Corallista Makeup Blog

Coal Face is ideal for those of you who loving washing your faces with a good, old-fashioned bar of soap. Except, there’s nothing antiquated about this preservative-free facial cleanser. Inspired by the complexion bar in ‘Annie Hall’, we created Coal Face for combination to oily faces. Powdered charcoal absorbs excess sebum and acts as a mild exfoliator, while rosewood and sandalwood oils reduce redness and clear up blemishes. Use Coal Face daily for clear, balanced skin.

Price : Rs 655 for 100 gms ($12.95 for 3.5 oz.)

Skincare Wednesday : Lush COALFACE Facial Cleansing Bar Review

How to use :

Start by moistening your face and the cleansing bar with water. Rub the bar in your hands to create a lather. Apply to your face in a gentle, circular motion, avoiding the eye area. Rinse thoroughly with clean water and pat dry. For best results follow with the LUSH toner and moisturizer that best suit your skin type.

My take on the product

I’d been dying to try out a Lush skin care product after hearing so many rave reviews of Lush cleansers and the SA at Lush store, Lokhandwala suggested CoalFace for my February combination-oily skin. Like most Lush products, this cleanser comes by weight and one gets an irregular shape of black bar soap that looks a lot like a lump of coal! It contains fine charcoal particles which are responsible for exfoliation and you can see them glistening at the surface of the bar at certain angles of light.

The best way to use this facial bar is to cut out small pieces for each week or so otherwise it becomes too large to handle. Everytime you wash your face, just massage this small cut out piece into your palms with water to work up a lather and apply the lather on moistened face. It does not lather a lot but sufficiently to give a clean feeling. There is a slight grittiness to the lather because of the charcoal particles but it just gives mild exfoliation and does not feel harsh on the skin. After rinsing off the lather, the skin doesn’t feel dehydrated at all, in fact some days I have also skipped moisturizer after washing my face with it.

The soap has a really nice scent -not exactly very freshening but I do like it.  The first thing I noticed after trying this cleanser was that my skin felt really soft! I’m guessing its the rosewood and sandalwood oil working their magic. And while my skin looked fairly clean and reasonably bright, I was surprized to find some residue on the cotton swab which I used to apply toner. Either it doesn’t cleanse the face of all dirt/impurities OR it leaves behind a very thin film of perhaps softening oils that is undetectable to the naked eye but comes off with toner. Either way, I do not like the feeling of residue on my face after cleansing and this is one of the biggest drawbacks of this product for me!

I used this for 2.5-3 months and while I did not see any miraculous change in my skin, I did not see any deterioration either. My skin did feel really soft and my breakouts were controlled but not eliminated. I didn’t see any significant change in the level of oiliness of my face either. I think for someone who has really troubled skin, it might be really good product. I have fairly well maintained skin and this worked decently for me but I will  not be repurchasing this. Firstly, I do not like the residue I get cleansing and secondly, cutting out small bars every few days feels like too much work!

The 100 gm bar will easily last for 4-6 months. I have used mine for about 3 months and I’ve barely gone through half of it! Make sure to buy a piece with an expiry margin of at least 6 months, I bought mine in Feb and later on realized that it was expiring in May. I will have to use up the remaining bar for my pedicure now as I do not want to risk using it on my face!

Skincare Wednesday : Lush COALFACE Facial Cleansing Bar Review

The GOOD about Lush COALFACE Facial Cleansing Bar :

1. Works out a decent lather with water
2. Makes the skin soft and smooth right from the first use
3. Controls breakouts and oiliness (to some extent)
4. Does not dry out the skin
5. Lasts a long time
6. Suitable for sensitive skin

The NOT-SO-GOOD about Lush COALFACE Facial Cleansing Bar :

Skincare Wednesday : Lush COALFACE Facial Cleansing Bar Review

Overall Verdict

Lush COALFACE Facial Cleansing Bar is black soap cleanser for the face that contains charcoal particles for exfoliation and oil control. The bar lathers mildly with water and reveals softer,smoother skin after rinsing. However, it leaves a residue that comes with toner which does not give a very *clean* feeling that oily-skinned women like me crave! It does help in maintaining the oil balance of the skin and keeping breakouts in control but using it is too much of a hassle as it needs to be used in smaller pieces for easy handling. I have fairly well maintained skin and it worked decently for me, I think it will give better results with someone who has more troubled skin!

Rating : 3.75/5