Coconut Oil experience

I know, I know. I'm way behind on the coconut oil trend. People have been talking about the many uses of coconut oil for a while now and I'm finally jumping on the bandwagon. I bought a big tub (56 fl oz) from Sam's Club last night for $15. Cheap considering this should last a long time and doesn't expire for a couple years. Here's the brand I purchased:

Better Body Foods Coconut Oil at Sam's

Apparently it's important for the coconut oil to be:
- Organic
- Unrefined (should say virgin or extra virgin). Refined could make you break out.
- Cold pressed

I'm a newbie to this so I haven't come close to tackling the 101 Uses for Coconut Oil, but I did use it for a facial scrub and hair mask last night with success.

Facial Scrub

I washed my face with my usual cleanser to remove my makeup. Some say that coconut oil can do this on it's own, but I'm prone to breakouts so it made me nervous. What if it didn't get all my makeup off? After using my regular cleanser, I mixed a dime size of coconut oil with some baking soda - enough to make it gritty. (Baking soda is a great natural exfoliate. I normally just mix it with water to make a paste or sometimes with Cetaphil. This should only be done once or twice a week. I've gotten facials at "natural" salons before and they highly recommended baking soda.) I then scrubbed my face. After I washed that off, I took some more coconut oil without baking soda and let if sit on my face while I finished showering. My skin felt super smooth when I rinsed it off. Soft as a baby's butt I swear.

I also used it in place of my regular moisturizer last night and this morning. The verdict is still out if I'll keep this up. As long as it doesn't make me break out I probably will.

Hair Mask

I washed and conditioned my hair like normal in the shower. I then towel dried my hair, combed it with a wide tooth comb, applied the coconut oil, pinned it up, and covered my hair with a plastic bag. I looked real hot last night let me tell ya! You can warm the oil up in the microwave before application or simply take some in your hands and rub your hands together to melt it down.

You're supposed to leave it on for at least two hours or overnight. I opted for overnight. Go big or go home. I put a towel down over my pillow since my hair was kind of greasy and wet. It wasn't the most comfortable sleep, but hey anything for beauty, right? I got used to the smell, but I'm surprised my husband didn't have dreams all night of being on a beach vacation because our room smelt quite tropical!

This morning I washed my hair with shampoo twice to get all the coconut oil out and conditioned like usual. I let it air dry and then styled. Guys - my hair feels super soft. It looks shinier as well. Click here for an article explaining the benefits coconut oil can have on hair.

Smoothies

I haven't tried this yet, but I drink a green smoothie every morning and plan to add a tablespoon of coconut oil to it. Coconut oil is supposed to gear up your metabolism and help with weight loss. We'll see!

Have any of you tried coconut oil? What do you use it for? Let's hear some success stories! If you want to learn more, just get on pinterest or google and type in coconut oil. I think you'll be amazed.