Natural Eye Makeup Remover: Coconut Oil

Recently, I revisited something from which I took a long hiatus: waterproof mascara.  I used to wear waterproof mascara every day.  My lashes are naturally long but very straight, and I found that waterproof mascara did better than normal mascara at holding my curl and making my lashes look amazing all day.  Along with rediscovering my mascara love, I also rediscovered how difficult it is to remove, which is pretty much why I stopped wearing it for so long in the first place.  I did some research and found an interesting solution: coconut oil.

I found my coconut oil at King Soopers for a little under $8.  There were two varieties--extra virgin and regular.  I don't know if one is better than the other, but I opted for the regular one, which was also $2 cheaper. 

 It was more expensive than my eye makeup remover for normal mascara-- Equate Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover (Walmart version of the Neutrogena kind), but I figured it would last forever and that if it didn't work, I could use it for cooking.

One thing you'll notice about this oil is that it's solid at room temperature.  I expected it to have a strong coconut scent, but it really didn't smell like anything.  When I first opened it, it was completely solid with absolutely no liquid in sight.  The directions on the back of the jar say to run the jar under warm water to liquify the product if you're using it for hair or body care.  I didn't run it under water but noticed that the second time I opened the jar (which was right before I used it to remove my eye makeup), a tiny bit of the product on top had melted and turned to liquid. 

I removed my contact lenses prior to attempting to remove my waterproof mascara with this stuff.  I then dipped both of my ring fingers into the product (the more liquidy part, although if yours is solid, the warmth of your fingers should melt it).  I closed my eyes and used my ring fingers to gently rub my eyes in circular motions (the skin around your eyes is very delicate--be careful not to rub too hard!).  Within about 10 seconds, the oil started to break down my eye makeup, and there was soon a large ring of black residue around my eyes.  It was working!  I did open my eyes to check this out, and I didn't experience any stinging or irritation (and I do have sensitive eyes).  I then kept gently rubbing until I felt like most of the eye makeup was removed, then I wiped off the residue with my makeup removing towelettes (I use the Neutrogena Makeup Removing Towelettes). For regular mascara, this is all it should take to completely remove it.  I was testing it with waterproof mascara and noticed that most but not all of my mascara had been removed.  I dipped back into the oil and repeated the process again, and my makeup was completely gone!  I followed up by using the clean part of the makeup wipe to remove my face makeup then by washing my face and doing the rest of the steps in my nighttime skincare routine. 

I was happy with how well this worked.  Even though you may have to repeat the process an extra time for waterproof mascara, it's still faster than it would be with an eye makeup remover.  I felt like it also moisturized the area around my eyes, and it definitely made my lashes look super healthy and conditioned.  I loved the fact that it was so gentle on my eyes--in fact, it's the only eye makeup remover I've ever tried that doesn't sting them at all.  Another benefit is that it's a natural product, and you can use it for different things.  Though I've only used it for removing makeup, I've read that you can use it in your hair as a leave-in conditioner, as a shaving cream, or even as a cheek highlight.  You could probably also use it to moisturize your lips and dry cuticles.

All in all, I give this natural makeup remover two thumbs up!  I think I'll continue to use it on a daily basis, even when I'm wearing non-waterproof mascara.  If you try this, let me know how it goes!