A couple weeks ago, I noticed that Ohii — Urban Outfitters’ in-house beauty brand, which makes some of my favorite setting powders and lip balms — had released a new product: a $16 sea-salt scrub that claims it can be used on both your body (as a gentle exfoliant) and your hair (as a scalp scrub). [Full disclosure: It was sent to me for free.] I am generally suspicious of two-in-one products, and almost always prefer something extra-potent that addresses one issue over something that spreads itself thinner by addressing two. I also happen to be wary of body scrubs — I’ve tried Aesop’s Geranium Scrub and Fresh’s Brown Sugar Scrub, and both triggered miserable eczema flare-ups.
I was willing to suspend my disbelief for the Ohii scrub, though, because it sounded promising. Its ingredients include sea salt, one of my favorite things for hair (Lush’s Big shampoo, which is loaded with sea salt, has been a go-to of mine since high school for adding volume and lift to my otherwise limp hair). Plus, the packaging promises it’ll be gentle and exfoliate skin without stripping it. Assuming that I’d probably like the stuff for my hair even if I didn’t like it as a body scrub, I decided to give it a try, and hopped into the shower.
I loved the stuff straight away. The salt crystals gave my skin a lovely, soft scrub, washing away its outer layer of sweat and grime but dissolving quickly enough so as not to scratch or irritate me. My skin felt clean, soft, and smooth and it smelled like lavender. Three weeks after my first try, I find myself looking for excuses to shower just so I can use it.
The salt scrub is also far gentler on my scalp than my OG Big Hair from Lush, which can do amazing things volume-wise but tends to leave my hair parched. I’ll use it in lieu of shampoo when I want an extra boost of volume (sea salt is a natural way to texturize and volumize), when I want to deep-clean my hair (about every two weeks), or after I’ve used a ton of product. The scrub really gets into my oily, dirty hair and provides a thorough clean that my everyday shampoo simply can’t.
Anyone with a dry or itchy scalp will likely be just as obsessed with it, because the exfoliating salt crystals help remove dead or dry skin lingering beneath your hair. I have a strong feeling this product will be my standby on gross and sweaty New York City summer days. And it may just have cured me of my snobbery toward the multitaskers of the product world.
Pro tip: The product comes out of the tube much easier if you snip the top off with a pair of scissors.
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