Z Mei Skincare System: Cleanser, Toner, and Scrub

Hi everybody,

I'm back! For days now, the heat has been pummeling my neck of the woods and all I want to do is to fill up a cooler with ice and sleep in it. Usually, around this time of the year, my skin would go crazy. All the efforts to restore my skin to its pristine condition since I was born are wasted. The heat and humidity are perfect for zits to sprout. I dreaded for it. Yet, this time around I'm happy to report that my skin is still clear and smooth.

And you're wondering why?

Because of these guys:

Z Mei Skincare system

About a month ago, a publicist for Z Mei contacted me and asked me if I wanted to receive some of the skincare products to review. After some deliberation and trips to Mount Google, I decided to take a risk and agreed to try out the skincare products from this new brand. Z Mei is a skincare and body care line with products formulated by Dr. Janet Zand, a well-known herbologist, naturopath, and acupuncturist. What got me to try this skincare line is her commitment to create "a skin therapy system that treats the skin's needs without disturbing the skin's delicate natural balance."

My acne-prone sensitive skin is difficult to deal with and when that time of the month rolls around, no amount of salicylic acid or benzoyl peroxide can stop the zit beast. Maybe homeopathy is something I should look into.

Want to know what I think about Z Mei? Jump!

First of all, this is part one of my reviews of Z Mei Skincare. There are six products in this line: cleanser, toner, scrub, day cream, night cream, and eye cream. Reviewing all of them in one sitting is more than exhaustive. It's suicidal! Therefore, I decide to cut into two parts. Today, I am going to review the products than cleanse and tone. Tomorrow, we are going to talk about stuff that can moisturize the face. Deal?

Ok, let's move on. I need to put this forward about the sizes of these products: they're HUGE! If you don't believe me, look:

Purifying Facial Cleanser, 8 fl. oz (29.95)

This product is a liquid to foaming cleanser that you can pump out and wash your face. Usually, I remove my makeup with a makeup remover towelette first. Therefore, I have no idea if it's a good product to remove makeup. However, it is gentle and smells delicious. The smell is like hot chocolate with a touch of sugar cane. I have to brace myself, otherwise I would eat the foam. It does not make your skin feel dry or overly oily. In fact, after washing, my face always feels clean and moist.

INGREDIENTS: Aqua (Purified Deionized Water), Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate, Sodium Lauroamphoacetate, Lecithin*, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil*, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract*, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract*, Coix Lacryma-Jobi Ma-Yuen (Job’s Tears) Seed Extract*, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract*, Paeonia Albiflora (White Peony) Root Extract*, Angelica Polymorpha Sinensis (Dong Quai) Root Extract*, Rehmannia Chinensis Root Extract*, Chrysanthemum Parthenium (Feverfew) Flower Extract*, Lonicera Japonica (Honeysuckle) Flower Extract*, Sophora Flavescens (Shrubby Sophora) Root Extract*, Coptis Chinensis (Chinese Goldenthread) Root Extract*, Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Chinese Licorice) Root Extract*, Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A)*, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (Vitamin C)*, Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E)*, Tocotrienols (Vitamin E)*, Sodium PCA, Polyglyceryl-4 Caprylate, Decyl Glucoside, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, Diglycerin, Sodium Hyaluronate, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Soy Amino Acids, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Cetyl Hydroxyethylcellulose, Glycerin (Veg.), Saccharide Hydrolysate, Magnesium Aspartate, Glycine, Alanine, Creatine, Sodium Phytate, Origanum Vulgare Leaf Extract, Thymus Vulgaris (Thyme) Leaf Extract, Cinnamomum Zeylanicum Bark Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower Extract, Hydrastis Canadensis (Goldenseal) Root Extract, Citrus Aurantium Dulcis (Orange) Peel Extract, Vanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract,

Balancing Toner, 8 fl. oz ($27.95)

This is my favorite product. After washing my face, I spray the Balancing Toner all over it without getting it into my eyes. This toner should be named "Calm the H^*k Down" because it manages to calm my skin down even when I feel irritation crawling all over it.

The smell is herbal and reminds me of Chinese medicine my mom made me drink when I was young. It's not unpleasant but it's not your frou-frou flowery and fruity smelling toner either.

The balancing toner is a multi-use product: I use it to dilute my face moisturizers because they are very thick. While that is the toner's sole purpose, I also use it to spray on my kabuki brush before using it to apply my mineral foundation. To rehydrate my face on a hot day, this balancing toner works, too.

A word of caution: don't you ever lick it, ever! If it lands on your lips, wipe it out with a wash cloth or something. This thing tastes disgusting!

