Testing ZAO: organic, vegan & refillable makeup.

Apr 4, 2019 | 0 comments

Some of you might already have seen the video in the bottom of this post, but I just thought I wanted to give you my written verdict as well. I invested in a bunch of products from the makeup brand ZAO a couple of weeks ago, so that I could test out a more international alternative to my Danish fave Miild. I’ve got followers from both the US, UK and Australia and so I wanted to be able to spread the word about a brand similar to Miild, that you can get your hands on basically all over the world. Entering ZAO! I’ve read lots of different reviews about these products, and because some of them have been SO different I wanted to try for myself before jumping to any conclusions. We’re all different; we have different preferences in regards to what we expect our makeup to do for us, different skintypes etc. So sometimes it just makes more sense to just give it a go yourself, and see how things work out other than always relying on other people’s experiences. This post is by no means sponsored, even though I’m aware that it might seem a bit “product-placement”-ish. I simply think that makeup brands like ZAO deserve way more attention than what they get in the beauty scene.

Buy my jewelry designs here:
Meadow necklace with extra Dune pendant, long curb chain with Dune pendant, Dune earrings, Starling ring

Nogle af jer har nok allerede set videoen i bunden af dette indlæg, men tænkte jeg lige ville skrible mine overordnede tanker ned sort på hvidt også. Jeg valgte nemlig, at investere i en stak produkter fra makeup mærket ZAO for nogle uger siden, sådan så jeg kunne teste et alternativ til favoritmærket Miild. Jeg har mange følgere fra både England, USA og Australien og derfor kunne jeg godt tænke mig, at sprede budskabet om et lignende, bæredygtigt makeup mærke, som er tilgængeligt flere steder i verden. Og der ramte ZAO plet! Jeg har læst mange forskellige reviews om netop dette mærke rundt omkring på nettet, og fordi nogle af dem var SÅ forskellige som de var så tænkte jeg, at det var bedre at prøve selv. Vi er allesammen forskellige; har forskellige præferencer i forhold til hvor meget eller hvor lidt vores makeup skal kunne, forskellige hudtyper osv. Så nogle gange må man prøve sig lidt frem, og ikke altid stole blindt på andre folks erfaringer. Dette indlæg er iøvrigt ikke sponsoreret på nogen måde, selvom det måske godt kan virke sådan lidt “product-placement” agtigt. Jeg synes bare mærker som ZAO fortjener meget mere opmærksomhed end de får.


Product links are in the bottom of this post

Packaging

As some of you might already have figured out, one of the cool things about ZAO is the fact that their palettes are reusable. Inside all of the palettes you’ll find a thin piece of magnet, which keeps the product in place. You can then easily click out the metal plate that beholds the product itself, and then replace this with a new one once it’s empty (makes sense? Otherwise I’m demonstrating it in the video below). You can also buy these big palettes that can contain more than one product at a time. That way it’s easy to bring all your favourite powder products with you when you travel, or just if you want them all to be gathered in the same place in your beauty drawer. ZAO challenges our obsessive use of plastic, so all their palettes are made in bamboo. Bamboo is one of the fastest growing plants in the world, which makes it a highly sustainable alternative to plastic, which comes from a ressource we can not regain in the same way as something that is naturally grown. And because the purpose is that you buy the palettes once, and then hold on to them you almost can’t go wrong. I love this whole idea of reusing and reducing waste!

One downside I’d like to add is the amount of cotton bag packaging though. Every single product arrived in each of their own little cotton bag, individually designed and made to fit the product. Imagine the size of this cotton bag for the lipstick – I mean, what am I ever going to store in that teeny tiny little bag? I would never put the lipstick back in the bag again for storage or travelling, because then I’d rather wack all my products in one toiletry bag altogether. So for me, it would be more than okay if they skipped this part of the experience, because I think it’s kind of a waste. Besides that I actually wrote a direct message to ZAO and also to the sellers I bought my products from via the German Amazon, because the amounts of plastic bubblewrap used for shipping alarmed me a little. I know it’s only been to protect the products from getting smashed during shipping, and the service in total was great. So I kindly wrote both parties with a kind and positive vibe to let them know my thoughts on this. I just find it problematic, that the individual sellers handle products from a brand – which entire storytelling builds on creating less waste – with careless use of single-use plastic like that. So that experience was passed on as constructive criticism and it was well received too. I can’t say anything about how other sellers or shops handle the products though, this was just my experience on the German Amazon. Just a sidenote.

Som nogle af jer måske har luret, så er én af de fede ting ved ZAO, at deres paletter kan genbruges. Inde i alle deres paletter er der en magnetplade, og indholdet kan derfor nemt klikkes ud og erstattes med et nyt (giver det mening? Ellers demonstrerer jeg det i videoen nedenfor). Man kan også købe store firkantede paletter, hvor man kan have mere end et produkt opbevaret. Det synes jeg er mega smart, især hvis man nu skal ud og rejse eller bare gerne vil have så meget orden i sin makeupskuffe som muligt. Så kan du have alle dine favorit pudderprodukter samlet ét sted. ZAO udfordrer vores overdrevne brug af plastik, og derfor er deres paletter fremstillet i bambus. Bambus er én af de hurtigstvoksende planter i verden, hvilket gør den til et meget bæredygtigt alternativ til netop plastik, der jo ikke på samme måde stammer fra en ressource vi kan udvinde igen og igen. Og så er meningen netop, at du køber paletterne én gang sådan at det kun er indholdet du med tiden skal skifte ud. Hele denne genbrugs-tankegang er jeg kæmpe fan af!

