Oh the joy of coconut oil!

My fabulously naturally healthy & beautiful friend, Maggie, introduced me to this luxurious moisturizer, make-up remover, hair serum and edible delight about a year ago. I’ve been an avid fan since. I love to share this beauty secret with everyone, so here we are! These are a few of the reasons why I love it so.

• It’s a miraculous skin-care product. It leaves my skin looking nice and supple. Who doesn’t want to be supple? It refreshes me. It’s also healing. If you have cuts or scrapes, lather it on. It has been proven to repair damaged tissue.

• It’s a wonderfully natural hair-care product. I used Biosilk for years and years until I discovered this. Most of those other products you put in your hair have alcohol in them, which ends up drying it out. Some people do olive oil treatments for their hair. I would rather use the coco oil because of the smell factor.

• Speaking of the smell … GLORIOUS. It’s aromatherapy! Sometimes I weirdly open the jar and take a huge whiff to sooth me. Ahhh. Also, I think it makes people want to kiss your face more often. Who could resist a delicious coconut smelling face?

• You can cook with it! Fattening, but the good kind. The fat in coconut oil aids in the absorption of vitamins, minerals and amino acids, making you healthier all around. HERE is a delicious almond chocolate chip coconut cookie recipe. HERE is a healthier coconut granola recipe. YUMM.

One of the best things about this wonder product is that it stays in a solid(ish) form until it hits a certain temperature that just happens to be the temperature of your skin. So, it’s this rich, creamy consistency* until you scoop it out and rub it on your skin. Then it’s oil. Beautiful. Nature is so perfect like that. *In the summer, when it’s warm in your house and the coconut oil is kind of melty, you may consider keeping it in the refrigerator to firm it up.

If you’re going to try this natural wonder, it’s imperative to get the unrefined variety. I’ve been told that you can find refined coconut oil in Walmart next to the Crisco, but that abomination is NOT the miracle beauty product that I am discussing in this post. Going through the refining process takes a lot of the wondrous properties away. It doesn’t even smell like coconuts anymore. When you have the real thing you’ll know it because it smells like fresh coconuts, melts when it hits your skin, feels and looks naturally amazing.

Here is another important tip: Put the coconut oil in a smaller container as demonstrated:

 There are a few reasons for this.

1. You’re going to want to be able to stick your hand in there and scoop it out easily.
2. If bacteria somehow creep into your coconut oil, just like any organic material, it’s going to start to get funky. You’ll definitely be trading in that fresh coconut smell for something a little more rancid. If the small container gets contaminated, no worries, just throw it out, wash it and scoop some fresh coco. oil into your jar with a spoon.
3. A smaller container looks cuter on your bathroom counter among your beauty products.

To Use For Skin Care:

Very simple: scoop and apply. You can put it all over, and I mean ALL OVER. ;) Doesn’t it feel nice to not put chemicals all over your clean skin? YES. Go ahead and take a gander at the ingredients in your lotion. Most non-natural moisturizers contain all sorts of wack ingredients. Alcohol is usually one of them. I don’t get it. Yuck.

To Use For Hair Care:

After I get out of the shower, I take a little bitty tiny amount (maybe just the remnants of using it as a moisturizer), and run it through my hair while it’s still wet. Presto! Shiny, healthy, happy hair. I try to avoid getting too much in my hair (especially when I’m putting it on my face) because you don’t want oily hair. I have heard that some people use it as a conditioning treatment. I haven’t gone this far, but maybe I’ll try it sometime.

To Use as a Make-up Remover

Wrinkles. Terrible.  I’m pretty sure I’m going to have tons of smile wrinkles (the best kind, by the way) at an early age. I want to avoid them as much as possible though, and I truly believe that my wonder product is helping. When I used to wash my make-up off, and especially my eye make-up, I would TUG and TUG until it was clear. I’ve realized this isn’t the best method. Coconut oil clears make-up right off of your face. It’s so easy peasy. And besides, like I said, it smells amazing. So, try this:

1. Get your face wet.
2. Scoop some coconut oil out and rub it on your face.  Use your fingertips to scrub it all around, especially around your eyes. It clears that mascara oh-so-well. I know it seems counter-intuitive to put oil on your face but stick with me here.
3. Use a soft warm washcloth to wipe off the coconut oil. Get it all off.
4.  Revel in the beauty of how soft and nice your skin is and how well it removed that tricky mascara and how you don’t have to put any face lotion on if you don’t want to because you didn’t dry out your skin.

All right healthy friends, that’s about it. I bet you didn’t think I could write so much about coconut oil. Whew- me neither. 

With love (and a blender full of coconut oil fruit smoothie), Nicole

OH YEAH!

I just realized that I didn’t tell you guys where you can find coconut oil! I get mine at Native Roots, which is this amazing grocery store in Norman that specializes in organic and local food. You can most likely find it at any natural food store like Akins or Whole Foods.