INGREDIENTS: Aqua (Purified Deionized Water), Glycerin (Veg.), Sodium PCA, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Sodium Hyaluronate, Lecithin*, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil*, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract*, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract*, Coix Lacryma-Jobi Ma-Yuen (Job’s Tears) Seed Extract*, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract*, Paeonia Albiflora (White Peony) Root Extract*, Angelica Polymorpha Sinensis (Dong Quai) Root Extract*, Rehmannia Chinensis Root Extract*, Chrysanthemum Parthenium (Feverfew) Flower Extract*, Lonicera Japonica (Honeysuckle) Flower Extract*, Sophora Flavescens (Shrubby Sophora) Root Extract*, Coptis Chinensis (Chinese Goldenthread) Root Extract*, Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Chinese Licorice) Root Extract*, Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A)*, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (Vitamin C)*, Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E)*, Tocotrienols (Vitamin E)*, Saccharide Hydrolysate, Magnesium Aspartate, Glycine, Alanine, Creatine, Witch Hazel, Polyglyceryl-4 Caprylate, Decyl Glucoside, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, Diglycerin, Alpha-Glucan Oligosaccharide, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, (Oat) Beta-Glucan, Sodium Phytate, Panthenol, Soy Amino Acids, Zinc PCA, Origanum Vulgare Leaf Extract, Thymus Vulgaris (Thyme) Leaf Extract, Cinnamomum Zeylanicum Bark Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower Extract, Hydrastis Canadensis (Goldenseal) Root Extract, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil, Cananga Odorata (Ylang-Ylang) Flower Extract, *Z Meizome Proprietary Complex.,

Exfoliating Scrub, 2 oz ($29.95)

The last item to clean your face is the Exfoliating Scrub. It serves as a dual-functioning item: you can use it as a face scrub or a face mask. My stingy self really want to take advantage of this scrub to its full potential and use it as a mask. Twice a week, I apply this scrub to my face and let it sit for 20 minutes. The kaolin clay in this scrub will harden and help remove the impurities. After it's dried out, I splash my face with water to soften the mask and scrub it on my skin to further remove dead skin cells.

This scrub is not so harsh, although it took me a while to get used to the scrubbing particles. After washing, my face feels moist and clean. It even glows sometimes.

A word of caution: if you use the cleanser, don't use the scrub immediately afterward. The scrub by itself is a cleanser and does not need to be preceded with another cleanser. Even with my oil slick skin, it manages to remove the oil and cleanse my skin.

INGREDIENTS: Aqua (Purified Deionized Water), Kaolin (China Clay), Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Sodium Methyl Cocoyl Taurate, Jojoba Esters, Glyceryl Stearate, Bentonite, Titanium Dioxide, Cetearyl Alcohol, Stearic Acid, Lecithin*, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil*, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Extract*, Camellia Sinensis (Green Tea) Leaf Extract*, Coix Lacryma-Jobi Ma-Yuen (Job’s Tears) Seed Extract*, Calendula Officinalis Flower Extract*, Paeonia Albiflora (White Peony) Root Extract*, Angelica Polymorpha Sinensis (Dong Quai) Root Extract*, Rehmannia Chinensis Root Extract*, Chrysanthemum Parthenium (Feverfew) Flower Extract*, Lonicera Japonica (Honeysuckle) Flower Extract*, Sophora Flavescens (Shrubby Sophora) Root Extract*, Coptis Chinensis (Chinese Goldenthread) Root Extract*, Glycyrrhiza Uralensis (Chinese Licorice) Root Extract*, Retinyl Palmitate (Vitamin A)*, Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (Vitamin C)*, Tocopheryl Acetate (Vitamin E)*, Tocotrienols (Vitamin E)*, Glycerin (Veg.), Squalane (Olive), Butyrospermum Parkii (Shea) Butter, Polyglyceryl-4 Caprylate, Decyl Glucoside, Sodium Lauroyl Glutamate, Diglycerin, Sodium PCA, Biosaccharide Gum-1, Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Extract, Glucosamine HCl, Algae Extract, Yeast Extract, Sodium Hyaluronate, Saccharide Hydrolysate, Magnesium Aspartate, Glycine, Alanine, Creatine, Linoleic Acid (Vitamin F), Glycine Soja (Soybean) Sterol, Phospholipids, Zinc PCA, Menthol, Sodium Phytate, Soy Amino Acids, (Oat) Beta-Glucan, Origanum Vulgare Leaf Extract, Thymus Vulgaris (Thyme) Leaf Extract, Cinnamomum Zeylanicum Bark Extract, Rosmarinus Officinalis (Rosemary) Leaf Extract, Lavandula Angustifolia (Lavender) Flower Extract, Hydrastis Canadensis (Goldenseal) Root Extract, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Fruit Extract, *Z Meizome Proprietary Complex.

This concludes part one of my review on Z Mei Skincare system. Please come back tomorrow for part two and my conclusion about this skincare line.

Disclaimer for FTC et. al.: the products reviewed in today's post were furnished by a publicist from Z Mei. Skincare is a personal experience. While these products work for me, they may or may not work for you. Please take this as my own experience with Z Mei and I commit to give you my most honest opinions. For more information regarding My Makeup Blog's disclosure policy, click here.

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