Mint- It has been around a while! In fact according to Greek legend – “Menthe” originally a nymph, and Pluto’s lover, angered Pluto’s wife, Persephone, who in a fit of rage turned Minthe into a lowly plant, to be trod upon. Pluto, unable to undo the spell, was able to soften it by giving Minthe a sweet scent, which would perfume the air when her leaves were stepped on – thus was born the aromatic herb Mint.
One of mint’s first known uses in Europe was as a room deodorizer. The herb was strewn across floors to cover the smell of the hard-packed soil. Stepping on the mint helped to spread its scent through the room. In ancient Rome, Pliny recommended a wreath of mint for students to wear since it was thought to “exhilarate their minds”. Since then, humans have figured out plenty of other uses for the lowly herb.
We use it to deodorize a room, wake up your skin, freshen your breath, create delicious hot (and cold) teas, lend zest to vegetable dishes, and spruce up otherwise-ordinary salads, juices, spreads, fruits, etc. And outdoors — in the vegetable garden — mint’s highly aromatic foliage acts to repel ants, white cabbage moths, and other pests.
It was the concept of waking up your skin that led us to develop our popular Loofa Mint soaps. In addition to the bracing fragrance, these soaps contain exfoliating seaweed powder – there’s nothing like it first thing in the morning!