Do you know how many uses there are for a luffa sponge? When I started harvesting my sponges, I had no idea what to use them for. Here are a few uses for luffa sponges.
Table of contents
How to use your luffa sponges after growing harvesting them.
Luffas are versatile vegetables to grow with many uses. You can even eat them when they’re young!
Luffa sponge soap
This might be one of the most popular ways to use these fun gourds. I haven’t started “shopping” around for the best soap recipes yet, so if you have one please drop it in the comments below!
One day I plan to add goats to our little homestead, so I’ll be making goat’s milk soap. You just pour the soap over the luffa sponge and then you have a soap/sponge duo ready to be bathed with!
You can use these luffa sponges to wash dishes!
This is the first way I used my sponges. Can you compost your dish sponge when it’s too far gone? I CAN! The first time I used a luffa to wash my dishes, it exceeded all my expectations.
My thoughts were that it would either be too stiff and scratch my sub-par fiesta ware or too soft to do anything right. Nope! While doing dishes, they get just soft enough to wash the dishes with no markings. They stay just stiff enough to scrub the nastiest dried food off the plate.
Paired with my Mrs.Meyers eco-friendly soap, I know there are no chemicals going down my drain. There are so many alternatives to the regular sponge.
House cleaning
Cleaning with a luffa sponges doesn’t stop at your dishes! I use them to clean my kitchen counters, bathroom counters, and even my toilets! Just make sure you put that one in a very specific place.
Mark it so you don’t use it later on your dishes…or your face. Luckily, I’m not speaking from experience. EW.
Exfoliating your skin
I don’t exfoliate my skin enough. Lately, I’ve added exfoliation into my evening routine about once a week or so and it’s so nice. My lips get really chapped so I mainly focus on exfoliating my lips.
After exfoliation, I wipe my face with Desert Essence Tea Tree Oil wipes and moisturize with Jojoba Oil (4-5 drops) and Lavender essential oil(2-3 drops). Sometimes I also add bergamot! Erin from The Tannehill Homestead mentioned she likes to use lavender on her face because floral oils have an anti-aging benefit. I took her advice and LOVE LOVE LOVE it.
The lavender oil also helps me sleep at night due to its relaxing property. Long story short, my nights are wonderful due to luffa sponges and Simply Earth Essential Oils.
Home pedicures
Your first thought after seeing my feet would be “that lady really needs a pedicure”. I’ve been exfoliating my feet with a luffa sponge and it really does the trick, and for much cheaper than a pedicure. I should start offering exfoliating pedis as a side-hustle.
Deep cleaning your cast irons
I DO know people who never ever wipe anything out of their cast irons. EVER. I don’t clean my cast iron after every use, because yesterday’s bacon grease is fine with me!
My cast irons are cleaned every week or two and I’ve had the same ones for years. There’s a taboo that you can’t clean a cast iron with soap and water because it’ll rust immediately and ruin it. That’s not true. Anyway, my luffa works wonders on my cast iron!
I’ve stopped using my regular sponge and started strictly using my luffa for my cast irons.
Luffa sponge uses
These aren’t the only uses for luffas sponges. But these gourds provide a great, sustainable way to clean your home and so many other things. Once you’re done, you can compost the sponge and move forward with another one.
I’ve been using the same luffa sponge for about 3 months now and it’s still holding strong. Have you ever grown or used luffa sponges? Drop a comment below!
Abigayle says
This information came in a timely fashion. My first loofas are ready to harvest soon. I planted just five seeds to cover the area of my chicken run that gets the lost sun in the afternoon. All went well, until my eight birds that free range when I am in the garden, discovered the plants. Some things they like, some things they don’t. These, they liked. I had to cover the with bird netting until they could get going. Then, I had to add some netting to the outside of their run. This has worked and some of the vines are eight feet long. One ran up a nearby bush, then climbed a tree. Since the birds eight blossoms, I am looking at harvesting about five this year. They have not bothered the loofas themselves for some reason. Now most are too high for them. So, I got chicken shade and sponges in one package, really excited to try something new after all these years. Thats for the great article!
Pame says
Great information!!! I recently bought some to dip and make bath scrubs! On my list anyway! Great idea for cast iron skillets!
Thanks so much
Chelsea Wells-Barrett says
That sounds great, Pame! And thank you! Thanks for stopping by my site and I hope to see you again!