Alaffia African Black Soap

I absolutely loved their African Black Soap in Tangerine Citrus that I simply had to get two more bottles of these and thought to get other varieties besides the Tangerine Citrus; I got the Unscented and Peppermint.

What is African Black Soap? 

In West Africa, authentic black soap is known by its Yoruba name, Osee Dudu. "Dudu" means the color black, which comes from the extensive "cooking" of the soap to the point of charcoal. Many cultures in West Africa use charcoal to detoxify and purify the skin, and this is an integral aspect of our true African black soap.

Our authentic black soap is made from a centuries old recipe of handcrafted shea butter and indigenous West African palm kernel oil. Saponification is provided by adding ashes to the hot oils, then cooking the soap for six hours. The final step is to dry and cure the soap in the sun for three weeks.

The extensive cooking and curing process makes our authentic African black soap mild and gentle. In West Africa, our black soap is an "all in one" option for cleaning, and is ideal for faces, shaving, shampooing, and as a general hand & body wash for all ages. Unscented for sensitive skin. (Scented with invigorating peppermint essential oil.)

Alaffia Authentic African Black Soap 16 Oz, Peppermint [$5.00]

Authentic African Black Soap Peppermint - African Black Soap from Alaffia is made with handcrafted fair trade shea butter as well as West African palm kernel oil and peppermint. This soap is suitable for all skin and hair types and can be used as a body wash, facial cleanser, shaving soap, shampoo, and more.

Alaffia Authentic Authentic African Black Soap 16 Oz, Unscented [$5.00] 

Authentic African Black Soap is an "all in one" option for cleaning, and is ideal for faces and babies, shaving, shampooing, and as a general hand & body wash. This unscented option caters to individuals with even the most sensitive skin. Suitable for all skin and hair types.

Ingredients

African mint (ocimum canum) extract (aqueous), African black soap (saponified shea butter* [butyrospermum parkii] and palm kernel oil [elaeis guineensis]), lauryl glucoside

Directions

Facial Cleanser: Apply with palms or facial cloth and massage gently over skin. Rinse clean and pat dry. Follow with Alaffia face cream of your choice. 

Body Wash: Squeeze onto a wet loofah, scrub or wash cloth and work into a lather on body. Rinse thoroughly.

Shampoo: Apply to wet hair & massage into a rich lather. Rinse thoroughly & condition with Alaffia, EveryDay Shea or EveryDay Coconut conditioner.

Also good as: Hand Soap, Shaving Soap, and General Household Cleanser.

Sustainable Skin Care - Handmade. Domestic Packaging. Fair Trade. No Parabens.

No Animal Testing. No SLS. No Synthetic Fragrance. Gluten-Free. Biodegradable.

Alaffia Authentic Authentic African Black Soap (Unscented)

The UNSCENTED kind is perfect for sensitive skin. It has an earthy smell to it like what you should expect in an African black soap and has a beautiful brown color. I am actually almost ran out of it because I use it everyday whenever I shower as a body wash, shampoo and sometimes as a facial wash. It didn't caused me rashes, breakouts or dryness. Though I don't think it made my hair soft and bouncy. It takes a while to lather so I always end up pumping more product in my hand to get my hair clean.

Alaffia Authentic African Black Soap (Peppermint)

While the PEPPERMINT kind has a wonderful smell to it because its added peppermint essential ingredient. You can't hardly smell the earthy scent to it either. I definitely feel that tingling sensation every time I use this which makes this as my favorite. I love to use this as my shampoo, facial wash and body wash. HOWEVER, just a week later, I notice my skin starts to get red and itchy on areas such as my hands, arms and neck. I tried ignoring it at first but my skin just couldn't take it much longer! I am probably allergic to its peppermint essential oil since that is the only ingredient that differentiates between the UNSCENTED and PEPPERMINT African black soap. I only have 1/3 left of the product and I was thinking to use it as a shampoo? I haven't seen any difference on my hair as far as I know but it gets the job done keeping my hair clean. I've already considered this as my favorite until this allergic reaction happened.

For now, I switched to another facial wash and, so far so good, it helped my skin calmed down from the irritation from what the peppermint essential oil caused me. But just because of this little setback doesn't mean I won't try African Black Soap ever again. I just got to learn to read the ingredients and be sure it is as pure as it gets to get its benefits considering that the brand is Handmade; Domestic Packaging; Fair Trade; No Parabens; No Animal Testing; No SLS; No Synthetic Fragrance; Gluten-Free; Biodegradable.

Get to learn more about Alaffia.