Help! I've Got Dry Skin & Hair!

Dear SYSters,

I’ve recently had several requests for help with dry hair and skin. There are so many products available and they can be quite expensive too. As a “fashionista” who also lives on a real budget I’m sharing some inexpensive (and natural) products that I love and personally use:

For your hair:
Mix 4-5 drops of Extra Virgin Olive Oil with your conditioner
Apply it to your hair
Let it sit for about 20 minutes wrapped in a warm towel (or shower cap)
Rinse hair completely
Do this one to two times a week (depending upon dryness of hair)

My favorite beauty product is coconut oil. What’s the buzz about coconut oil? By now you’ve been hearing the many praises of coconut oil. It has many natural beauty and health benefits you’ll want to learn more about it.

Most often pure (virgin) coconut oil is used as a healthy replacement for solid shortenings in cooking. However, it also moisturizes, conditions, nourishes your skin and hair!

Here are four ways to use coconut oil as a beauty product:

1. To moisturize skin. It is often an ingredient in expensive skin care products. Coconut oil has a lot of fat, which is great for moisturizing dry skin, as well as reducing the appearance of wrinkles. Use it after the shower or bath. It is usually recommended for the body—not the face (may be too oily).

2. Condition your damaged hair. Just massage a dime-size of coconut oil into your hair and scalp—let set 15 minutes and rinse well. You may only need to do this every couple of weeks. Virgin coconut oil is the only healthy oil proven to penetrate hair shafts. It creates fullness to your hair and reduces split ends.

Forget about pricey hair conditioners, hot oil treatments, thickening mousses and gels to nourish your hair. You’ll save $$$ by using coconut oil instead.

3. To relieve itchy skin irritations and bites. Dab on some soothing oil and let set.

4. It removes mascara. One dab of coconut oil on a cotton swab gets off all the mascara build up.

5. Dry lips? No problem…try these DIY recipes using coconut oil, of course.

In addition to these beauty benefits, coconut oil could possibly protect against disease and cancer, relieve stress, promote weight loss, heal scrapes, boost energy, and aid in digestion. I’d say coconut oil is  pretty impressive! http://www.vitacost.com/Garden-of-Life-Extra-Virgin-Organic-Coconut-Oil
 (FYI: I buy my coconut oil from my local Trader Joe’s)

Here’s to happy & healthy skin!

Love, Leslie aka MissusSmartyPants

A "Nutty" Beauty Secret

I LOVE coconut oil for cooking. It has good high-heat tolerance and makes everything taste yummy and bake flaky.


But did you know that coconut oil has many uses? Here are some out-of-the-Box uses for coconut oil. I found these online and thought I'd share them since I've used coconut oil several of these ways myself.

I first started falling in love with coconut oil, water and coconut milk and all its wonder when I began following Mark'sDailyApple website.This website is about a healthy living lifestyle and has changed the way I eat and exercise.


You may know all about the good fat in coconut oil and how cooking with it can be beneficial for your overall health, but did you know that it can highlight a certain part of your face? Check out these 10 not-so-typical uses for coconut oil...


Cooking at high heat. Ok, this one is more of a "normal" use, but since some oils are unsafe to cook with at high temperatures, coconut oil is a great alternative.

Try popping up some popcorn made with coconut oil 

and add sea salt to taste...so yummy--yet good for you!

Cheekbone highlighter. Apply a small amount on cheekbones over makeup. A slightly 'dewy' look is better and more natural than a dry cakey look.


Shaving "lotion." A close shave and a moisturizer at the same time.

 
Deep conditioning hair treatment. Rub a small amount of oil into hair (mostly at ends), comb through and put hair in a loose bun before bed, and wash out in the morning.


Eye makeup remover.


An all-natural facial moisturizer.


Massage oil.


Body moisturizer. Applied directly after showering or bathing, it helps retain moisture and is better for your skin than most lotions. I've applied coconut oil to DRY hands and feet at bedtime and it works like a charm. (Wear thin socks to let the oil absorb...plus you can walk around)

Hair flyaway tamer. Use VERY sparingly on ends or areas with flyaways.


Gluten free and vegan cooking. Another food one, but it adds a little something extra to a dish.


BTW, you can now purchase at my local Trader Joe's a 14 oz jar of coconut oil for $5.99! It lasts a long time too.


Source: Prevention Magazine