I’ve been an olive oil user for years. I buy it in a very pure minimally processed form, which is a healthier version than processed. Olive oil [2] has a fairly high cooking temperature and adds great flavor to many dishes.
Olive oil isn’t just for cooking. It has a few interesting uses that make it even more appealing to keep around.
- Moisturizer. My grandmother used to sleep with Noxema and she had gorgeous skin. A little olive oil will do the same trick.
- Remove Stickers. This one would have saved me a lot of effort since my kids were notorious for putting stickers in all the wrong places. Cover the sticker with the oil, then gently peel it off the surface.
- Wood Furniture Polish. Apply olive oil to a soft cloth and use on your wood furniture.
- Lip Balm. I’m not by definition a DIYer , but there are times when the urge to use those creative juices is hard to resist. I actually made my own lip balm with olive oil last year. Here’s the recipe [3].
- Cleaning Stainless Steel. Cleaning stainless steel [4] pots and pans is actually pretty simple. As the stainless pots and pans dry rub a bit of olive oil on the pan to prevent streaks, rust, and tarnish.
- Makeup Remover. Apply a small amount of olive oil to your face and gently wash off with a damp washcloth.
- Prevent mosquitoes from breeding. Pour a layer of olive oil on top of stagnant water to prevent mosquitoes.
- Kill Lice. We’ve had lice [5] more than once [6] and olive oil was our savoir. Lice can’t hold their breath for over eight hours so the sleeping with olive oil on your hair kills them.
- Condition Cuticles. Put a little olive oil on your cuticles before you head to bed.
- Use Around the House Instead of WD-40. Use olive oil to fix a creaky door or a any other hinges that need a little tweak.
Do you have any other interesting uses for olive oil?
Photo credit: dahorsburgh [7] via photopin [8] cc [9]