Crazy for Coconut
My health-conscious friends have long espoused the benefits of coconut-based products: cooking with coconut oil, using it as a moisturizer, etc. I’ve been a fan for awhile, mostly because I think it tastes good. There are few things more delicious in life than sipping coconut water through a straw straight out of the fruit on a hot day, although I’ll settle for a Zico chilled in the fridge, too.
I’ve been noticing that the beauty industry has also gone coconutty lately too. Below are a few products that have me going cuckoo for coconut.
Trader Joe’s Coconut Body Butter
I always feel like I’m getting away with something when I use this. TJ’s body butter got me through the chilly (whatever that is in LA terms) winter months when my skin was a little drier than normal. It also whisked me away to summer-slash-some-distant-tropical-locale with its mixed coconut-vanilla scent every time I used it. My favorite part, though, is this vacation-in-a-tub only costs $4.99.
The Body Shop Coconut Cream Body Scrub
I was grabbing dinner at my local mall food court (I know what you’re thinking: “Oh, you fancy huh.” To which I say, yes I AM fancy because it is a fancy mall food court with a gelato bar and everything) when I noticed The Body Shop was doing a spin-the-wheel promo where you basically spin a wheel of various discounts and get a coupon for whichever one you land on. So, of course, I spun, scoring a Buy 1 Get 1 FREE deal! I used the my shopportunity to stock up on exfoliator, nabbing two tubs of the Coconut Cream Body Scrub. I prefer my exfoliators a little on the rougher side because I like to actually feel as though the second and third layers of my skin are being sloughed off in the shower. It’s a gluttony for pain that also comes through with my penchant for getting full-body scrubs at Korean spas. This one isn’t as intense as it is creamy, but it still gets the job done. Best of all, it leaves your skin smelling like pie. Coconut cream pie.
The Body Shop Coconut Hair Oil
Another Body Shop product that I scored for a mere $4.99 at my personal beauty mecca, T.J. Maxx. Admittedly, I’m still getting used to this product and all of its purported benefits (silkier, more nourished hair, realigned chakras, etc. Maybe not that last one). The key, I’ve learned, is to use a TEENY TINY amount, as in half-a-dime’s size. Any more and my fine Asian locks end up matted and greasy.
The Body Shop Coconut Shower Cream
Yet another Body Shop product. What I really like about this one is that it feels luxurious and is super moisturizing. I’ve never bought into the idea of “shave gel” for ladies because, well, why, although I think this is probably the closest thing to it that I own. Translation: It works great for when you’re in shorty-shorts or bikini mode, ladies.
Yankee Candle Coconut Vanilla Vent Stick Air Fresheners
While not exactly a beauty product, they certainly make the interior of my car smell way better than its usual eau de combination of In-N-Out wrappers/salt water/dog paws. Most vent sticks smell like toilet bowl cleaners to me given their ridiculous scent combinations (“Alpine Snow and Muddy Canyon”!). They also tend to give me headaches and/or make my eyes water, which, on a practical level, isn’t great if you’re stuck in bumper-to-bumper LA traffic. At least with this scent, I can sit in traffic, scent headache-free. Nab a pack of 4 at your local Target, and yes there are only 3 in the above pic because one is in my car right now!
Are you crazy for coconut, too? What are some of your favorite coconut-scented or derived beauty products?
