ishga Seaweed Bath

We are massive believers in the power of the sea – and all sorts of sea-derived goodies – to restore mind, body and spirit. To wit, Jo goes sea-bathing pretty much every day, in summer, and at Beauty Bible we all consume generous amounts of seaweed, as part of our diet.

If you, too, would like to make like a mermaid, this is an easy, albeit perhaps unusual, way – via hand-harvested Fucus Serratus seaweed, sourced sustainably from the waters of the Hebrides, which are home to seaweed-powered brand ishga.

There are lots of good reasons to soak in seaweed. It remineralises both skin and hair, being rich in antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, amino acids and bioactive polysaccharides, helping to improve skin elasticity. Seaweed is also naturally rich (and we didn’t know this) in hyaluronic and alginic acids, which is probably why skin feels quite moisturised after soaking.

The how-to is simple: place ishga Seaweed Bath under the taps, so that the water flow is soaking the bag. (Don’t open the bag.) Allow the bag to soak in hot water for 5-10 minutes before getting in, topping up hot or cold water to the your preferred soaking temperature.

You can then use the bag like an exfoliating sponge, they suggest, and it can be dried out and reused (ideally within one week of first use). And after use, the biodegradeable bags can go straight onto the compost: soil loves seaweed as much as humans do.

We like to use it as part of a ‘Magic Bath’ ritual, first suggested to us by our supermodel friend Dayle Haddon, who adds all sorts of goodies to her bath, to up the relaxing factor via salts and oils. It comes as a set with a dose of wonderfully reviving ishga Invigorating Bath Salts, but TBH you can use it to turbo-charge anything soak-worthy in your bathroom cabinet.

A little bit of a splurge, yes. But definitely cheaper (and quicker) than a trip to the Hebrides – or even a trip to a spa. 

£35 – buy here