Review: Coastal Scents African Black Soap!

Description on Coastal Scents website: Coastal Scents black soap is the original thing! It is imported from Ghana where it is hand pressed and processed by women in a small village in Ghana. It contains no scents, preservatives OR chemicals.

For centuries, Ghanaians have used Black Soap to help relieve acne, oily skin, clear blemishes and various other skin issues. It is known to help with skin irritations and conditions such as Eczema and Psoriasis as well. African Black soap has also been used to achieve beautiful skin. Africans have also used this natural soap for bathing and washing their hair. It's excellent for removing make-up too! Black Soap will leave your skin soft and clear.
 

Suggested Uses:
Traditionally, African Black Soap has been used to treat rashes, acne, eczema, dandruff, body odor and much more. The African black soap helps keep the skin clean and helps against premature facial lines. It is great for showering, bathing, washing of the hair, face and the feet. Black Soap is recommended for the young and the old. Black soap leaves the skin smooth and soft & as a facial soap it is excellent for clearing acne.

African black soap has been used in Africa for the treatment of rashes, ring worm, eczema and also as a natural hair shampoo to avoid itchy and dry scalps. 

Storage:

African black soap should not be exposed to excess water and stored in a cool dry place. African black soap is soft and has a very high content of natural glycerin.

Because of its natural glycerin rich content it absorbs moisture from the air and becomes softer if not stored in a cool dry place or in a sealed polythene bags.

Ingredients:

Cocos nucifera(Coconut Oil),butyrospermum parkii,(Raw Shea butter), Cocoa Pod ash, Aqua(Water)
Elaeis guineensis (Palm Kernel Oil)

To read more about African Black Soap on the Coastal Scents website, click here.

The price is this soap is $12.95 for 17 oz. A standard Dove bar of soap weighs in at 4.25 oz. So you can think of it like 4 standard bars of soap combined into one. But, it appears a little larger because it's not as dense as a standard bar of soap. I think the price is very reasonable.

How I use it: I typically use it on my face by rinsing my face with water, then lathering a small piece of soap in my hand and working the lather all over my face, avoiding the eye area. Then, rinse & pat my face dry. Sometimes I use it the same way, but while I'm in the shower.

I also like using it on my body while I'm in the shower by lathering it through my loofah - just as I would with any soap.

Review: I'm not even sure what really possessed me to purchase this product several months ago. I think while placing an order on Coastal Scents, I stumbled upon African Black Soap on accident and saw the rave reviews so I took the chance in purchasing it. It's a little difficult to describe the texture. It feels like soap, but it's not dense like a bar of soap. It's soft and a little crumbly. I like cutting the soap in slices and then in 1/4" pieces. It's a good size and it will last me about two weeks with daily use, sometimes less. The soap itself, because it isn't dense, is pliable. Once I've cut the soap in squares, I can mold it into a ball.

I like storing the soap in a large zip lock bag inside a Rubbermaid container to keep it away from any moisture or air. The smell is described as "earthy", I think it just smells like your traditional bar of (non fragrance) soap. It lathers well - it doesn't "over" lather or "under" lather, if you know what I mean. I don't care for soaps that don't lather, and although I could use a little more lather, I'm satisfied with it. What I really love about this soap is the amazing job it does at removing my makeup. Once I lather it on my face and rinse, everything is gone. No trace of makeup in sight and no residue left behind - and I'm not sure I can really say that about any of my cleansers, although Cetaphil for Normal/Oily does a pretty good job. Once my face is dry, it feels slightly taught and very clean. A moisturizer is very necessary! When I first started using this soap, I used it every day with an exfoliation brush, and I loved it. Until a few days later I had a bunch of dry spots pop up around my mouth. I realized since then, it's a bit harsh for my skin and using it in conjunction with a harsh brush was too much for my skin. I think this is a fantastic soap for those who would like a cleanser that provides good oil control as well as those who suffer from acne and breakouts. This does such a great job cleaning my skin that pimples don't last very long on my face while using this. I also like using this soap on my body, but avoiding my legs, because my legs are quite dry. It works great for the rest of my body, and wonderful on my upper back (which I tend to breakout here and there). I love that it leaves my skin feeling squeaky clean, yet soft & doesn't leave any residue on my skin or an oil slick in my bath tub. Overall, a really great product and I will be purchasing more when I run out!

UPDATE: Although, I mentioned it's too harsh for my skin in conjunction with a brush, I actually started using it daily with my Olay Pro-X, and I haven't had any dryness. A good moisturizer is key! I load up on the moisturizer at night and my skin is looking great!

NOTD: Orange Nails with NYC Times Square Tangerine Creme!

Three (3) coats of NYC Long Wearing Enamel #112 Times Square Tangerine Creme & One (1) coat of Seche Vite Top Coat.

NYC Long Wearing Enamel #112 Times Square Tangerine Creme

NYC Long Wearing Enamel #112 Times Square Tangerine Creme

Orange is possibly my least favorite color, so I wasn't all that thrilled with the Summer 2011 orange nail trend. But, I wanted to give it a try and ended up picking up NYC Long Wearing Enamel in Times Square Tangerine Creme. It's not pumpkin orange, but it's a really pretty coral-orange.

