For those of you who are still scared to try our Charcoal Cucumber soap, look what my sister brought to my attention this weekend:

Bioré is making charcoal mainstream with their new Deep Pore Charcoal Cleanser.

The product description from Bioré's website:

"Skin acting up? Meet Charcoal. The new secret weapon from the Bioré® Skincare Experts. Draw out and trap 2x more dirt and impurities than a basic cleanser with this innovative black cleanser that foams white and rinses clean. Infused with Japanese Skin Purifying Technology, this facial cleanser gives you results after just one use!"

Sounds great, right?

Marketing lingo is so funny sometimes. "Japanese Skin Purifying Technology" just cracks me up. The charcoal used in skin care products is an activated bamboo charcoal powder and is apparently quite "technological." ;) Maybe I should get more savvy with my product descriptions, too.

If you're at the store, you could pick you up a bottle of what is sure to be a hit -- I mean, black soap! Whoever heard of such?! Be sure to read the product label, though:

"WATER, GLYCERIN, SODIUM LAURETH SULFATE, COCAMIDOPROPYL BETAINE, SORBITOL, LAURETH-‐4 CARBOXYLIC ACID, ETHYLHEXYLGLYCERIN, ACRYLATES/C10-‐30 ALKYL ACRYLATE CROSSPOLYMER, METHYLPARABEN, FRAGRANCE, SODIUM HYDROXIDE, MENTHOL, POLYQUATERNIUM-‐39, DISODIUM EDTA, PROPYLPARABEN, CHARCOAL POWDER, MANNITOL, CELLULOSE, IRON OXIDES, CAPRYLIC/CAPRIC TRIGLYCERIDE, METHYLISOTHIAZOLINONE, HYDROXYPROPYL METHYLCELLULOSE"

Anything jumping out at you? Sure there are a lot of unrecognizable things (you should see how many red, squiggly lines my computer is throwing under all those words above!), but the things I DO recognize are also of note. The primary ingredient is water. Water? And, how about all those parabens? I know many would prefer to avoid those.

So, why not skip the cosmetic aisle and instead hit up Mattie's in Cave City or Olde Towne Mall in Batesville or our front porch today (sunny and 70 degrees! Why not?) and try a bar of Charcoal Cucumber Goat Milk Soap. It's made of natural, non-watered-down ingredients. Yep, it's just the good stuff!

By the way, those of you who have already been singing the praises of the Charcoal Cucumber soap should (like me) be feeling very in fashion right now. Who knew we were so "on trend" with our black soap? ;)