We Talked To Lake Bell About The Wonders Of CBD & Why Weed Isn't Just For "Stoners"

Sara Coughlin

In this era of CBD bath bombs, weed moms, and, most importantly, more states pushing for legalization, there are as many types of smokers as there are, well, smokers. And while the drug rug and lava lamp set have been well-served for decades now, there's another brand of cannabis users, those whose smoking habits have more to do with wellness than Phish, who might not have seen their aesthetic reflected in the cannabis industry until recently. Actress Lake Bell belongs to the latter group — and lucky for her and her ilk, her husband Scott Campbell, with former fashion executive Clement Kwan, founded a company tailor-made for their tastes.

 

Hailed as the "Hermès of marijuana" by the New York Times, Beboe is the, ahem, high-class, rose-gold-tinted cannabis brand that the smokers of Instagram deserve. Its various vapes and dainty pastilles come in indica and sativa blends intended for "downtime" and "inspiration," respectively. As for Bell's role in the company, she's had a hand in fine-tuning its offbeat, normcore-infused commercial voice (check out the video below to see what we mean).

 

We recently spoke to Bell over email about her personal experience with cannabis and why she's excited to be a part of the Beboe family.

Interview has been edited for length and clarity.

 

Tell me about the first time you tried weed. Where were you, how old were you, who were you with?
"The first time I tried weed was at boarding school. I was 14 years old. Obviously, it was an illegal activity that I was participating in, but I’m just remaining transparent. (Sorry, mom. Sorry, Westminster Boarding School.) It was some delinquent senior I followed into the woods’ fault. I had to pretend that I felt something, because it was my first time and I didn’t know how to inhale."

 

How did your relationship with and use of cannabis develop after that?
"Because it was somewhat underwhelming the first time, I wasn’t wooed by it. Initially, if anything, I was intimidated by the culture of it. It felt like there was a whole way of life you had to subscribe to in order to participate and I didn’t relate to that lifestyle. I mean, sure, I had a fuzzy black light poster like all teens of the ‘90s [and] I had Bob Marley's Greatest Hits, but I never knew the B sides. So I took a hiatus from dabbling in it and then my weed smoking had a reprise when I went to drama school in England, obviously."

What role does cannabis play in your life now — is it purely recreational, do you use it to unwind after a stressful day, is it part of your wellness regimen?
"Cannabis is a massive part of my wellness regime in that it helps me alleviate stress [and] anxiety. I have been historically an insomniac and I now vape or take a Beboe Downtime pastille before bed almost every night."

 

What are your thoughts on the sudden mainstream popularity of CBD? How do you like to use it and do you think it's affecting how people view cannabis overall?
"I always think of CBD as the most socially acceptable version of Cannabis on a mainstream level for obvious reasons. The first time I had heard about it was in certain CBD salves for sore muscles and aches and pains, and inflammation in general... With the onset of cannabis being more accepted in a mainstream environment, even my godfather, who is in his 70s, is asking me to bring him certain CBD products for his arthritis that he can’t get in his state."

 

What was your initial reaction when your husband decided to start Beboe and get into the cannabis industry?
"I was like, 'But you don’t smoke weed.' And he was like, 'Exactly.' He wanted to make cannabis products for people like us, who aren’t stoners but who wanna enjoy weed like it’s a glass of wine."

 

How do you think Beboe is changing and adding to contemporary cannabis culture in general?
"Historically, marijuana culture has felt somewhat collegiate and limiting. Especially in the space of edibles — eating marijuana has always been kind of like the wild west: You never know what you’re going to get. You’d get a pot brownie and be warned: Only take a small bite of the left corner and then chew it and spit it out or else you’ll get fucked up. But now, Beboe not only microdoses so you have a much more reliable level experience, it also transcends the culture in that it accepts and invites a new type of cannabis consumer. The design of the product itself, in its elegance and beauty, reflects the actual product — it delivers an experience that is palatable for both the experienced and the novice cannabis lover."

What's your ideal high activity?
"I’m not sure how original I am with this answer, but I would admit that good old fashioned hanging out with my husband and watching stupid movies together would be my ideal recreational cannabis experience."