.
    I need a bit of colour as am as white as a ghost in the face – not a good look for me.
    Glad the Gods answered your prayers for a coloured Meteroites powder ! We all love to see The Muse happy ! 🙂

    • the Muse

      no refills def not mary…:( aw sorry to hear it hun! my skin is dry too but it applied well thankfully. awww shucks thanks girl! 🙂

  • jackieg02

    You make me want Guerlain everything. I need to peep this out in store!

  • Nia

    Ahh, no, I was so hoping you hate it and it did not work with dry skin. I have the pressed Meteorites and I do like them a lot. So do I need them? Probably not. But I like them a lot.
    Just wish Guerlain would go a bit easier with the violets as they irritate my skin. Always have to leave the compact open so to most of it evaporates and then I can use it.
    Too bad they did not bring out more colours.

    Hope you had a great weekend.

    • the Muse

      sorry nia was a love ;-D aw sorry 🙁 the violet scent can be a bit much for sensitive noses and faces 🙁

      • Nia

        Let’s see of this will stop me from looking verrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrry closely 😉
        Leaving the package open for a few days helps a lot to make it wearable for me.

  • katrosado5

    I agree with Karyn, I have the hardest time with finding my shade. I’ll stop by the counter 🙁

  • jonnie

    Hmm, I want it more now… I normally stay away from pressed powder but this sounds so good… do you think it would work well to set surreal skin cream-to-powder? That’s my winter go-to foundation.

    • the Muse

      mmm Jonnie could do…but surreal skin is really thick so you might want a more substantial powder to set it ;D!

      • jonnie

        Hmm… that doesn’t stop me from wanting this somehow… 😉 I don’t wear surreal skin in the summer anyway…

  • rowan

    aah i need this! it sounds like it’s more of a finishing powder, i would use a normal pressed powder in conjunction with it.

  • nicci

    wow, so this will set my make-up, mattify, and also illuminate? that’s impressive. I have never used any items from Guerlain except lipstick.

    The Meteorites Illuminating Pressed Powder just illuminates right? but doesn’t set the make-up or mattify?

    I’m not 100% sure on the difference between the two..sorry!

    • the Muse

      it’s the same product nicci. illuminates, mattifies, sets makeup…that’s the full name, “illuminating and mattifying..” there’s no difference between the two because there aren’t two products, same product 🙂

  • Cj

    Hey Muse!

    I finally got this lol 😛 I couldn’t take the wait for it to pop up on Sephora’s website, so my friend and I took a little trip to Orlando over the weekend! I got matched up to teint beige, and even tho I’ve only been using it for like… 2 days lol I already love it ;D I do wish it had a tad more color payoff cause I can still see a blemish or 2 peeking through but overall I’m really happy with it 🙂

    • the Muse

      yay cj! whatcha think of the packaging doll? Yeah…can relate def could use a big more pigment but brightens my face nicely and sets well ;D!

      • Cj

        I like it, It is pretty light but not… too light if that makes any sense lol, I really like that it doesn’t show fingerprints either. Today I used it to set the Mac foundation I also got over the weekend and it gave me such a nice finished look!

  • Anne

    Hi sissy =)
    just want to know your opinion about what i heard…actually im planning to buy this powder….they said that in choosing foundation u should take one shade lighter than ur complexion and the reason is they said – the powder/foundation will turn darker later on of wearing it…hmmmm…is this true??? please let me know
    thanks and will wait to hear from you – Anne