Development of Microemulsion-Based Makeup Remover from Hemp Seed Oil

The growing demand for natural, skin-compatible cosmetic cleansers has driven interest in oil-based systems that can effectively remove waterproof cosmetics while remaining physicochemically stable. This study characterized hemp seed oil and evaluated it as a component of a water-in-oil (W/O) microemulsion makeup remover. Hemp seed oil showed good oxidative stability (peroxide value = 1.87 ± 0.23 mEq/kg). It contained 0.134 ± 0.01 mg gallic acid equivalents/g of oil weight of phenolic compounds. The oil was rich in linoleic and α-linolenic acids and contained α-tocopherol. Microemulsions were prepared by combining hemp seed oil with castor oil (C:H) or sunflower oil (S:H) at three oil ratios and four surfactant HLB values (4.3–12). From 72 candidate formulations, only sunflower oil:hemp seed oil systems in the ratio of 3:7 and HLB of 9.5 showed the best overall balance of stability, maintaining droplet size, low PDI, and consistent viscosity/turbidity over 2 months of storage and heating–cooling cycle testing. This formulation also exhibited cleansing efficiency (ΔE = 9.64), which was slightly lower than a commercial cleansing oil (ΔE = 9.74). These results illustrate the potential of hemp seed oil to be developed into a stable, effective W/O microemulsion cleansing system for cosmetic application.