Olive oil is one of the most popular ingredients in cooking, but if you’ve never used it for beauty, you’re in for a treat. Believe it or not, Rachel Ray’s pet ingredient is not only a necessity in any pasta dish, but also great for your nails, lips, hair, and skin. Why? Olive oil is rich in squalane, a natural emollient that penetrates skin without leaving a greasy film behind. Beyond that, it’s packed with Vitamins A & E and a number of polyphenols that already make it a popular inclusion in beauty products. Check out the below list for 15 inventive ways to get gorgeous Italian-style:
- A little EVOO makes a fabulous substitute for foot cream. Just rub some on your feet before you go to bed, put on some socks and wake up with super soft tootsies.
- Bad sunburn? Mix olive oil with white vinegar and apply before a warm bath to soothe and heal the burn.
- Banish frizzy hair by putting a couple of drops of olive oil in dry hair.
- Smooth generously onto hands before bed, put on white cotton gloves, and wake up with soft, youthful hands.
- Dandruff issues? Mix olive oil with almond oil and leave on scalp for five minutes. (If it starts to burn, rinse it out.) Rinse well to clear hair of dandruff.
- Add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil to your bath to calm red, irritated skin.
- Soothe chapped lips by smoothing on some olive oil.
- Olive oil makes a great anti-aging moisturizer, since it contains polyphenol hydroxytyrosol, an antioxidant that helps to hold cell walls intact and thus reduce the signs of aging.
- Apply a little olive oil to a Q-tip and use it as a makeup remover. (Yes, that’s why the store-bought kind is often so oily!)
- Soak thin, brittle nails and ragged cuticles in a small cup of olive oil to soften, smooth and strengthen them.
- Massage olive oil into your hair, then leave hair covered with a shower cap for 30 minutes. Shampoo and discover softer, more lustrous hair with fewer split ends.
- Sensitive skin? Go easy on your legs by using olive oil as a shaving cream.
- Slather on olive oil before braving the sun - it’s rich in Vitamins A and E, keeping skin from drying out in the heat while protecting you from UV rays.
- Rub on elbows and knees for intense moisturizing. (My elbows are actually soft now - I’m not kidding.)
- For stained nails and fingers, simply add a few drops of lemon juice to olive oil and soak your fingers in it.
Photo source: http://www.extra-virgin-oliveoil.gr/
Very useful post & thanx for sharing! Yeah olive is good for health and skin toooo….
also, a few drops in your ear once a day helps clear ‘em—good for swimmerz
Thanks for the great tips -sounds great
Wow! I never would have imagined.
It’s also good for stretch marks. Use it 3 times a day on the stretch marks (red or white) and they will get much better.
Be careful about no.13, oil makes you burn/tan quicker. You don’t want to sizzle!
Good point, rebs! But tanning outside isn’t really au courant anymore. Skin cancer is SO passe.
Olive oil is a great carrier oil mixed with a few drops of lavender body oil and used as a massage oil…not only does it soothe your skin leaving it soft and luxurious but you also get a good night’s sleep if massaged just before bed time!!! Also much cheaper than store bought massage oils…
[...] July 30, 2008 Since you ladies loved our posts on DIY beauty uses for petroleum jelly, Q-tips and olive oil, I thought I’d give you a host of beauty tips on another common household item: aloe vera. [...]
Thanks for good tips
[...] cuticle oil in your repertoire? Switch in olive oil, lip balm, or petroleum [...]
great tips,I really can’t miss the great idea!
Olive oil is also amaaazing for tanning
Yes I know skin cancer and all that but I still tan outside and it works like a charm, in about 45 minutes I’m 5 shades darker and it lasts for weeks. It’s also never caused be to burn no matter how long I’ve been in the sun, even thought I admit that has more to do with my dark-er complexion.