This Translucent Powder Keeps My Face Shine-Free in 90-Degree Heat

Sweat is kind of my thing. It's in my genes—I have hyperhidrosis, an excessive sweating condition that makes beads of moisture pool on my hands, feet, pits, you name it. (It's not all bad, though. I've never once needed hand lotion). Despite taking medication for it, I've found that stress, sudden temperature changes, humidity, and focusing on how sweaty I am will all make the condition flare.

Needless to say, New York City's train system ticks all the boxes in the summer. I descend into my station's hot and humid underbelly, where I get more stressed by the minute while waiting for my train to take its sweet time and arrive. By the time I get to work, it's a toss-up as to how much foundation is left on my face. I don't care most days—I'm just behind my computer screen. But when I'd rather not show up to an early meeting looking like a red-faced ball of wetness, one powder has succeeded in sopping up my perspiration and leaving natural-looking skin behind.

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I must preface, the Hourglass Veil Translucent Setting Powder is bougie beyond belief. You shake the powder through holes stamped in an "H" formation in the golden sifter. But damn if it isn't worth the $46 price tag. It was sitting at my desk one recent morning when I rolled into the office fresh off of a packed, sticky subway car, my face flushed and beaded with sweat. Damage control took 30 seconds: I shook out some powder, swept it on with the larger side of the brand's accompanying brush, and raced into a conference room for a staff meeting, where I plopped down next to Glamour's digital fashion editor.

Ana is a nice person but an honest one, so when she commented that my skin looked great, I was deeply honored. I whipped out my phone to observe, and she was right. Most translucent powders sit on top of your skin and give it a powdery, casket-looking, "which way to the morgue?" effect, but my sweat had reacted with the Veil in a weirdly gorgeous way. It was as if they'd melded together and come out velvet.

That was a little over a month ago, and I've been wearing it ever since. The most interesting thing is that actually goes on best after your face is already a little damp, making it a fantastic powder to throw in your bag if you need a touch-up during the day. But I've also found it's great with a face mist in the morning to lock in that velvety finish all day. If that's not the next best thing to walking around in a personal A/C bubble in 90-degree heat, I'm not sure what is.

Hourglass Veil Translucent Setting Powder, $46, sephora.com

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