Oils have become a major part of my daily beauty routine. Almost every single product I use contains at least one type, or is actually an oil itself.
It’s really interesting to realize this, because just a few years ago I absolutely avoided oils at all costs. I thought they were a big cause of my breakouts – but I know now that oil can actually be used to help breakouts, along with a billion other things.
I thought it’d be fun to tally up all the oils I use for health & beauty in a single day (aside from cooking), just to see how important it is to my daily life.
I have a feeling I know which one I’ll use the most of, but we’ll just have to see…
As soon as I wake up – before I’ve had anything to eat or drink – I like to take a tablespoon of coconut oil and swish it in my mouth for about 15-20 minutes (oil pulling – read about ithere!). Then, I do what’s known in the Ayurveda world as Abhyanga – a daily massage using oil that’s specifically for your body’s elemental makeup. I use a Pitta oil which is made of mainly sesame, coconut, and sunflower oils, and then some essential oils, along with a whole bunch of herbs.
Then of course I brush my teeth. I use a toothpaste that has both tea tree and wintergreen oils.
In the shower, I use a natural shampoo and conditioner that both contain a hefty amount of coconut oil, as well as some others. I also use an African black soap body wash that contains palm kernel oil and a bunch of essential oils.
After I shower, I slather my skin up with pure coconut oil, and use some vitamin E in areas where I have scars that I want to heal. I then use this incredible natural deodorant made with coconut oil and bergamot essential oil (along with arrowroot flour and baking soda). In my hair, I put a little bit of – you guessed it – coconut oil.
Even though all of these oils have me smelling incredible at this point, I can’t help but put a little bit of perfume on! I love this one, which includes a mixture of essential oils, as well as jojoba oil. Jojoba is technically a wax, but we’ll call it an oil anyway!
Later in the day, I often light up an oil diffuser with bergamot essential oil to awaken my senses while I work on whatever it is that I may be working on. I usually put a bit of it on my fingertips and massage it into my scalp, as well. It’s awesome.
When it’s time for bed, I use an ayurvedic skin cleanser that contains castor oil, and remove my eye makeup using pure jojoba oil. I dab some tea tree oil on any blemishes I want to fight, and then brush my teeth with the same kind of toothpaste I used earlier in the day.
And so, for the final tally…
Looks like coconut oil is the winner – just what I suspected. I used it six different times. In total, I used 22 types of oil in one day. I guess that shows their importance to me right there! This was actually really fun to add up all the oils I use in a 24-hour period – such a huge part of my day that I’ve never really paid attention to like this before. Which oil takes the cake for you?