The claim: With Earth Therapeutics Purifying Complexion Brush, you can detoxify skin and stimulate circulation. This compact facial brush removes impurities to reveal a glowing and toned complexion. Enhancing the cleansing process, ultra-soft medicinal charcoal bristles gently exfoliate the outer-most layers of the skin to remove dead cells and draw out toxins. Cropping up in numerous industries, charcoal is quickly becoming the new must-have ingredient in the beauty and grooming realm for its clearing and refining properties.
Cost: $11.99
Where : www.earththerapeutics.com
Admittedly, I'm tardy to the party on the charcoal beauty craze. But better late than never.
For a week, after applying a thicker-than-usual coat of my favorite exfoliating cleanser, I worked the brush's medicinal, charcoal-infused bristles around my face in a circular motion, concentrating on my nose and chin, where I tend to get the most clogged pores.
I couldn't believe the change. My complexion was clearer, and my skin looked healthier. (And the peeling I had from a nasty sunburn during a trip to the shore was gone. Finally.) I'm going to throw the brush in my gym bag and use it after sweat sessions to cut down on unsightly blackheads and other blemishes.
If I have a complaint about the brush, it's the stubby, nearly nonexistent handle. I dropped it into the sink several times because I couldn't get a good grip on it.
I'm a sucker for gimmicks. I'm not sure whether I'd classify the charcoal-bristle Earth Therapeutics Purifying Complexion Brush as a gimmick, but it might be on the border.
Cleansing with the brush definitely left my skin feeling great, and it was not harsh at all. Whether there are any “medicinal” qualities to this nice, soft brush is another matter altogether.
The only major drawback, insofar as I could tell, was that it seems to take forever to dry and I worry about what might be growing within the brush while it's drying.
The older I get, the more I am inclined to try products to reverse any signs of aging.
Earth Therapeutics Purifying Complexion Brush seemed like just the thing to give my skin the healthy boost I'm looking for, and it sounded simple enough to use. Place your favorite cleanser on the brush and massage it into the skin. I expected the bristles to be a little stiffer, but they were extremely soft.
My cleanser of choice doesn't lather as much as some, but I found that it didn't lather at all when I placed it on the complexion brush. I felt as if I was using more cleanser than usual. I continued, though, because the charcoal bristles are said to exfoliate and reveal “glowing, toned” skin. I worked the cleanser onto my face and rinsed. My skin felt clean and exfoliated, but no more than it does if I apply my face wash with a cloth or my hands.
The package instructs you to hang the brush to dry, which I did. The next day, it was still wet — not drenched but quite wet. I used the brush every other day because I tend to have sensitive skin. While my face continued to be clean and soft to the touch, I didn't find the charcoal bristles did much more than my usual products. I'm not sure this brush added anything special to my routine, and I'm not sold on it, as the bristles didn't completely dry, leaving me to believe this product will trap germs that, ultimately, will be bad for my skin.
