Quick comparison
- Everyday balm for dry-feeling hands, face or body: Day & Night Tallow Skin Balm — 50g, 100g or 200g; unscented or scented.
- Portable face balm for skin exposed to everyday outdoor conditions: Face The Day SPF 15 — 50g stick; unscented or scented.
- Face-and-body balm where sun protection is the main job: SPF 20 Tallow Sun Balm — 100g; unscented.
Hayes Meadow also makes dedicated lip and underarm balms, but those have more specific jobs and are not direct alternatives to the three products compared here.
Choose the Day & Night Tallow Skin Balm for everyday use
If you want one general-purpose balm for hands, face and body, this is the place to start.
Tallow provides the rich fat base of the formulation, with rosehip seed oil used as a purposeful supporting ingredient. Used in a small amount and massaged in, the balm leaves an emollient layer that helps dry-feeling skin feel softer and more comfortable.
It is a practical everyday option when skin feels dry after washing, bathing, outdoor work or exposure to changing weather.
Start here if: you mainly want an everyday moisturising balm and do not specifically need an SPF product.
Which size should I choose?
- 50g: a smaller option if you are trying the balm for the first time, want something easy to carry or mainly use it on a limited area.
- 100g: a useful middle size for regular everyday use.
- 200g: better suited to frequent use, larger areas or a household using balm regularly.
How quickly you use a pot will depend on where you apply it and how often you use it.
Unscented or scented?
Choose unscented if you prefer no added scent, or if you already know your skin can react to fragranced products or essential oils. Individual sensitivities vary, and even a single scented ingredient such as lavender may not suit everyone.
Choose a scented version if fragrance is part of the experience you want and you know those aromatic ingredients suit you.
The Day & Night range includes Unscented, Lavender, Sweet Orange & Rosemary, Clary Sage & Bergamot, Lemongrass, Rosemary & Basil, and Vanilla.
Scent should come after choosing the right product for the job. A different scent does not turn an everyday balm into a different type of skincare treatment.
Choose Face The Day SPF 15 for a portable face and outdoor balm
Face The Day is the better starting point when you want a compact stick for the face and exposed areas, particularly when you are out and about.
Face the Day is our portable SPF 15 face balm, intended for everyday outdoor use.
Choose Face The Day when the format itself matters: you want something portable, designed for the face and exposed areas, with SPF 15 as part of its intended job.
Choose the SPF 20 Sun Balm when sun protection is the main job
The 100g SPF 20 Tallow Sun Balm is the clearer choice when you want a balm intended for face and body use during sun exposure rather than a general everyday moisturising balm.
Because it is an SPF product, application and reapplication matter. This chooser does not replace the product’s current directions.
Choose the Sun Balm when sun protection is the reason you are buying the product.
What about lip balm and underarm balm?
Hayes Meadow’s lip and underarm balms are more specialised products.
If your main need is your lips, choose a Tallow Lip Balm. If you are looking for the underarm product, choose the dedicated Tallow Underarm Balm rather than one of the general skin balms.
Keeping those products separate makes the choice simpler: this guide is primarily about deciding between everyday skin balm, portable SPF face balm and SPF sun balm.
How much tallow balm should I use?
For our non-SPF Day & Night Skin Balm, start with a small amount and massage it into your skin. Add more if your skin still feels dry. For Face the Day SPF 15 and SPF 20 Sun Balm, follow the application and reapplication instructions on the individual product. Do not use the small-amount guidance for sun protection.
Why does Hayes Meadow use formulated balms rather than tallow alone?
Tallow is an ingredient, not the whole skincare story.
In a balm, it provides a rich lipid base. Supporting ingredients can change the texture, spreadability, skin feel and practical use of the finished product. Hayes Meadow formulates products to do particular jobs rather than expecting one ingredient to do everything.
We also render and purify our tallow in house from identified food-chain suet. That gives us direct oversight of the ingredient before it enters the formulation. Provenance is useful evidence of process control, but it is not proof that the product is clinically superior to every other moisturiser.
Every ingredient earns its place.
For more on our process, read From Our Farm To Your Skin: How We Make Our Skincare.
Still unsure?
- One everyday balm for hands, face and body: Day & Night Tallow Skin Balm.
- Face and exposed areas, portable stick, SPF 15: Face The Day.
- Face and body, with SPF 20 sun protection as the main purpose: Tallow Sun Balm.
- Lips: Tallow Lip Balm.
- Underarms: Tallow Underarm Balm.
Choose the product purpose first. Once you have done that, choose the size and scent that best fit how you will actually use it.