cover image Natural Beauty with Coconut Oil: 50 Homemade Beauty Recipes Using Nature’s Perfect Ingredient

Natural Beauty with Coconut Oil: 50 Homemade Beauty Recipes Using Nature’s Perfect Ingredient

Lucy Bee, photos by David Loftus. Quadrille, $14.99 (96p) ISBN 978-1-84949-894-4

Bee, a beauty therapist and the woman behind the eponymous U.K. coconut oil brand, opens a vast horizon of healthful possibilities in this overview of the benefits of coconuts and coconut oil. Bee shares the reasons for her embrace of coconut oil as the optimal ingredient for healthy skin, hair, oral hygiene, and general well-being. Coconut oil is the perfect skin treatment, she says, and can be administered alone or in conjunction with sea salt, honey, or coffee grounds; the book includes recipes for these treatments as well as exfoliants and cleansers that incorporate lavender, avocado, and cacao. Beyond beauty tips, she highlights the importance of good eating in conjunction with external applications, providing recipes for smoothies rich in antioxidant fruits, nuts, “good fats,” and vegetables. This easy-to-follow and well-designed little book allows anyone to discover the possibilities of coconut, whose benefits extend far beyond cookies and cakes. Color photos. (Jan.)