Lush Review: CoalFace

What they at Lush say:

Soothing liquorice and charcoal cleansing bar. Ground up charcoal is very good for your skin. It helps to absorb excess sebum from the skin's surface and acts as a mild exfoliator. We put it into CoalFace with skin softening liquorice root with rosewood and sandalwood essential oils, both rumoured to help cells regenerate and to slow the arrival of wrinkles. Although coal and diamond are both made of the carbon molecule, in this case, charcoal is a girl's (or boy's) best friend.

Lush Review

Liquorice Root Decoction (Glycyrrhiza glabra), Propylene Glycol, Rapeseed Oil; Coconut Oil (Brassica napus; Cocos nucifera), Water (Aqua), Perfume, Sodium Stearate, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Powdered Charcoal, Sandalwood Oil (Santalum austro-caledonicum vieill and Fusanus spicatus), Rosewood Oil (Aniba rosaeodora), Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Editronate, *Geraniol, *Linalool, Silver Edible Lustre

*Occurs naturally in essential oils

I'd liken CoalFace to Dark Angels sister product. It's the soap version of the Rhassoul Mud and charcoal exfoliating scrub. When you've had enough of scrubbing your skin with Dark Angels, you switch to CoalFace which does the same job of absorbing the oil in your skin. It leaves your skin feeling rather dry and tight after a wash, so if that's a problem for you, leave it well and truly alone. If you're using a moisturiser that shouldn't be a problem anyway. I don't know who washes their face in 2010 and doesn't slap a lick of moisture on their face. Once I wash with CoalFace, I then spray my face with Tea Tree Toner, remove it with a cotton wool pad and this seems to combat that initial dry feeling post CoalFace.

I find this product very messy, and it leaves an awful soap scum in the sink. The sink tidy up post CoalFace is a pain in the arse, especially if you're in a hurry in the morning or tired last thing at night. I'm currently flitting between CoalFace and Dark Angels to see how they fair on the skin. It's a little to early to tell, but at the moment Dark Angels is winning, so much so I went back and purchased the black tub. I'm using a sample of CoalFace which looks like it will last me quite a long while. If you have problem areas on your chest or back which maybe overly oily or problematic, it maybe an idea if it doesn't work on your face to try it out on those areas in the shower.

I will definitely give it a fair go. No breakouts as of yet, and it gets my face extremely clean and zaps the oil right away.I'm not a fan of the post taught feeling though.

Don't commit to purchasing CoalFace as it may not be for you. I always recommend to go into your local Lush store and ask for a sample. It's what they do best, they'd be more than happy to.

CoalFace is best for oily/combination skin types.