About a month ago I signed up to receive a jar of Tropical Traditions Coconut Oil. The very generous folks over there kindly sent one to me! Since then I've been using it in a number of ways and I have to say, I love it!
Ways I've used coconut oil:
- facial moisturizer- I've been applying it to my face right out of the shower, concentrating especially on the area under and around my eyes. I've noticed a more youthful appearance around them.
- lip balm- It made my lips soft and smooth.
- every where else moisturizer- Again, right out of the shower I use it to moisturize my entire body. It works just as well as any other lotion I've ever used.
- make-up remover- I use waterproof eyeliner and coconut oil had no trouble softening it up and making it easy to remove.
- deodorant- Yes, I even tried it as a deodorant, and tested it out by taking a walk downtown on a pretty warm day and even wearing it to work. I know what I smell like when I sweat. Using coconut oil as a deodorant definitely worked! Even after hours walking in the sun and a full work shift, I had no B.O.! I still sweated, because of course it's not an antiperspirant, but as far as keeping my pits from stinking, I give it an A+
- butt stuff- I used it for Lucas' diaper rash. He's always hated it when I applied diaper rash cream, and to be honest, I hate it too. It's so thick and it sticks to my fingers. I put some coconut oil in a baby food jar and stuck it in the basket with his diapers and wipes and started using it regularly. His rash cleared up after a few days, but even while he still had it, it didn't seem to bother him as much. He actually grabbed the jar every time I changed him and asked me to give him his "butt stuff!"
- skin condition- I had a weird itchy, rough, and scaly patch on my elbow for weeks before I got the coconut oil. I started rubbing it on my elbow daily and it was gone within a week.
- bug bites- I put it on Matt's bug bites when they were itchy. It seemed to work for him, but it's hard to tell for sure.
- coffee- I stirred a spoonful into my coffee one morning. I really couldn't taste the difference, but the oil spots floating in my coffee kind of turned me off to it. It's something that I could probably get used to, if I did it more often.
- brownies- I used coconut oil to grease the pan, and then I used it in place of the vegetable oil that the box called for. Since it was still solid, the batter was a little thicker and more difficult to mix and spread in the pan than it would've been with vegetable oil, but other than that, they turned out great! They had a very slight coconut flavor to them, which I totally see as a bonus!
- margaritas- my friend and I were trying to rim our mango margaritas with sugar, but we didn't have any lemons or limes... so we used coconut oil to make the sugar stick to the glasses. SO GOOD! The flavor worked especially well with the mango.
Things to keep in mind
- When you get your coconut oil, it will be solid, but it will liquify at 76 degrees Fahrenheit. Mine completely liquified and I put it in the fridge, because I like the texture that it is at room temperature, but not so much when it's liquid. When I took it out of the fridge it was really REALLY solid. It was actually too solid to scoop any out with just my fingers. I would recommend keeping it out of the fridge.
- If you choose to cook with it, keep in mind that the virgin coconut oil WILL have that coconut scent and flavor. Tropical Traditions green label coconut oil would be a great substitute for every day cooking.
- It's *oil*. When you use it for your skin or hair, you really don't need a lot. I like to put a lot on my legs, because it makes them look kind of shiny, but I put a much smaller amount on my face.
- If you're going to be using it for something kind of gross, like baby butts or athlete's foot, put a small amount in a baby food jar just for that reason. You don't want to be dipping your fingers in it while doing those things, and then later putting it on your face or in your food. Just saying!