10 Amazing Beauty Tricks with Coconut Oil

Coconut Oil is a miraculous product! It is often used in cooking as a healthy substitute for cooking oils and butter (and is one-hundred percent vegan) but it can be argued that coconut oil is more useful in the bathroom, as a beauty aid, than it is for cooking in the kitchen. Rather than subjecting your body to harsh chemicals, you can beautify your body using a completely natural and organic product.

Deep Conditioner for hair. If you have dry or damaged hair, coconut oil is a wonderful conditioner. You can use coconut oil as a deep-conditioner for the ends of your hair. You take a generous handful (you may have to heat it a little or rub between your hands if it has hardened), apply it to the ends of your hair, and twist the hair into a tight bun on the top of your head. You can leave the coconut oil in your tresses for at least an hour, but often overnight for the best results. In the morning, wash your hair as normal and (if possible) air-dry. After a deep condition coconut oil treatment, your hair will likely feel soft and silky with added shine.

Leave-in conditioner or gel substitute for hair. As a substitute for hair gel, you can take a small (less than a teaspoon size) amount of coconut oil and rub into the palms of your hands and apply to the ends of your hair. It’s important to only add oil to wet hair and only to the ends (the “ponytail”) of the hair to avoid making the hair and scalp greasy. Coconut oil can be used in this way in lieu of mousse or gel.

Substitute for shaving cream. Instead of using shaving cream on your legs, you can lather on coconut oil directly to your legs in the shower and shave directly. Using this method, it is likely you can get a smoother shave, due to the nourishing and softening properties of coconut oil. Your legs will feel soft, smooth, and nourished after shaving with coconut oil and it is possible that by using coconut oil, rather than shaving cream, your razor blades last longer, though that is speculation.

Body lotion. You can generously apply coconut oil to your skin after showering. The heat from the shower makes the coconut oil melt quickly, aiding in the application of the oil to the skin. It is possible that applying the coconut oil soon after showering helps it in being absorbed into the skin quicker (and thus not ending up on clothing, furniture, etc.). You will save money by using coconut oil as a body lotion and still have silky, smooth skin. If you really want to go all out, there are recipes available to make body lotion with coconut oil as the main ingredient. You can add essential oils for your favorite scent.

Makeup and cosmetic remover. If you wear copious amounts of mascara and eyeliner almost every day, you will be happy to hear that coconut oil is an effective makeup remover. When you get home from work, use a jumbo sized cotton ball and coconut oil to remove your makeup. It is amazing to see the foundation, concealer, eye shadow, and mascara slough off onto the cotton ball. The coconut oil glides over the skin and really cleans pores out. Coconut oil appears to have no problems in removing even liquid eyeliner or waterproof mascara, which is hard to remove even using conventional (and expensive) makeup removing products.

Treatment for dry, cracked hands. If you suffer from dry or cracked hands, especially aggravated during the winter time, coconut oil makes a soothing, effective hand lotion. You can lather coconut oil onto your hands several times throughout the day. The coconut oil absorbs quickly into your skin, not leaving any greasy residue on objects. If your hands are extremely dry, you can glop on lots of coconut oil and then put disposable latex gloves onto your hands and wear them to sleep. That way your hands are immersed in coconut oil overnight. You can even mix coconut oil and shea butter together before doing this as they seem to aid in the repairing of dry, cracked hands.

Overnight cream. Coconut oil can make a moisturizing face cream. You can put coconut oil onto your face before bed. This is especially effective after treating the skin with something drying and harsh (such as retinol products). Take caution in slathering your skin with the coconut oil as it has a tendency to clog pores and possibly cause pimples. However, the coconut oil counteracts the drying effects of something like a retinol and makes the skin softer.

Dandruff. If you have a tendency to get dandruff, coconut oil can be an effective treatment for dandruff. If you feel or see dandruff, make sure to slather your scalp with coconut oil during a deep conditioning treatment. When the coconut oil is on the scalp, use your finger nails to scratch the scalp and exfoliate and remove any dead skin cells. Make sure to wash your hair twice if using coconut oil as a treatment for dandruff as it can make the scalp and roots of hair very greasy.

Treatment for cracked heels. Similar to how you treat your hands with coconut oil, if your heels are dry or cracked, you can use coconut oil to condition your feet. Make sure to pay extra attention to the heels of your feet as they tend to be the most dry and rough.

Lip Balm. On your way out the door, you can swipe some coconut oil over your lips in lieu of lip balm. According to the US Library of Medicine, “In vitro sun protection factor determination of herbal oils used in cosmetics,” coconut oil has an SPF of 8 making it a mild form of sunscreen. Partially, this is why coconut oil is an effective lip balm, due to the benefit of the SPF properties. But you can also use the coconut oil as lip balm because it has a pleasant scent. Unfortunately, because it is very quick absorbing, the coconut oil soaks into your lips meaning that you need to reapply it pretty soon after applying.