Practical Uses for Petroleum Jelly (Vaseline)

Practical Uses for Petroleum Jelly

1. Remove eye makeup. Coat your lids, then gently swab with a tissue.

2. Highlight cheekbones. Fake a model's bone structure by patting and blending a tiny amount across cheekbones. The shine attracts light and creates a contoured effect.

3. Gloss your lips. Add red food dye -- or tastier cherry Kool-Aid powder -- to a dab of petroleum jelly for instant lip color.

4. Get an even tan. Dry skin tends to soak up excess tanning lotion, leaving skin splotchy. Smooth on petroleum jelly before using tanning products.

5. Preserve your fragrance. Dab on pulse points, like your wrists and the sides of your neck, before spritzing on perfume. Your scent will last the entire day.

6. Buff away dry skin. Combine with brown sugar to concoct an at-home exfoliator.

7. Tame unruly eyebrows. Dot petroleum jelly on your fingertip or a clean mascara wand and sweep across brows in one direction, from inside to out.

8. Intensify eye shadow. Morph your powder shadows into creams for a more pigmented color (prime your lids with foundation and translucent powder first to avoid creasing).

9. Protect skin from hair dye. Smooth a layer at your hairline before using home color and you'll avoid hard-to-remove dark stains.

10. Seal split ends. Coat ends to conceal dryness and frizz when you're between trims. You can also rub a little between your hands and use as hair wax for texture or to smooth flyaways. Wash it out with a clarifying shampoo.

11. Stretch your lotion. Running low on your favorite moisturizer? Add petroleum jelly to prolong its life.

12. Get a perfect manicure. Dab a little around your nails when you're DIY-ing a manicure or pedicure to keep  polish from getting on your skin.

13. Soften skin. Before going to bed, rub petroleum jelly on places where skin is extra-dry, like on your elbows or the heels of your feet. Skin will be super-soft when you wake up.

14. Remove rings. Is a ring stuck on your finger? Petroleum jelly can help it slide off easily.

15. Stop squeaks. Apply to squeaky hinges on doors or cabinets to keep them quiet.

16. Shine shoes. Petroleum jelly can make scuffed patent-leather shoes shine like new again.