I approve: Coconut Oil

I recently vacationed in Scottsdale, AZ at a spa called "the Sanctuary." And a sanctuary it was (I'm sure I'll feature it in a future post.)
One of the spa treatments I received was the "coconut lime scalp and body massage." Basically this consisted of a really nice lady getting me naked under a sheet and rubbing my head and body with coconut lime oil. Ahh delightful. I checked the spa gift shop to buy some of this oil and realized a small bottle was upwards of $50. Naturally, I decided I would rather invest in something from Urban rather than a small vial of scented oil, so I passed. I did, however, hit up the nearest grocery store and bought some organic (or as Ambika calls it "earthy") coconut oil in a plastic jar. I have heard about the numerous benefits of coconut oil, both for internal and external bodily health, but never actually tried it out before.
I brought the bottle back to CoMO with me, and decided to try it out tonight. I opened the jar and was surprised to see that the coconut "oil" looked kind of like Crisco - a strange semi-solid. After reading the directions, I filled my bathroom sink up with hot water and set the jar (with the lid on) into the water. Make sure you DO NOT microwave the coconut oil, microwave heat messes with its chemical makeup, instead set the entire jar or container in hot water... my bathroom sink worked nicely. Once the edges of the oil began to melt, I stood in my bathtub in some crappy clothes and poured the jar over my head. I tried really hard to re-enact the amazing head massage I received in Arizona, but somehow standing in my empty bathtub, rubbing my own head while my hair dripped oil all over my Mizzou t-shirt was far from what I had imagined. I rubbed my head for about 5 minutes, and then clipped my hair up to let the oil soak into my brain. I smelled EXACTLY like a Girl Scout Samoa Cookie for one hour. I rinsed it out with some tea tree shampoo, lathering and rinsing twice. Make sure you don't use a hydrating shampoo, use more of a clarifying one to get the oil out. The result?

my hair looks awesome.

I am a person who is constantly complaining about her hair and trying ANYTHING and EVERYTHING to change it. This coconut oil worked better than any Oscar Blandi, Frederic Fekkai, Redken, Ojon, Bumble and Bumble, Kiehl's, or Aveda product I have ever used. It made my hair shiny and bouncy and, most importantly, SMOOTH. Normally my hurrs are fro-tastic and out of control...some horrible combination of curly meets straight meets thick meets fine meets frizz. God plays some bad jokes sometimes. Anyways, after using the oil, it seems my hair has met its match.

One reason I was so excited to try coconut oil out was because the spa lady mentioned that doing regular head massages with any kind of skin-safe oil would help stimulate hair growth. I definitely saw results after her treatment, and will continue to do anything to get down-to-my-butt locks. Even if it means awkward personal coconut head rubs.

Also, coconut oil is apparently good for you to ingest as well. I haven't researched this a lot, but if you replace some of the oils you use for sauteeing, roasting, and frying meats and vegetables, it can be beneficial to your health by providing much needed omega fatty acids and also acting as a sort of weight loss tool. If this means all my food will taste like Samoa cookies from now on, sign me up.