Ét minus jeg vil give ZAO er dog mængden af emballage ved hvert enkelt produkt. Nok bruges der ikke plastik til indpakningen, men alle mine produkter kom i deres egen individuelle bomuldspose, skræddersyet til det enkelte produkt. Forestil dig størrelsen af denne pose til en læbestift – hvad skal jeg ærligt talt bruge den lille bitte pose til efterfølgende? Jeg ville aldrig putte læbestiften tilbage i den igen, ikke engang hvis jeg skulle ud og rejse. Der samler jeg alt min makeup i én større bomuldspose eller toilettaske. Så for min skyld måtte de gerne droppe denne del af oplevelsen, da jeg synes det er spild! Udover det, så skrev jeg faktisk både en besked til ZAO og direkte til de sælgere jeg købte mine produkter af på det tyske Amazon, da alle de 3 sælgere jeg benyttede mig af brugte store mængder bobble plastik til, at pakke produkterne ind i ved forsendelse. Jeg er med på, at det har været for at beskytte produkterne, og servicen samt leveringstiden var helt fin. Så selvfølgelig skrev jeg det i god mening og med en positiv vibe. Jeg synes bare det er en problematisk håndtering af et produkt og brand, hvis storytelling generelt bygger på mindre brug af plastik og spild af ikke-genanvendelige ressourcer generelt. Så den oplevelse blev venligt videregivet og også positivt modtaget. Skal dog ikke kunne sige noget om, hvordan produkterne bliver håndteret hvis man køber dem udenfor Amazon, så blot en lille sidebemærkning.

The products

Overall I’m very satisfied with the products! I bought products that fit my existing makeup routine, so I could give you guys the full experience with them. In the video below I’m reviewing every single product on its own as I apply them. So if there’s a products you’ve been wondering about or you’ve been wanting to try out, maybe the video can help you making up your mind. My fave has to be the highlighter – it slides on to the skin so smoothly, it doesn’t look chalky nor does it leave any huges chunks of glitter on the skin. It gives you so much glow in a beautiful, natural way! Besides all the products are perfume-free, vegan, organic and allergy-friendly. So there’s plenty of reasons to give ZAO a chance.

Normally I only apply concealer on selected areas on a daily basis, so I hardly ever wear foundation. But I decided to give their foundation a try anyway. I mixed it with a bit of daycream because it’s a bit thick for my taste (not sure it would be suitable for people with dry skin). You could of course also mix it with SPF to protect your skin during spring and summer. I found that it made it a bit easier to work with, and it stayed in place for most of the day even though I did mix it with moisturizer. So for those periods where I need a bit of extra coverage and I want my skin to look a bit more even, this is a combo I’d gladly use again and again. The lipstick I bought is the only thing that didn’t really live up to my expectations. The colour of the stick versus how it actually looked on my lips was way off. The colour was meant to be old rose, but when I applied it – it turned out almost bubblegum pink. So right there I’d prefer being able to test them in a physical store before buying if I were to find the perfect, nude colour for me. I’ve made a list with shops/sellers down below if you’re keen on getting your hands on any of these products.

Alt i alt er jeg super tilfreds med produkterne! Jeg købte produkter der passede til hvert step af min nuværende makeup rutine, så jeg kunne dele den fulde oplevelse med jer. I videoen nedenfor beskriver jeg alle produkterne enkeltvis, samtidig med jeg påfører dem. Så hvis der er et produkt du er i tvivl om, eller længe gerne har villet teste, så kan du se hvad jeg synes om dem i videoen. Min favorit må være highlighteren – den glider simpelthen så smukt på huden ved påførelse, helt uden at klumpe sammen og uden at den efterlader store glimmerstykker på huden. Den giver simpelthen så meget glød på en smuk, naturlig måde! Desuden er produkterne parfume-fri, veganske, økologiske og allergi-venlige. Så der er masser af grunde til, at give ZAO en chance.

Normalt bruger jeg kun concealer til hverdag til min base på huden, men besluttede mig også for at prøve deres foundation. Den er en lille smule tyk til min smag (nok ikke god til dig med tør hud), så jeg valgte at blande lidt af den med min dagcreme. Du kan også sagtens blande den med lidt solfaktor, for at give din hud ekstra beskyttelse. Ihvertfald synes jeg, at det gjorde den lidt nemmere at arbejde med, og jeg synes også den holdt sig pæn langt op af dagen på trods af at den jo var blandet op med creme. Så til de perioder hvor min hud driller eller ser ekstra ujævn ud, så vil jeg med glæde gøre brug af denne kombination! Deres læbestift er det eneste produkt der slet ikke levede op til mine forventninger, da farven på selve produktet/stiften kontra den farve den efterlod på mine læber slet ikke så ud som jeg forventede. Farven på læbestiften skulle være henad gammel rosa, men den så helt sådan tyggegummi-pink ud når den blev påført. Så der ville jeg nok fortrække, at kunne teste dem fysisk, hvis jeg skulle finde den perfekte, nude farve. Jeg har iøvrigt lavet en forhandlerliste nedenfor, hvis du skulle have lyst til, at teste disse produkter selv.

EU (AMAZON.DE)
Foundation
Concealer
Powder
Bronzer/dark powder
Blush
Highlighter
Pearly eyeshadow
Eyeshadow (brows)
Mascara
Lipstick (the one I used)
Lipstick (more the colour I wanted, or col. 467)
Palette for powders

EU (SUZTAIN – SHIPS WITHIN DK & UK)
Find ZAO here

US
Foundation
Concealer
Powder
Blush
Highlighter
Pearly eyeshadow
Eyeshadow (brows)
Mascara
Lipstick (the one I used, I think col. 469 or 467 would be better)
Palette for powders

AUSTRALIA
Find ZAO here

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