Getting More from Marula Face Oil Through the Seasons

To get the most from Marula Face Oil, match the amount to your skin and the season, apply it to damp skin, and warm it before you press it in. Most of the difference comes from three small decisions: how many drops you take, whether the skin underneath is damp or dry, and whether you press or rub. Get those right and a single-ingredient oil does a lot.

Our Marula Face Oil is 100% pure marula seed oil with no added fragrance. Its ingredient list is one line long, which makes it easy to adjust: there is only one thing in the bottle, so every change you make is a change in how you use it.

Match the amount to your skin

The general range is two to four drops for the face. Where you sit in that range depends on your skin.

• Dry or mature skin that feels tight: three or four drops at night, two in the morning. This is the skin marula suits best. It leaves a plush, quietly luminous finish without a film.
• Dehydrated skin: the amount matters less than the water underneath. Use two or three drops over a mist or a watery serum so the oil has moisture to hold in.
• Combination skin: start with two drops at night only. Press them into the drier areas, usually the cheeks, and let what is left on your palms cover the rest.
• Skin that tends to feel oily: marula is light for an oil of its type and sinks in quickly, but a lighter oil may suit you better. Try two drops at night, or one drop mixed into your moisturizer.

Adjust with the seasons

The method stays the same all year. The amount changes.

Autumn and winter. When the heating comes on, indoor air pulls moisture from skin faster. Move up a drop at night, and add a morning application if your face feels tight by lunchtime. If you wake with skin that looks flat or dull, that is usually a sign to add one more drop the night before.

Spring. As the air softens, drop back to your usual amount. Many people find two drops at night are enough by May.

Summer. Heat and humidity mean most skin needs less. Keep marula for the evening, or for skin that has had too much sun, wind or air conditioning during the day.

Mixing it with moisturizer or another oil

Marula is easy to combine. Two ways we like:

Into your moisturizer. Put your usual amount of moisturizer in your palm, add one or two drops of marula, mix with a fingertip and apply together. It is a good way to try a face oil if you are not sure about them, and it makes a light cream feel richer on a cold day.

With another of our face oils. Our Face Oil Collection puts marula beside squalane, sea buckthorn, rosehip and plum, and it suggests wearing one, blending two, or rotating them through the week. Marula with squalane gives you something richer than squalane alone and lighter than marula alone. Some people use squalane in the morning and marula at night.

Mistakes that make it feel heavy

When someone tells us a face oil feels greasy, it is almost always one of these.

• Too many drops. Start with two. If your face still looks wet a minute later, you used more than you needed.
• Bone-dry skin. Oil spreads poorly on dry skin, so you end up using more. Apply it while your face is still slightly damp from rinsing or misting.
• Skipping the warm-up. A few seconds between your palms turns the drops glossy and soft so they spread thin. Cold oil goes on in streaks.
• Rubbing. Pressing your palms flat against your face and lifting puts the oil where you want it. Rubbing moves it around and leaves it shiny in some places and dry in others.
• Putting it under a watery serum. Oil goes after anything watery, not before. A water-based serum on top of an oil has a hard time reaching the skin.

Beyond the face

Do not waste what is left on your palms. Sweep it down the sides of your neck and across your collarbone. Press the last of it into your cuticles, or smooth it over the backs of your hands. A single drop also softens dry ends of hair. It is the same pure oil, so there is no need for a second product.

One more use: when your skin is behaving oddly and you cannot tell why, strip your routine back to a gentle wash and this oil for a few days. With one ingredient in the bottle, it is an easy baseline to work from.

Questions about getting more from marula

Will marula feel too rich on combination skin?

Not if you start small. Use two drops at night, pressed mostly into the drier areas, and add more only if your skin still feels tight.

Can I mix Marula Face Oil into my moisturizer?

Yes. Add one or two drops to your moisturizer in your palm and apply them together. It is an easy way to get used to a face oil.

Can I use it on my cuticles or hair?

Yes. It is pure marula seed oil, so whatever is left on your hands after your face can go on cuticles, the backs of your hands or dry ends of hair.

Should I use more in winter?

Usually, yes. Add a drop at night when the heating comes on, and a morning application if your skin feels tight during the day.