Spending RM280 on this cleanser gets you an unremarkable blend of water, plant waxes, and olive and sunflower seed oils. This hard-to-rinse mix makes for an unsuitable option for those with oily/combination skin types, as well as for those prone to breakouts. Wait a minute, there’s something familiar about this review! That’s because Refreshing Cleanser is virtually identical to their Regenerating Cleanser. The difference is that this version lacks the abrasive apricot seeds—which is a good thing—but it still contains a potently irritating blend of citrus oils and other fragrant extracts (see More Info for details).

As this is a near duplicate of the Regenerating Cleanser, much of that review applies. Tata Harper’s Refreshing Cleanser would have been an ideal choice for dry to very dry skin types (not prone to blemishes), except for the generous dose of problematic ingredients. Despite the claims to be free of detergents (which is strange, given there isn’t anything wrong with detergents, which is just another name for cleansing agents), it does contain a small amount of the cleansing agents coco glucoside and cetearyl glucoside.

Like all of Harper's products, they state that this product contains "Fragrances from 100% natural clinical grade essential oils,” but there isn't any such classification or standard for essential oils. These ingredients are little more than fragrance, and fragrance isn’t skin care. Perfume can be wonderful when selectively placed behind the ears or on pulse points, but applied all over the face it is 100% irritating for all skin types just about 100% of the time.

The marketing claims for the Refreshing Cleanser cannot make good on their promises, just as is true for their Regenerating Cleanser. Neither pomegranate nor willow bark are capable of exfoliating skin (even if they did, you rinse them away before they can do their work), and kaolin clay has no benefit toward unclogging pores. The detoxifying claims are bunk as well—your skin doesn’t store toxins of any kind that require removal.