Editor’s note: We first wrote about Malin + Goetz’s Peppermint Body Scrub in June 2017, when contributor Rima Suqi, a self-proclaimed “perennial houseguest,” named it her go-to summer-host gift. We’re republishing the post today because, as part of the Strategist’s Two-Day Sale, everything at Malin + Goetz — including this two-in-one shower gel and body scrub — is 20 percent off with code STRAT20.
If body scrub’s not your thing, we’ve written about lots of other products from Malin + Goetz, like its Cilantro Conditioner, Moisturizing Shampoo, and Eucalyptus Deodorant. The sitewide sale ends at 11:59 p.m. on April 27, as do all deals in our Two-Day Sale. See everything part of the sale here — or read on for our full review of the Peppermint Body Scrub.
“The world is divided between hosts and guests,” proclaimed Fran Lebowitz to New York Magazine before many readers of this post were even born. Lebowitz, for the uninitiated, often made light of being a perennial houseguest. I can relate, because, like her, I am one of the few in my inner circle who do not own a house, and find myself showing up all over the tristate area as that weekend’s entertainment and/or distraction. When you do this long enough, you become pretty good at figuring out a host gift that’s not the expected bottle of rosé.
After many seasons of trial and error, my summer go-to gift is Malin + Goetz’s Peppermint Body Scrub, which first arose out of necessity, as one of the homes where I was frequently a guest had almost nothing in the guest bathroom. No shampoo, maybe some bar soap that was cracked and gross. One of the owners of said house said he assumed everyone would bring their own (um, no). So I showed up with this scrub, which the host dutifully put in the outdoor shower. I used that shower for the entire weekend.
It’s a huge hit with hosts and guests alike for many reasons (its handsome packaging, its somewhat foreign-sounding name), but primarily because it serves double duty — as a shower gel and a scrub. In the summertime, if you’ve been to the beach and have become sticky and sandy, or are just sweaty from heat and humidity, you know the joy of the cooldown shower. Imagine said shower with the added bonus of fresh, minty aromatherapy that leaves your skin super smooth. The scrub’s peppermint creates a cooling sensation, of course, and the addition of pumice and crushed bamboo help slough away rough skin, whose cells in the summertime turn over faster and should be exfoliated.
Even if your host is more conscientious than mine was, it makes for the perfect gift — they can squirrel it away for private indulgence in the master bath. If they’re not so conscientious, you can passive-aggressively point out that the guest bathroom is missing shower gel, but thank goodness you brought some. The world might be divided between hosts and guests, but cool, soft, post-ocean skin is something that either would appreciate.
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