[vogueboy]

Yes, this is quite normal (unfortunately). It also happens to eyeshadows when you wet them with water or a liquid sealer.

This happens more with M.A.C. pressed powders, and happens to a much lesser degree to no colour powders like Bio-Elements, Vincent Kehoe, Kryolan, and Kett, and to HD rated setting powders such as Matte F/X (Cover F/X), Face Atelier, and Ben Nye Luxe powders.

To prevent the hardening, thus making your pressed powders last longer, blot the moisture from your face using a tissue first. Use a new sponge applicator, or a clean brush, or even better yet, a clean Miller Puff for setting or touch-ups... The point being, make sure your tools are clean and dry.

To salvage your compact, take your metal spatula, and very gently scrape the hardened surface off, the new exposed layer is now usable. If you have used more than 50% of your compact through regular use, the scraping might crumble the rest of the product. (My experience with M.A.C.).

For eyeshadows, just wet your brush and press it onto a small area close to the edge of the shadow. Unfortunately, the scraping method won't work on eyeshadows... Unless you want loose eyeshadows.