Coconut Oil is the Holy Grail

There aren't that many products in existence that you can use for just about anything. Sure, you can use hairspray for your hair, you can use makeup for your face, but could you interchange the two? Nope, unless you count the occasional "I'm out of dry shampoo so let me dust some face powder on my roots," which, let's be honest, doesn't actually work and greases you up even more.

This is where my personal beauty holy grail comes in - coconut oil. I know, I know - you might be thinking, "Sammy, isn't that for cooking?" Well, yes. It's a great low-fat alternative to olive oil. But did you know you can use it for like, a million other things on your body, hair and face? Here are some reasons why I LOVE coconut oil, and how I use it daily for a glowing, natural complexion.

1. It is SO good for your skin.

When I was a teenager, I started developing this weird spotty red rash on the backs of my arms. It wasn't pimples, but it wasn't itchy like eczema either. Just a weird, dry rash that simply would not go away no matter what I tried. Exfoliants only irritated it. Lotions did zilch. After a bad date in my early 20s where my date pointed out said weird, gross arm rash, my mom, who struggles with eczema herself, suggested coconut oil. I, highly embarrassed by my Swamp Thing arms, gave it a go.

About a month later after daily and nightly application, the backs of my arms were smooth as a baby's bottom, and the problem has never returned. I'm now 30 and enjoy smooth, silky skin on the regular, and my current boyfriend has nothing but compliments for my softness.

Coconut oil is chock full of nutrients like Vitamin E, making it the perfect moisturizer. I use it every night after I get out of the shower as a lotion all over my body, letting it soak in overnight so I wake up looking and feeling like a glowing goddess.

2. It's great for your face, too.

I might be a spry, 30-year-old young lady but I'm not immune to wrinkles, and they are definitely starting to take form. I'm not quite ready for (or entirely sure how I feel about) Botox, so when I'm doing my skincare routine in the morning and evening, I apply everything as usual and then seal it all in with coconut oil. The benefits for your skin apply to your face as well, but it can get a bit oily so for my face I only use a tiny, tiny bit. Trust me, it goes a long way.

I also love to just take a little fingertip of oil and rub it in the wrinkles between my eyebrows for a few minutes. Although I notice my fine lines more than anyone else and sometimes feel like I'm starting to look decrepit, I'm *constantly* being asked for my skincare routine and told how great my skin looks. I literally give it all to coconut oil. I could run out of every other beauty moisturizer and be just fine, as long as I have coconut oil. If I run out of that though, I might just dry up like a dead bug in the summer sun. Oh! Which brings me to my next point...

3. It's amazing for sunburns.

I can spend a whole day outside without sunscreen knowing that applying some coconut oil all over myself at the end of it all will keep me as Golden as Harry Styles' new music video. Truly. I've had some nasty sunburns in my life, and aloe helps soothe - but the coconut oil literally repairs. I don't know every ingredient in this miracle oil but damn, does it work. Anytime I get a sunburn now, I slather myself up with coconut oil and within a day or two it's healed.

4. Dry hair? Not anymore.

Slap some coconut oil on the ends, run it through, let it sit for 20-30 minutes, and bam. Shinier, silkier, sexier hair. Make sure you shampoo it really well, or else you'll be left with all that oily residue. I never, ever use it on my hair when it's dry...unless, you know, you want to go for that sexy-wet look. But as a nourishing treatment? Once a week!

5. You can use it with your at-home spray tan for a streakless finish.

I love the L'Oreal Paris Sublime Bronze spray tan - it's literally a spray instead of the funky mousse - but sometimes it doesn't quite apply with that smooth, salon tan finish like I want. I wondered if a little coconut oil would aide the process and surpise, it worked like a charm! First I spray the tanning solution all over me, then take a little dollop of coconut oil and rub it in really well all over, with a focus on the hands, knees, elbows and ankles - anywhere those streaks tend to get splotchy. Let it all dry and you're a golden goddess.

6. It removes makeup. Even that heavy, waterproof black eyeliner.

Put some on a cotton ball to get the big stuff off, then dip a Q-tip in it for those final, hard-to-get-off globs of eyeliner and mascara. Hello, fresh face!

7. Lip balm, exfoliant, cuticle oil, the list goes on.

The things you can do with coconut oil just go on and on and on. It's an easy lip balm by itself, can be mixed with sugar for a smell-good exfoliant, and you can even rub it on your dry cuticles for smooth, healthy fingertips. Last suggestion? Lube. Yep. It's an antifungal so you know it's safe for sex, one of the ultimate beauty boosters, am I right??

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If you haven't incorporated the holy grail that is coconut oil into your beauty routine, definitely do! We can pile on the makeup and pile on the products, but the best thing for your skin is right in the baking aisle at your local grocery store. I suggest getting virgin, unrefined, cold-pressed coconut oil - free of any chemicals or weird preservatives which is exactly what you want for your skin to thrive as naturally as it possibly can! Happy coconut-ing, everyone! Try it and watch your skin glow from the inside out. :)