00:00Hey guys, it's me Anne and this is Beauty With Me.
00:02Activated charcoal may seem like an ingredient more fitting for a chemistry lab than your
00:06bathroom vanity, but if you've taken a peek into your local beauty store lately, you might
00:10have noticed that the ingredient is popping up in absolutely everything.
00:13While activated charcoal is by no means new, in fact it's been used for decades in hospitals
00:18as an emergency treatment for some types of poisoning, in the beauty industry it's
00:22a common ingredient known for its ability to absorb anything from oil to dirt to micro
00:26particles on the surface of the skin.
00:28So I did some digging, I found 10 products that all feature charcoal, I'm going to use
00:31them all this week, doing an entirely charcoal infused hair care and skin care routine, and
00:36I will check back in with you in a week to let you know my thoughts.
00:39But before we get started, I just want to say a huge thank you to Herbal Essences for partnering
00:43with me on this video, and don't forget to subscribe down below, little red button, Beauty With
00:49Me comes out every Monday at 11am.
00:52See you guys next week, bye!
00:53Alright, so I am back, it's been 7 days of me using only charcoal infused hair care and
00:58skin care products, and I gotta say, I actually really enjoyed this experience.
01:02So first things first, shampoo and conditioner.
01:04I went to Walmart to do some shopping for this video, and I got these two items, they're
01:08part of the Herbal Essences Detox and Replenish Charcoal Collection.
01:11As you guys know, my hair is color treated, so I don't wash my hair very often, it's usually
01:15like maximum twice a week, so I always look for a shampoo and conditioner duo that's hydrating,
01:21but very clarifying.
01:23Surprisingly, this shampoo comes out pretty clear with just a few little flecks of charcoal
01:29in it, and like a charcoal mask would like absorb the oil, the dirt, the grime from your
01:35skin, the shampoo does the same thing for your scalp.
01:37Next up is this conditioner, which I really, really like.
01:42It's silicone free, which is not very common for conditioners, but it still leaves my hair
01:47feeling super silky smooth, like instantly.
01:51This is my hair air dried, and I'm very, very happy with it, like I didn't have to put
01:55any product in it at all, I just got out of the shower, scrunched it a little bit, let
01:59it air dry, and this is what I'm going with.
02:01So while I'm in the shower, I used this First Aid Beauty Acne Clearing Charcoal Cleanser,
02:08which obviously has the charcoal to absorb oil, but also has salicylic acid in it to help
02:12like fight that stubborn acne.
02:14It's a little bit on the dry side, so I think in the summer when my skin is very oily,
02:18I'll
02:18definitely keep using it, but in the fall and the winter, I'll probably switch to something
02:22a little bit more on the hydrating side.
02:24So the sponge that I used with the cleanser was this charcoal-infused contact sponge.
02:29Now a contact sponge is like a plant-based sponge that you wet with water, kind of expand, and
02:34then you use it to exfoliate your skin.
02:35You can use it with a cleanser, or you can just use it with water, which I also did this
02:40week.
02:40It's nice, it's a very gentle exfoliant.
02:42Next up, soap.
02:44So I've been using the Yes to Tomatoes Charcoal Soap.
02:47I'm a bar soap gal, I like bar soap, I think they last longer.
02:50So I really enjoyed this one.
02:51For the time that this soap is on your body, I don't think it really has enough time for
02:56the charcoal to really work its absorbing power, but in terms of being a good soap,
03:00it's definitely a good soap.
03:01So I like to mask once to twice a week, and instead of buying a mask this week, I decided
03:06to make one from scratch.
03:07I made a mask that's super easy to make, just involves five ingredients, water, activated
03:12charcoal, honey, bentonite clay, and tea tree oil.
03:16So most of these ingredients are really easy to get a hold of, either at your local grocery
03:19store or at the drugstore.
03:21This one is the clay that I use, it's the Aztec Secret Healing Clay, I just got this one
03:24online.
03:25And the activated charcoal is also easy to find online as well.
03:30This one was really nice, it's super easy to make, you just throw all the ingredients
03:34in together, mix it up, add as much or as little water as you want depending on the consistency
03:39that you want your mask to be.
03:41If you go a little bit overboard with the water like I did, you can add a little bit more
03:44clay
03:45just to thicken it up.
03:48The activated charcoal combined with the clay really clears out your pores while the honey
03:52hydrates and the tea tree oil cleanses thanks to its antibacterial properties.
03:56On to toothpaste.
03:58Now adding activated charcoal to toothpaste is a really popular method for teeth whitening.
04:04There are a bunch of charcoal toothpaste on the market, but I decided to go the DIY route
04:08since I already had activated charcoal by simply dipping my toothpaste directly into the charcoal
04:12and brushing away.
04:14Activated charcoal is abrasive, so it's great at buffing away surface stains, however if
04:19you overuse it, it can actually erode the enamel on your teeth, so I'd be careful how
04:23often you use it.
04:24I'd stick to once every two to three weeks to be safe.
04:26Next up is toner.
04:28Now a lot of facial mists are designed to make your skin look dewy, and this one does
04:33quite the opposite actually.
04:34It has sea clay in it, it has charcoal in it to refine your pore size and keep your skin
04:39looking pretty matte.
04:40It's very gentle, but it definitely leaves my skin feeling smooth, and it also isn't
04:45too stripping.
04:46It actually has aloe vera juice in it, so it's actually very soothing and slightly hydrating
04:49as well.
04:50So next up is moisturizer.
04:52It seems kind of counterintuitive to put an oil-absorbing product into something that's
04:56designed to hydrate, but the Derma E moisturizer makes work.
05:00It has a very liquidy, gel-like texture.
05:05You actually do have to rub it in quite a bit to get rid of the gray kind of cast
05:10it leaves,
05:11and then it absorbs quickly, but it does leave a slight kind of tacky texture to your skin,
05:16so that's definitely something to note.
05:18This moisturizer definitely gives me enough moisture in the summertime, but come fall and
05:22winter I think I'm going to switch something a little bit richer.
05:24Body lotion time!
05:25And I really like this stuff.
05:28As you can see, it is absolutely enormous.
05:31It also smells really nice.
05:34It has rose oil in it, so it has this beautiful floral scent, and it absorbs really, really
05:39quickly.
05:40I don't really know if I can detect much of the charcoal as I'm wearing it.
05:45It's possible that the charcoal in the product is what makes it absorb so quickly.
05:49It's a good one.
05:50And last but not least, deodorant.
05:53We are in the thick of summertime right now.
05:56It's been very hot.
05:56It's been very humid.
05:57I've been sweating a lot.
05:59So the deodorant that I've been using this week is the native deodorant.
06:02It's paraben-free, aluminum-free, and of course, infused with charcoal, which if you
06:05think about it, is a brilliant use of the ingredient because it absorbs oil and odor
06:10and all that nasty stuff.
06:11It does a good job of controlling odor.
06:13It smells really good and fresh.
06:14What I will say though is that it does tend to peel just a little bit, which is very common
06:18in my experience with natural deodorants like this.
06:21So I would just put it on before you put your clothes on, soaks in, and then you're pretty
06:25much good to go for the rest of the day.
06:26And that is it, guys.
06:27That was a lot of product.
06:29I hope you stuck it out here with me, but thank you guys so much for watching.
06:33Please let me know in the comments below if there are any charcoal-infused products that
06:37you guys love or if there's anything from this video that you want to try, and I will see
06:41you guys next week.
06:42Bye!
06:54Bye!
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