Hemp seed oil is becoming better known as a superfood for skin, but can you just leave it on your face?

The answer is yes, you certainly can!

Hemp seed oil is made from the cannabis sativa plant; the seeds are cold-pressed to extract all the goodness, and the resulting oil is greeny-yellow and smells faintly nutty! The darker green the oil, the less refined and the more packed full of lovely skin-enriching nutrients it will be, so go for the cold-pressed unrefined stuff if you can!

If you’re used to conventional skincare, this minimally-processed natural oil might look more like something you’d cook with than put on your face… but trust us, it’s good stuff for the skin.

One of the great things about hemp seed oil is that even though it’s an oil, it’s very good indeed for oily skin. The combination of essential fatty acids that it contains is in perfect balance and matches our skin’s own natural oils. This means pores aren’t clogged, and the skin’s oil production is balanced; in fact, hemp seed oil is excellent for acne-prone skin.

So how do you use it?

You can apply neat hemp seed oil directly to the face, if you want. Just tip a small amount into the palm of your hand and massage into the skin. No need to wipe it off!

Or you can use a slightly more fragrant blend of hemp and essential oils, like Balmonds Bath & Body Oil, which is based on hemp but also contains lavender, chamomile and olive oils to add some extra goodness to the product! You can smooth it on after bathing to lock in moisture and feed dry, thirsty skin with all those nourishing oils.

Alternatively, you can use hemp seed oil in a balm or a cream, as part of a daily skincare regime. Both our Skin Salvation balm and Balmonds Daily Moisturising Cream are rich in hemp and can be used anywhere on the body, as much and as often as you need.

Using hemp-based moisturisers every day will act as a kind of vitamin supplement for your skin, which will absorb the essential fatty acids and use them to renew its defences. This can be especially useful for those with eczema, whose skin is often depleted of EFAs; a regular dose of omega oils will help keep flare-ups at bay.

Recommended products:
Balmonds Skin Salvation balm with hemp and beeswax (from £7.99 for 30ml)
Balmonds Bath & Body Oil with hemp, chamomile and lavender (£12.99 for 300ml)
Balmonds Daily Moisturising Cream with hemp and shea butter (from £13.99 for 100ml)