This is an honest review.  I received a discount on this product, and if you join Grove Collaborative using my affiliate link I will receive a discount on my future purchases there, but I was not paid to promote this product.  All opinions stated here are my own.

For the past two years, I’ve been buying some of my environmentally friendly household products through Grove Collaborative, formerly known as ePantry, a subscription service that sends your selected supplies as scheduled but allows you to adjust or cancel any order if you don’t need that stuff right now.  Here’s how to decide if a subscription service is right for you, and here are my honest reviews of 11 products Grove carries.  If you’d like to try it, please click here to get a $10 discount and get me credit for referring you!

Grove Collaborative often offers me a discount on a new product to entice me to try it.  That’s how I got Acure Brightening Facial Scrub.  This exfoliating cleanser is an alternative to those that contain environmentally damaging plastic microbeads and/or hazardous chemicals.

It has “argan extract + chlorella growth factor,” which does not sound appealing to me.  It also has “lemon peel granules,” which presumably contain the fruit acids that are supposed to be good for making skin look younger, as well as being a constructive use for lemon peels that would otherwise be compost or garbage.  “Walnut shell flour” similarly makes use of unwanted natural packaging, and it sounded good for exfoliating.  Overall, the list of ingredients didn’t contain anything objectionable, and I always appreciate when products disclose all of their ingredients.  (If you’re wondering about potassium sorbate, it’s natural and considered pretty safe.)

When I opened the tube, I was surprised to find that this facial scrub is black.  Well, dark greenish-gray, maybe.  How was rubbing this dark goo into my pores going to “brighten” my face?  I said to myself in a chipper voice, “That’s the argan and chlorella!” but this did not reassure me.  I pictured Argan and Chlorella terrorizing Tokyo.  I toned it down to a vision of earnestly-raised young vegan siblings named Argan and Chlorella.  I sniffed the open tube and realized that the scrub had a pleasant lemon scent.

That’s important.  Stuff I’m going to rub onto my face needs to smell good or at least not bad.  It’s right on and next to my nose, first thing in the morning!

So, I squeezed out a bit of the lemony-smelling stuff that looked like wet sand from a black-sand beach, and I gently scrubbed it on my forehead, nose, and chin.  (My cheeks are more sensitive, so I never try an exfoliant there until I’ve seen its effect on the rest of my face.)  It felt good!  Invigorating!  After rinsing, I felt much smoother.

After getting out of the shower, I looked in the mirror for evidence of “brightening.”  I actually saw a difference!  My pores were smaller–even after a steamy shower–and I looked a little younger and more awake than usual.

With subsequent uses, I’ve continued to be happy with the effect on my appearance and the way my skin feels.  I’m now using it every other day on my face, neck, and elbows.

The downside is that, because of the dark color, every bit of the scrub that rinses off me is highly visible, and it looks a lot like dirt or mildew.  I’m trying to be careful to get it all to go down the drain instead of onto the shower curtain or wall.  This also is a reason to make sure you rinse it thoroughly off your skin.  I’m finding that easy to do in the shower, but if you use it to wash your face over the sink, make sure you’re not leaving bits of black grit along your hairline!

Overall, I recommend this product if you want a facial scrub in a tube.  It’s convenient, but the tube will not be accepted by most recycling programs, and the stuff costs about $2 an ounce.  When I finish it, I’ll probably go back to using my very affordable, low-waste homemade facial scrub most of the time.  (I wonder if adding some kind of citrus oil would give me that pore-tightening effect?)  I might buy another tube of Acure Brightening Facial Scrub for special occasions and travel.

Here are all my favorite Earth-friendly hygiene products!

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