I Tried the New Boscia Charcoal Jelly Ball Cleanser That's Going Viral
By Sarah Kinonen. Photos: Courtesy of Brand, Hannah Choi/Allure.
Ever since its debut a few years ago, Boscia has slowly grown its Charcoal Pore Perfection line to include a slew of detoxifying products, like the Charcoal Deep-Pore Exfoliating Peel Gel AM or PM and the Charcoal Pore-Minimizing Hydrogel Mask AM and/or PM, and this summer the Japanese skin-care brand is expanding the collection to include possibly one of its biggest launches to date: Boscia's Charcoal Jelly Ball Cleanser. Get ready to be blown away.
The Charcoal Jelly Ball Cleanser, which is literally a ball of black jelly wrapped in a latex balloon-like casing, is about to make traditional cleansing a thing of the past. Packed inside the wobbly wash sphere is a blend of ingredients that literally suck out the dirt, oil, and makeup that gets packed into pores. To start, there's activated black bamboo charcoal to deep-clean, tamarindus indica seed gum, which contains plumping hyaluronic acid to hydrate, and hinoki oil, an elixir that acts as a natural astringent to fight off bacteria.
But almost as intriguing as its ingredient list is the jelly ball's delivery system, which involves a balloon, a toothpick, and lots of strength. (Maybe not so much the last one, but I'm getting ahead of myself.) And I'll be honest here, the cleansing process requires a few extra minutes of work, especially if, like me, you decide to crack this baby open in the midst of a hot shower.
Here's what I mean: Earlier this morning, I brought the ball into my shower without unwrapping it (my first mistake), and after attempting to read the tiny instructions on the bottom of the box without my contacts in (my second mistake), the whole experience was a bunch of fumbling, poking, and prodding, until I finally unearthed the cleanser. (After unwrapping the box, you're instructed to use the pick that comes with the set to literally pierce the top of the jelly ball through a designated hole, which releases the balloon-like seal on the cleanser.)
Once free from its box, I rubbed the jelly ball — which is a slimy, bouncy texture similar to Lush's Shower Jellies and what I imagine Flubber feels like — all over my face. Almost instantly, the black sphere produced a fun, frothy lather. (Told ya it's fun!) After a solid 30-second rubdown, I rinsed off the cleanser and hopped out of the shower to discover a slightly brighter complexion.
So why is it shaped like a ball? Honestly, I'm almost certain just for the fun of it because it doesn't seem to have anything to do with the efficacy of the ingredients. When compared to a traditional charcoal-based cleanser, I'd say the results weren't too far off from other formulas I've tried, but I will say the whole experience was enjoyable. Would I do it again? Totally, but with definitely with my contacts in.
The Boscia Charcoal Jelly Ball Cleanser will be available for $20 at sephora.com in July.
This story originally appeared on Allure.
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