Coalface Cleanser by LUSH

Product Description

Who would have thought charcoal and liquorice could get along? One is tough and gritty, the other sweet and syrupy. But charcoal and liquorice could just be the odd couple of skin care, teaming up to fight oily, troubled skin in our Coalface cleanser. Powdered charcoal removes impurities and mildly exfoliates while liquorice heals naturally. Sandalwood oil tones the skin (and mediates should charcoal and liquorice disagree about anything).

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2247 in Beauty
• Brand: LUSH Cosmetics
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Features

• Sandalwood oil is extremely soothing while rosewood oil is useful in treating acne
• Convenient, easy to use
• Ideal for combination to oily skin

Lovely product
Let me begin by noting the obvious - nothing is going to be an overnight magic bullet for severe skin problems, especially acne. However, Coalface is one of the better products I've used. It provides regular, gentle exfoliation courtesy of the small charcoal flakes included in the soap and sops up oil without being excessively drying. I love the smell - a dark, licorice/sandalwood scent - not everyone is a fan, but it does fade fairly quickly. Though I too have seen complaints of staining, I haven't experienced this myself. Those used to more heavily packaged products do need to adjust to using a bar soap. Invest (not that expensive) in soap dishes that drain well. My choice is essentially a wooden grill type soap dish I found at IKEA - it allows full air circulation, and I set it on top of a folded paper towel (to catch any excess moisture dripping through) in my medicine cabinet between uses. Rather than rubbing the whole bar between my hands, I just scrub one damp palm across the top of the bar until I have a fair amount of soap, then rub hands together for lather. It's very simple, just a bit different than the procedure for using liquid face cleansers.
Lush's commitment to fair trade and reasonable, ethical business practices is also very appealing. For those worried about whether this product will work, I encourage you to visit your local Lush store for a sample (if possible) or contact the company directly to see what sample/return policies are for mail orders. While I haven't ordered on-line from them, all of my in-store experiences (at 3 different stores) have been quite good.

it works ok but it's not for me
The description and reviews for coalface and my sheer curiosity for a licorice and coal cleanser drew me to coalface. I have acne and it really hasn't helped at all with it, and the coal is a little too coarse for my skin and i have to use a lot of the product to get enough coal on my hands to spread it evenly around my face. On a positive note it leaves my skin squeaky clean and i enjoy the scent. When using this i have to use a moisturizer afterwords or my skin cracks and gets itchy.

Meh. No difference in acne
I tried Coalface in hopes that it would help control my über-oily, sensitive, blemish-prone skin. It removed oil without being too drying, but unfortunately it didn't make any difference in my acne. If anything, it made my forehead a little worse. Too bad, because I really wanted it to work! I ended up giving the bar to my husband, who doesn't have acne but finds this soap's color, scent, and exfoliating scrubbies appealing.

The scent is unusual for a facial cleanser -- black licorice with just a whisper of lemony tang -- and I actually really liked it. It smells fresh and no-nonsense, like it's ready to throw down with your acne and win.

I never had any staining on my towels or sink (all are white, btw) after using this product. As long as you wash all the lather off your face, your towels should be fine; Coalface doesn't leave a residue. Its lather is grayish-white and rinses off easily.

Try not to rub the bar directly on your face, as the little scrubby exfoliators can be sharp and irritating on sensitive skin. Instead, rub the bar between your hands and then put the lather on your face. If you have acne, I think it's worth trying Coalface just to see if it works for you.