First Impressions: Shea Moisture African Black Soap facial system

I am going on a skin adventure. Tag along for the ride.

Recently, my skin has decided it doesn't want to grown up and has reverted back to it's 16 year old self. My chin, forehead, nose and, for the first time in my life, cheeks have exploded in acne, the likes of which I haven't seen in a decade. I'll attribute it to wedding planning stress but, still, it's no fun being a nearly 30 year old woman with the skin of a hormonally imbalanced teenager. And it is defiantly something that I do not want to have to worry about on my wedding day. With several months still to go before the big day, now is the time to test a few new products to see what will be my saving grace.

My Body Shop tea tree toner has long since run dry and I am starting to run out of my face wash as well. Right before I was about to go brave the Mall of America to get some more, I noticed this little set at Target in the hippy dippy face care products section.

It peak my interest, so I decide to do some research on this African Black soap thing. It's a kind of soap that is generally made from plantain and cocoa pod ash and it's been used in Africa (Ghana in particular) for ages to treat acne, eczema, dark spots, oily skin and other skin issues. I came up with a lot of reviews from many different sites claiming that it was a miracle worker for suffers of acne. And the Shea Moisture line in particular had excellent reviews. Plus they are cruelty free, use a lot of organic materials and their ingredients are fair traded and sustainable. So why not pick it up and give it a shot. And BONUS! It was on sale!

Inside the box are four products, all claiming to "clear and balance blemished, oily skin." You get the face and body soap bar, a facial scrub, a facial mask and a moisturizer. And they are all really good sizes, too. After checking their website, the scrub and the moisturizer appear to be full size. The actual soap bar is 3.5 oz vs 8 oz of the full size bar and the facial mask is a trial size.

African Black Soap Face & Body Bar

Upon opening the soap package, I noticed that this is not the traditional, true African Black soap. That soap tends to be crumbly and it looks a little... well... a little like poo. I'm not kidding. Do a google image search on it and see what I'm talking about. The Shea Moisture bar has a much more appealing look to it. The smell is sweet and slightly earthy. I can't quite put my finger on what it smells like, but it is defiantly pleasant. One thing I did notice is that the ingredients on the box are COMPLETELY different from the ingredients on the bar's packaging. No idea why. Just be warned. I haven't used a bar soap in ages. Having just used it for the first time... it's a strange experience. There is that kind of squeaky clean feeling while washing the soap off my face. And my skin does feel a little tight. Nothing too bad or uncomfortable. But it also feel softer and moisturized at the same time. So do my hands. And I can smell that lovely sweetness. I think with some moisturizer, things will be good.

Problem Skin Facial Wash & Scrub

The Problem Skin Facial Wash and Scrub looks promising. In addition to the African Black Soap ingredients, the scrub also contains tea tree oil, tamarind extract and kaolin clay, which are all know for their acne butt kicking powers. The scent is more herbal, with a hint of the crisp minty-like tea tree oil in the background. The sweetness that the soap has is not present at all. The constancy is very creamy with what almost resemble vanilla bean seeds as the exfoliant. When testing it on my hand to take the picture, I noticed a little tingling sensation after awhile. However, that sensation did not come through while using the scrub. It's a very gentle exfoliant. I recommends using the product only once or twice a week and because of that, I expected a much harsher scrub. But it was actually quite pleasant. And this product didn't leave my skin quite as squeaky as the soap did. It's much more creamy and moisturizing.

Problem Skin Facial Mask

The Problem Skin Facial Mask has a much more watery consistency than I expected. Cool, smooth and light, it has a smell that is something between the sweet soap and the herby moisturizer. After applying it in a light layer all over my face, I noticed an almost immediate cooling/tingling sensation. The few spots on my face where the skin is open or thinner from my nasty breakouts do sting a bit, but it's nothing too uncomfortable. The smell does seem to get stronger the longer you have it on.

Problem Skin Moisturizer

The Problem Skin Moisturizer smells straight up like herb de provence. It still has the tamarind extract and the tea tree oil in it, but I don't smell them as much. The constancy scared me a little. It's very, very thick and rich feeling, which would be great if I didn't have oily skin. However it kind of has the same effect as coconut oil on the skin or argan oil in the hair. Greasy for a little bit and then *GULP* my skin just drank it up, leaving soft and MATTE skin behind... at least for the time being. We'll see what happens in the morning.


I will continue to use these products to see if the clear up my skin as promised. Obviously, having first used these products while writing this blog, I don't notice any huge changes. But I'm hopeful.

In the meantime, what are your experiences with African Black Soap? Or do you have other acne products that have saved your skin?

*UPDATE* Perhaps I'm premature on my judgement here, but so far I like these products. My skin isn't as oily and I feel as if my blackheads are shrinking a little. I had some pretty nasty breakout when starting this, so it'll take time to see how acne tightening these products are, but so far so good. In fact, I bought the toner to round out the face care line. I love that they are fairly natural and not too expensive. Which is good, because it starting to take over my cabinet. 

More updates to come as I give this the ole college try.