Metta Shed — The Chinese bathhouse scrub glove

See For Yourself

It happens where you can see it.

One arm, after a long soak. No soap, no scrub, no oil — just firm, steady strokes and nothing else on the skin.

No editing, no filter, no second take. This is the whole product.

It only happens if you soak properly first. That one step is the difference between this working and not working.

Read the five steps →

The Metta Shed range of printed scrub gloves

The Story

I'm an acupuncturist. I grew up in northeast China.

Back when I was small, hardly anyone in town had a shower at home. Public bathhouses were everywhere. My family went most weekends.

In the middle of the room there were treatment beds. Professional scrubbers worked there — they'd lay a plastic sheet down, wet it, and you'd lie there while they worked across your back, your front, your sides. They finished with your feet. The whole thing took a few minutes. They were fast.

And you would actually see it. Rolling off your skin.

When I left, I couldn't find the gloves again. Not in the south of China, not in the east, not in the west. People had showers at home by then — but it wasn't the same, because nothing came off. I started trying to roll it off with my fingers in the shower. It isn't the same.

Then I moved abroad, and it was worse. I found exfoliating mitts in Europe, but they just scratch. I still don't really know what they're for.

What I missed most wasn't being clean. It was the feeling afterwards — and I have never got it from a shower, a sauna, a steam room, or anything in a bottle. Your skin is completely clear. Everything moves through it again. It feels like it can finally breathe.

In the medicine I practise, we would say the qi and blood are moving freely at the surface again. You don't need the vocabulary. You'll recognise it the first time.

So I went back to China and found the manufacturer — a company that has made nothing but these for decades. Cotton on the inside, viscose on the outside, plant-based. Made the way it was supposed to be made.

That's Metta Shed.

QilianAcupuncturist · Founder, Metta Shed

The Thinking

In Chinese medicine, the skin is not a wrapper.

It's the boundary where the body meets the world, and it is meant to be open. It opens, it closes, it breathes. When the surface is congested, everything underneath feels heavier.

So scrubbing, done properly, was never about looking better. It was about clearing the surface so it can do its work. That's why there were professional scrubbers in every bathhouse in the northeast — it wasn't a luxury, it was maintenance. You went the way you'd go to get your hair cut.

If you already know gua sha, you have the idea: a tool, the skin, steady pressure, and a result you can see. This is the body version — and where I'm from, it's not a wellness trend. It's just Sunday.

I'm not asking you to take the framework on faith. Do it once, properly, and judge it by how you feel afterwards.

Why It's Different

Four things that make it work

The cotton inner layer of the Metta Shed mitt

Two layers, not one

This is the inside: soft waffled cotton against your hand. The viscose working surface is on the outside. Most mitts are a single sheet that collapses as you press — this one has body, so the pressure goes into your skin instead of into your fingers.

Water only

No scrub, no exfoliating cream, no bottle to replace every month. Soap actually stops it working — it makes the skin slippery and the glove simply slides.

Plant-based, both layers

100% cotton on the inner layer, 100% viscose on the outer. No plastic mesh, no nylon — nothing synthetic against your skin, and nothing shedding microplastic into the drain.

Made to be kept

Rinse it, hang it, use it again. One glove instead of a shelf of single-use scrubs — and it looks like something you'd leave out, not hide away.

Two Versions

Uniform, or two-sided

Both do the same job. They just suit different hands.

Classic — uniform

The traditional form

The same surface all over, exactly as the gloves in the bathhouses were made. You control the intensity with pressure, not by turning your hand over. Most people never need anything else.

Prints: Blue Garden · Citrus Grove · Autumn Garden · Pink Meadow

Dual — two-sided

A gentler side and a deeper side

One side softer for everyday use and thinner skin, the other firmer for the weekly scrub. Useful if you want one glove to cover both, or if you're sharing it with someone whose skin is more sensitive than yours.

Prints: Berry Bloom · Wine Blossom

Every glove is labelled on its product page, so you always know which one you're choosing.

How To Use

Five steps. The first one matters most.

This is the part almost everyone gets wrong. Done properly, the difference is obvious the very first time.

Soak first Most important

10–15 minutes in a warm bath, a hot shower, a sauna or a steam room. Your skin has to soften properly first. Skip this and nothing will happen — this single step is the difference between it working and not working.

No soap

Wet the glove and squeeze out the excess. Don't use soap or shower gel while you scrub — the glove needs friction, and soap takes it away.

Firm, even strokes

Long strokes with steady pressure — back and forth is fine, whatever your hand does naturally. Start with the gentler side. Arms, legs, back, chest. Ease off wherever the skin is thinner.

Don't rinse as you go

What lifts off helps lift what's underneath. Leave it until you've finished the area you're working on.

Rinse, wash, moisturise

Then wash as normal and moisturise while the skin is still damp. Deep side once every 1–2 weeks. Gentler side two or three times a week.

After The First Wash

It will change a little. That's meant to happen.

Viscose relaxes and draws in when it meets water. After the first wash your mitt will shrink very slightly and the surface will firm up — it will feel a little denser in your hand than the day it arrived.

Nothing is wrong. This is the fabric settling, and it's when the mitt starts working at its best.

Rinse after every use and hang it up until it's completely dry. A mitt left damp in a folded pile will not last.

Please Read

When not to use it

This is a strong tool. Used well it feels wonderful; used carelessly it can irritate. Please take these seriously.

Stop immediately if your skin feels sore, stinging or raw.
Do not use on broken, irritated, sunburnt or freshly shaved skin.
Do not use over eczema, psoriasis, open wounds, moles or varicose veins.
Not for the face.
Do not use on the same day as chemical exfoliants (AHA/BHA) or retinoids.
Not suitable for children.
If you have a skin condition, diabetes or reduced skin sensation, speak to your doctor first.

Questions

Before you buy

Does it hurt?

It shouldn't. If it stings or feels raw, you're either pressing too hard or your skin wasn't soaked long enough. Soak properly, use a light hand, and start with the gentler side.

What actually comes off?

Dead skin from the surface, loosened by soaking and lifted by the glove. EDIT: once the keratin identification report is in, state the result here — and nothing beyond what it actually shows.

How often should I use it?

The deep side once every one to two weeks. The gentler side two or three times a week. More is not better — your skin barrier needs the time in between.

How long does one glove last?

EDIT: fill in once you have real durability data — please don't guess

Can I use it on my face?

No. It's made for the body. Facial skin is thinner and needs a different approach entirely.

What is it made of, and how do I wash it?

Two layers: 100% cotton on the inside, 100% viscose on the outside — both plant-based, nothing synthetic. 75 g. Made in Henan, China. Rinse it after use and hang it to dry completely; machine washable at 40°C. Don't tumble dry or bleach it. It will shrink very slightly after the first wash — that's normal for viscose. EDIT: add the overall fibre % by weight here too, e.g. "60% viscose · 40% cotton"

How is this different from a Korean scrub towel or a Turkish kese?

They come from the same family of practice, and if you already love yours, you'll understand this immediately. The difference is the construction: a cotton inner layer beneath the viscose outer, which gives the glove body and keeps your hand comfortable, and two different textures on one glove rather than a single flat sheet.

Do I have to believe in Chinese medicine for this to work?

No. It removes loosened dead skin whether or not you like the framework — that part is just friction and physics. The framework is simply why I care about it, and why it exists at all.

Where do you ship?

Across the European Union, from Portugal. Delivery is usually 3–7 working days.

The scrub glove I spent twenty years looking for.

Scratching is not scrubbing.