Not too long ago, I received the occasional newsletter from Coastal Scents announcing their sales and new products and noticed the African Black Soap they were selling online. It looked kinda odd, but as I was reading the description, it’s got so many usage, from relieving acne, preventing itchiness and rashes, pore cleansing, washing hair and so much more. What really got me was this one long review on the product. So I ordered one, not from Coastal Scents, but from a seller on eBay. I ordered 1/2 a pound because I didn’t want to commit to buying anything bigger unless I knew it would work for me.

What is it exactly? The one I got is 100% natural. It contains no dyes, frangrance or preservatives and it came in a plastic tub for 1/2 pound. It can be packaged in a plastic bag depending on how much and where you buy it from. The feeling is somewhat similar to Play-Doh so it’s soft but firm enough to mold however you want.  You can cut it up to size and use little portions at a time. It has a light smell to it, like natural soap. And it lathers very well! To keep it last longer, I keep them in a wooden soap dish to keep it away from a pool of water. Otherwise it would melt and get slimy. You can find them at etsy.com.

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I know it looks odd but this is an awsome gift from mother nature!

On the first day I washed my face with this soap, my skin felt soft and tight, and I would feel this way throughout the day. What amazed me the most was how my skin wasn’t as oily as it would in the evening. And it seems like it helped smooth the appearance of my skin so my large pores look less noticable. Since then, I haven’t gotten any occasional breakouts, even during my period. I’ve also used this in the shower and my entire skin felt squeaky clean. I haven’t used this on my hair yet so I can’t comment on that. 1/2 a pound lasted me 3 weeks and I recently placed another order for 3 lbs. from another eBayer to stock up. I couldn’t get enough of this stuff. I suggest you give this a try and tell me what you think.

EDIT 2009.05.26: Okay, so this past weekend, it was mad hot, so I wore my sandals, which kinda ripped my skin off on one foot around the strap area. I took a shower using this soap that night and it felt like I had put rubbing alcohol. OUCH!!!! Also I recently shaved my armpits and it was stinging a bit. Not sure if it was the soap I recently bought from another eBayer, but I never had this problem from the first merchant. So if you want to try, I suggest you buy it from Coastal Scents or the eBay merchant garybuilt2last.