The formula is really nice. It's a cream formula that applies very evenly. With two coats, my nail line was dark and visible, so I applied three for a more opaque look. I really like the color, and depending if the lasting power is good, I'll be wearing this color more often.

I also wore my favorite orange lipstick today, MAC Morange. They both went together very nice!

MAC Morange Lipstick

By the way, thank you all for the birthday wishes on Twitter yesterday!! I had a wonderful time!

Designer Perfect Brushes at Big Lots for $1!

Periodically (maybe a couple times a month) I like to check out my local Big Lots and Dollar Tree stores for great deals. It's always a hit or miss. Half of the time I walk out with nothing and the other half of the time I find something good. If one of your favorite drugstore items became discontinued, Big Lots or your local dollar store are good places to check periodically for those items. 

They seemed to have a lot of ELF items, which was most likely an overstock. They were all still a dollar each, so no real deal on them. If you're a fan of Maybelline's Color Sensational Lipstick in the shade Pink Please, there were several tubes for $1.50. (View my past review here) I actually gave my tube to a friend because I didn't wear it much. Of course every store will have a different selection, so what I find at my Big Lots.. you may not be able to find at yours - and vise versa.

Cosmetic Aisle at Big Lots

Cosmetic Aisle at Big Lots

Something that did catch my eye though were some brushes, more specifically, a whole brush set for $1. None of the bristles felt stiff and scratchy, so for $1, who could go wrong? I also picked up a few single brushes. (I apologize in advance if the photos aren't the greatest quality. They are taken indoors with flash)

From left to right: Powder Brush, Duo Eyeshadow Brush, Wiper Blending Eyeshadow Brush, Five Brush Mini Kit with Zip Purse.

Five Brush Mini Kit with Zip Purse

The Five Brush Mini Kit contains a blush/powder brush, foundation brush and three double sided brushes for the eyes, brows and concealer. I've already used each of the brushes and they are surprisingly good quality for $1. The only brush I find useless is the brush on the opposite side of the angled brush. It's an angled sponge for smudging.. and I find the sponge too dense (and rubbery?) to work well. Also, the angled brush is a little stiff so can't really be used to line the eyes... but it works great for the brows.

Brushes included in the Five Brush Mini Kit (excluding the powder & foundation brushes)

What's cool is that the kit comes with a little zip around carrying case which is perfect for travel. It's great to pop in your bag, use for traveling or even to keep in your glove compartment in your car for emergencies!

Carrying case for the Five Brush Mini Kit

Left to Right: Powder Brush, Wiper Blending Eyeshadow Brush and Duo Eyeshadow Brush.

The three brushes I purchased separately are also great quality. The Wiper Blending brush is like a dupe for the MAC 224 or Sigma Tapered Blending Brush. 

The only thing I dislike about these brushes is the appearance of them (*cough* ugly). I prefer black brushes to match all of my other brushes. Nevertheless, these brushes are great for travel, or like I mentioned good to keep in your car, etc. 

Have you found any "too good to pass by" deals lately? Do share!

Shu Uemura Mini Eyelash Curler!

Shu Uemura Mini Eyelash Curler

Every time I go to ULTA, I usually raid the clearance rack before anything else to see if I find any good deals. I was a little short on time as the store was about to close and I had a 20% coupon that expired that day.. but I managed to find a Shu Uemura Mini Eyelash Curler clearanced to $14.49. Although that doesn't seem too cheap, the 20% off coupon took an extra $3 off, so not bad at all. It was actually missing the replacement pad, which is most likely why it was on clearance (or because Shu isn't even sold anymore in the US - maybe I got lucky?), but I figured I wouldn't need one any time soon. I've had my regular Shu curler for at least four years and the pad is still in mint condition.

Shu Uemura Mini Eyelash Curler, front & back.

Shown next to a dime for scale.

I pictured it next to a dime for scale to show how small it really is (and in comparison the regular Shu below). It's roughly 1/3 the size of a regular Shu.

Left: Standard Shu Curler, Right: Mini Shu Curler

In the past four years or so, my Shu lash curler is the only lash curler I have used. Prior to my Shu, I would purchase a new lash curler from my local Dollar Store every month. By the end of the month, the pad would be slit through the middle and the hinges would most likely be loose. My Shu has been carelessly tossed in my handbag almost every day and has withstood lots of handling and it's still in perfect condition. It's really the best curler I've tried. It doesn't pull my mascara off, pull my lashes out or pinch my lids.

Everyone has a different eye shape, so some may have trouble finding a lash curler that fits to the contour of their eye. If you have very rounded eyelids, or very flat eyelids (not only those - you may have very small eyes, very wide eyes, etc) you may find that your lash curler skips some of your lashes. So, while most of your lashes are sticking up, the ones in the corners may be sticking down.

Whats great about the mini is, you can get to all of your lashes with precision. No lashes left out! In the picture below I curled my lashes with one coat of mascara on. But, with this lash curler, I find it much easier to curl your lashes without mascara on. When wearing mascara, it was a little more difficult to get in between my row of lashes to curl them all the way across.

All you have to do is start out in the beginning of your lashline, clamp the curler, release, and continue working your way across your lashline.

I know Japonesque also makes a similar style curler that is available at ULTA, sold for around $10.

Do you own this curler or similar? Love it? Or was it a complete waste of money?