The the legalization of marijuana making inroads throughout the nation, there’s a new trend on the lifestyle market — the use of cannabis and cannabidiol (CBD) as ingredients in skincare and wellness products.
I first dipped my toes into the world of CBD last summer in an attempt to soothe my stress and help get a better night’s sleep, since no amount of melatonin was doing the trick. After hearing rave reviews, I placed an order from luxury CBD company Lord Jones. The gummies arrived on my doorstep and I opened the package to reveal an elegant Hermès-orange box filled with nine red and yellow, old-school gumdrops. At $5 a pop, I hoped to experience the anti-anxiety and anti-inflammatory properties I had been promised by reviewers of the product, and the supposed benefits of CBD. All of that, without the sleepy, giggly or paranoid high one may feel from the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in marijuana.
While certainly not life-changing, I did feel more relaxed after popping my first gumdrop. One piece, with 20 milligrams of CBD inside, caused a mellow wave of calm to wash over me as I lay down to rest that night. I slept better that night than I had in weeks and awoke to my alarm with no sense of grogginess — well, some grogginess, but nothing more than the average early morning wake-up.
A few months later, in one of my many nights spent browsing the Sephora website, I noticed cannabis had swept the beauty world. Milk Makeup, a newer, trendier beauty brand marketed to millennials, released its Kush Mascara with hemp-derived cannabis seed oil in its formulation. Milk has now added lip products containing cannabis, claiming that the oil has nourishing and soothing properties.
When a brand offered to send samples of CBD-infused teas to the WAG office, I happily accepted. Anything to help me mellow out at the end of a long day spent in fluorescent lighting is welcome in my book. We sampled the Buddha Teas CBD line, which comes in a variety of flavors, including chamomile, peppermint and matcha green tea. With 5 milligrams of CBD in each tea bag, it certainly doesn’t pack the same punch as other consumable CBD products but may give an added element of relaxation if you love a cuppa chamomile before bed at night. The best part? It tastes just like tea. There is no marijuana-like smell and no oily residue.
Now Neiman Marcus has stepped into the high-end cannabis ring. As part of its Trending Beauty Initiative, Neiman Marcus is carrying a number of cannabis-infused beauty products, including balms, lotions, soaps, oils, serums and masks to nourish the skin with all of the benefits of hemp.
“Cannabis beauty brands are becoming increasingly popular and CBD products are the next big thing in beauty,” says Neiman Marcus beauty buyer Kim D’Angelo. “Neiman Marcus plans to continue to expand our CBD assortment while offering customers the latest and greatest in Trending Beauty.”
Highlights of the CBD collection include Sagely Naturals Relief and Recovery Cream, which combats discomfort and soreness; Code of Harmony Glo-Berry Glistening Skin Oil Serum, to moisturize and balance skin; and the Cannuka CBD Calming Eye Balm. While the CBD beauty debut has not yet hit Neiman Marcus Westchester, the products can be bought online.
For more, visit neimanmarcus.com.
