The Benefits of Olive Oil for Skin Plus, a DIY Shaving Cream Recipe

Olive oil—like coconut oil and other natural oils—can work wonders on our skin. From promoting hydration to anti-aging benefits, we’re firm believers that this popular cooking oil deserves a permanent spot in our beauty cabinets.

“Your mother—and mine—was right when she told you that beauty is more than skin deep and that you are what you eat,” says The Body Shop’s Beauty Botanist, Jennifer Hirsch. “Olive oil can help your body absorb nutrients—including vitamins A, D, E, and K—from the other whole foods you eat. So, get your glow from the inside, out by adding a little virgin olive oil to your diet.”

You can find this super ingredient in products like The Body Shop’s Olive Body Butter, incorporate the oil into your favorite DIY face mask recipe, or even use it solo as an oil cleanser or moisturizer. “On the skin, olive oil—like other plant oils—can help to provide great support to the skin’s natural barrier function. It helps to keep the world off your skin,” Hirsch says. She recommends choosing olive oil—whether it be an ingredient in a product formula or straight out of the bottle—for its high antioxidant levels and ability to moisturize the skin. In addition to the visible beauty benefits, olive oil’s scientific makeup is rich in two skin care must-haves: oleic acid and antioxidants. “Oleic acid is not considered to be an essential fatty acid for one reason: our bodies make it,” she explains. “[These] high levels of oleic acid are one of the reasons olive oil is so close to our own sebum. It contributes to olive oil’s powers, as well as creates a lipid balance in olive oil that is intensively moisturizing.”

On the skin, olive oil—like other plant oils—can help to provide great support to the skin’s natural barrier function. It helps to keep the world off your skin.

At Skincare.com, we use olive oil for a variety of do-it-yourself skin care treatments, our favorite being an aloe vera-infused shaving cream that can make the dreaded activity of shaving somewhat enjoyable. This homemade shaving cream leaves our legs looking—and feeling—ready for the beach. Peep the recipe below and see for yourself.

Ingredients:

1 cup of olive oil

½ cup of coconut oil

1 tablespoon of aloe vera gel

1 cup of shea butter

25 drops of essential oil (optional)

Directions:

1.  Melt the shea butter and olive oil using either a microwave or double boiler

2. Once the ingredients have melted, add them to a medium-size mixing bowl

3. Add in the aloe vera and olive oil and mix

4. Once everything is mixed together, let the mixture sit until you see slight solidification (you may want to place in the fridge or freezer to speed up the process)

5. After the mixture has solidified, use a hand mixer and whip—now is also the time to add an essential oil of your choice if you wish

6. Store shaving cream in an air-tight jar and keep in your shower for up to one week