Frankly, I’m not a fan.
About ten years ago, Frank Body launched with its coffee scrub going viral. It was a highly sought-after product, claiming to give you a “post-vacay glow”. For a long time, even though the marketing was good, I still was skeptical about the product itself and how it is different from the coffee grounds that you have in the kitchen cupboard. I was kindly gifted this product by a friend last year for my birthday so I thought I would give it a go.
The packaging was tough to open despite the easy-pull tab so I used scissors to cut it and I was instantly hit with the smell of coffee. I was intrigued as I assumed the original was coffee-scented and for this one, I was expecting a stronger coconut scent which didn’t occur.
The product literally just looks like and is the consistency of coffee grounds so my first impression wasn’t the best. The texture is dry and as I followed the instructions and rubbed it on my skin, I thought “What am I doing?”. I have never used a body scrub that hadn’t had a cream or gel consistency before so this was a new experience for sure. I tried to lean into it as after all, my teenage self would be excited that I even owned this product.
As I applied it to the skin, the smell of coffee was overwhelming at this point and it didn’t make for a pleasant experience. The packaging was messy and the coffee grounds got everywhere making it hard to re-seal the bag. I didn’t feel a great change in my skin like I had with other exfoliators in the past. Now I’m not one for harsh exfoliators but this didn’t feel like the glowing vacation skin I was promised, it felt like I was trying out a “5-minute craft”.
After I washed it off and finished my shower, I realised that the coffee grounds clung to certain areas (where you wouldn’t want coffee grounds to be!) and I was disappointed that the grains had stuck to my skin and the shower. I feel like there is no slip to the product and it didn’t glide effectively. My skin normally feels smooth and soft after exfoliating but with this product, it didn’t feel any different.
My final thoughts are that I believe the Frank Body Coffee scrubs are a gimmick. I felt using the coffee grains after drinking a pot of coffee in the morning would be more sustainable and do the same job. I like coffee, but not in the shower. Frank Body has come out with other exfoliators since the launch of the coffee scrub which appears to be more of a cream consistency with targeted treatments so hopefully, those are better.
Let’s keep the coffee in the kitchen eh?
Isabelle Marsh 