Crisco as a beauty product? - Yes, yes indeed

Believe it or not, Crisco is a great product, not for baking , but for beauty. Now before you think I'm crazy lets think about it.

 What is Crisco? and NO it is NOT lard (true lard is animal fat). Crisco is simply soybean and palm oil in a solid form. Thats it, nothing else, thats all she wrote. Now, we all know the benefits of oils for skin now don't we?

 Really any form of plant oil can be considered a natural moisturizer- that includes the famous, even elite, - apricot kernal, jojoba, morrocan, argan, almond, avacado, grapeseed and olive oil. No one really considers the cheaper and less elegant  "grocery store" oils such as soybean oil, safflower oil (my personal favorite), corn oil, canola oil or just plain old vegetable oil. Any of these oils will perform the same as the more expensive version, be it not as elegant. Really, it much more chic to say we use virgin coconut on our hair or body than when asked  to say "Oh, I just use veggie oil for everything."

 I personally have used coconut, argan, olive, sunflower, safflower, canola, vegetable oil and crisco, and out of all of them for price, ease of use, performance and versatility Crisco wins every single time. This is not to say that these other oils don't have their place (coconut, olive, argan and jojoba oil are consisered by far the best for hair) but Crisco should not be overlooked.

 Crisco can be used as -

  Body lotion- it really doesn't have a scent (  as long as you don't buy the butter flavored version and please, please!, don't buy the butter flavored version). Crisco has a luxurious texture, even if it is somewhat greasy. When using Crisco less really is more. Slather it lightly on dry spots, everywhere, and let it soak in. I have heard it does wonders for dry, itchy, eczema prone skin and I can attest to that. In the winter my legs get so dry, itchy and flaky I will scratch them till they bleed. Nothing truly helps- except Crisco. I have read that Dr.'s call it "Cream C" and use it on burn patients and for wound healing, especially after plastic surgury or chemical peels to the face.
  You can even use it as a base for custom body lotion creations. Mix it with weaker, heavily scented lotions to beef them up, Mix it with baby lotion and vaseline for a hand cream. Whip it up with other essentail oils (like lavender, lemongrass or Rosehip) if thats your thing.

 Hair Care-  Melt it to use as a hot oil treatment. Slather it on thickly as an overnight treatment. ( It will take a clarifying shampoo or multiple shampooings with your regular shampoo to remove it much like any other oiling or deep treatment). Use a miniscule amount, ( less than a pea sized amount) on ends of hair as a split end sealer and frizz reducer.

 Facial care- Use as makeup remover- slather it on just like you would cold cream. Remove with a hot (as you can stand) wet wash cloth. Wash face with  your prefered cleanser. I have oily skin and have not had any issue using Crisco as a makeup remover and its less messy than using oil removers.
     Use as moisturizer- works lovely around eyes and on lips, dry skin could use it as full face moisturizer but its too emmoilient for oily skin used this way.


All in all, if your strapped on cash or just curious give Crisco a shot (the store brands are even cheaper and contain the same ingredients) If you don't care for it  you can always use it in your cake, cookies or for fried chicken!