Activated charcoal has been around for years. It’s used in hospitals to treat alcohol and drug overdoses, because put rather simplistically, it attracts toxins in the stomach before they have a chance to invade the bloodstream and the whole body.
Charcoal also does a rather fine job of magnetising dirt and oil – in your charcoal cleanser, masque or soap (and even Konjac Sponge), leaving your pores looking cleaner and tighter.
Addictive though it might be to “charcoal yourself” into a squeaky clean state every morning and evening (best enjoyed NOT in a white bathrobe) you actually want to take it (very) easy with carbon beauty masks, for example – one or twice a week is fine, and if your skin is sensitive or dry, you might want to pass on the whole charcoal story altogether. On the other hand if it’s oily, prepare to get addicted (if you haven’t posted a black masque face on Instagram already).
It’s even filtering into toothbrushes with counter-intuitive and intuitively unappealing black charcoal bristles, although the results on the skincare front are more instant (and satisfying) so you’ll have to give those charcoal toothbrushes a longer run.
Black is back and it’s everywhere. All hail charcoal beauty, the back-to-nature skin detox your oily skin will be grateful for.
Here are some of the most interesting charcoal beauty products on the market at the moment – and please share yours, if you’ve found one or two that have really made a difference!
C H A R C O A L B E A U T Y P I C K S
First up, SUKIN’s Anti-Pollution Oil-Balancing Facial Masque (in the main pic, above). SUKIN is a great brand – super affordable, and there are more products in their Oil-Balancing range with charcoal, too.
Up next, one for foaming cleanser fans:
Little Barn Apothecary’s Foaming Face Cleanser
Prepare to be addicted. Wet face, apply strip, let it harden, wait about 15 mins and peel off…goodbye dirt and oily stuff (whoo!) So much fun you’ll want to repeat every day (but don’t!)
Yes To…Charcoal. Have bar will travel…
Keeping it simple. Beautycounter’s Charcoal Purifying Mask.
B is for BE GONE, large, oily pores!
More grey than black but this one you can use more often…if you’re a Konjac Sponge fan and your skin veers towards oily, this Konjac family member is for you.
Continuing the oily skin theme, up soon: six products that’ll help calm acne and breakouts when you feel like nothing’s working that well right now…(I’ll post it in a couple of days!) x