This is the first charcoal soap I’ve made since I began my soap obsession. It contains palm oil, soybean oil, extra virgin olive oil, and castor oil - of course a dose of activated charcoal too. I decided not to put any frangrance or essential oils since I wanted a really pure facial bar. I figure it would be less harsh on the face. But thinking back, I could use a bit of peppermint or tea tree to hide the “nutty” smell of castor.

With this recipe, I decided to leave out coconut oil. And I think it’s looking very good. Coconut tends to make my other soap bars much harder. The palm oil does help it harden a bit better here too. The soybean & olive oils are both moisturizing for the skin. The castor oil also nourishes the skin, but the best part for me is that it helps with the removal of blackheads. The castor oil makes more of a soft bar. But it will harden up the longer it cures. And the super ingredient is the activated charcoal, helps to detox your skin and remove impurities.

When I first used this on my face, I noticed that it lather up really well. I also think it help remove those little annoying dry skin and other stuff near my nose and lips. You can’t really see it with a regular bathroom mirror. But if you use a 7x mirror, you’ll be surprise at how giant those little skin tags look. So after a good face wash, I took the mirror to check and was very happy that the charcoal did it’s job.

Handmade soaps are the best, they still have the naturally occurring glycerin in them and it won’t ever leave your skin dry like commercial soap. It’s also biodegradable and made of all vegetable oils. Once you go handmade, you’ll never want to buy commercial soap or body washes again. Especially since they are loaded with tons of difficult to pronounce ingredients. Keep it simple, and keep it clean. Your skin will thank you.

Update: I saw Lush’s version too. They have an almost cult following when it comes to soap. But I think it’s overpriced and a bit in your face brand. But the soap is creatively named, CoalFace. It contains alot more ingredients including; Propylene Glycol, Sodium Stearate, Rosewood Oil (Aniba rosaeordora), Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Powdered Charcoal, Sandalwood Oil (Santalum album), Glycerine, Sodium Chloride, EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, *Linalool, Perfume, Silver Edible Lustre (Potassium aluminum silicate, Titanium dioxide, Iron oxides and hydroxides). Some of the ingredients I would skip is Sodium Lauryl Sufate. But I like the idea of adding Rosewood and Sandalwood oil. The bar is 3.5 oz and sells for $10.50. Wow! But I still think mine is better.