Lovin’ da Loofah -and All The Reasons Why

Sometimes, when you see something, it’s not immediately clear what it is or how you should use it.

I know.

Especially when you’re just starting your eco-friendlier lifestyle you may feel insecure about a lot of these ‘natural products’. But even when you’ve been using plastic-free and vegan alternatives for years, you may still come across something for the first time. Or you may have been using a product without realising it could have different uses as well.

Enter the Loofah Scrubby.

Getting to know the Loofah Scrubby

When I first came across a box of them, they looked like horrid, hard little things to me.
But I was told to just soak one in water and see. So, I did.
It was suggested to me they could be used to clean bathroom and kitchen surfaces. So, I did.

Turned out they were quite nice little sponges.

Except they’re not sponges. As in the sea creatures. Or the cakes. What they are exactly, you can read on our All About Loofah page.

More than a year passed before I just happened to mention my grubby feet -going barefoot or flip-flopped as much as the weather allows- in the presence of James. (Yes, we do have the most interesting conversations at the office.) He kindly pointed out the big box of Loofah Scrubbies.

Why didn’t I ever consider using this sponge-product to wash myself?

Because I was told to use it to clean my house.

Why wouldn’t you use the same kind of sponge on your worktop and on your skin?

Well, definitely with these scrubbies, there isn’t any reason why.

Not only do I use a scrubby on my feet -and it does clean as well as exfoliate. When I recently had a purple-fingered kid wandering about (it happens when you have ones that like to use soft oil-pastels) I told her to use one to give her fingers a proper scrub, as well as the kitchen tap which she had just stained purple too. Worked a treat.

What did I learn from this?

We just don’t always come up with the most simple ideas. Even if they seem completely obvious at hindsight.

Combine this with the fact that not all products are obvious to begin with and ta-da: you find yourself writing an entire blogpost about Loofah Scrubbies. Just to help you use our products better than I did.

So, what should you know about the Loofah Scrubby?

There is a number of things I would want to tell you, so you don’t have to waste your time trying to figure it all out by yourself. The number is 10. For now.

1. Loofah is a cleaned-out fruit. Nothing more, nothing less. This makes it a proper plastic-free, compostable (even at home!) and vegan alternative to other sponge-products.
2. It’s lightweight and very thin before use, making it very eco-friendly in transport -less weight and volume means less emissions.
3. If you hold it under the tap for a bit, it’ll become soft enough to use while remaining thin enough to easily get around, behind or inside smaller things, like your tab, fingers or glasses.
4. If you soak it in water for a bit, it’ll fluff up to a good, sturdy little sponge.
5. Its fibrous texture makes for its scrubby-ness. These fibres are soft enough to use on basically anything though. Think of washing up, cleaning surfaces, giving yourself a good scrub. And don’t stop thinking just there. Once you know they are real multi-purpose beauties, I am sure you can come up with your own ways to use them. Just keep that mind open.
6. If you let it dry properly, it lasts longer than a plastic-y supermarket scourer.
7. If at any point it seems to become a bit murky -if you have left it accidently in a moist spot for too long, for example- you can revive it with a boiling water rinse and a complete air-dry.
8. If you only have a small garden or balcony, with no place for a compost heap but with plants, consider burying it at the end of its life. It will take a bit longer to break down than when actually composting, but it will add a bit of texture to your soil which might help retain and slowly release water and allow for healthy root-growth.
9. We actually sell them as convenient little rectangles, as well as cute hearts.
10. If there’s anything else you’d like to know about loofah, check out our All About Loofah page. Any more questions? Just get in touch and we’ll do our best to answer them.

And don’t forget to let us know how you use these scrubbies in the comments!