IMG_0101 copy Skin cleanser. This has always been a tricky one for me, as I've never really found my holy grail of cleansers, until now that is!

I've dabbled in too many to name, and before I went green and all natural I was a devoted decade long Cetaphil user. I've also experienced crazy cycles with my skin. Truth be told I've always been quite lucky with my skin, in terms of texture and tone. But I went through a very dark period with it when I was living in New York, and still trying to figure out what was wrong with my body. Not only did I gain 30 pounds, but I developed very severe acne. My skin is also very prone to hyper-pigmentation, so it was a bit of a nightmare to treat as even if I left breakouts alone they would pigment and scar! I truly, truly emphasize when people who are dealing with acne. I understand, and I really want to help people holistically with their skin, as it will always come from the inside out. But having a solid, natural and chemical free routine will definitely aid in the skins outward healing.

It was an endless journey of trying to find the 'perfect' product and supplement. I actually OD'ed on products which only made the problem worse. I dried out my skin, and took it for a wild ride. I've learned a lot along the way.

The journey back to healthy skin was a combination of many things: healing my body from Lymes Disease, balancing my hormones, eating whole foods, find the right products, cutting out many things, and sticking to the basics. Less is always more. Stress, hormones, digestion and what you're eating affect your skin more than you know. Usually it's not the products that are playing games with your skin.

Along this ride I've come across a few great cleansers, but still did not feel satisfied with the way they left my skin - too dry, didn't take off mascara (I'm an all in one girl!), left residue, broke me out, left my skin feeling like an oil patch, I'm looking at you oil cleansers.

I could go on for days about skin, skin care, natural beauty and my journey but to keep this short and simple I will share my recent find and now holy grail cleanser.

Charcoal Soap.

It's simple, very inexpensive, effective, natural and leaves my skin perfectly ph'ed balanced.

I use a very small lather in the morning, and a longer more in depth wash at night.

My skin is loving it, and I've noticed a huge difference in breakouts, pigmentation and clarity.

The one I'm using right now is LUSH, but you can find them at your local health food store. I'm absolutely loving it! My skin is naturally oily (which I actually like!), combination, breakout and hyper-pigmentation prone. If you have drier skin, this might not be the best option for you but it is worth a try.

What skin products are you loving right now?