With thousands of bath and beauty products on the market, finding something of quality can be a daunting task. So instead of searching Google endlessly to find a bar of soap that contains tons of ingredients you can’t pronounce, costs $25, and ultimately leaves you with a rash, consider going local for your bath and beauty needs. These 6 purveyors have gone back-to-basics to create products that offer nourishment and simplicity.
Will-o-the-Wisp Works
Online
Owner of Will-o-Wisp Works, Stephanie McElroy, got tired of relying on chemical filled products claiming to be good for our bodies and started making her own cold pressed soaps and has since created an abundance of products that are 100% chemical free, sustainable, and reasonable. The shop carries lip balms, face masks, bath bombs, and other products that revive, nourish, and protect your skin. Will-o-Wisp Works’ also offers special orders with customizable labels and all of their regular products can be found on their website.
Simple Sugars
Online & Various Retail Locations
Pittsburgh native Lani Lazzari, owner and creator of Simple Sugars, first discovered her passion for making skin sensitive products in 2005, when her mother gave Lani and her brothers the task of making homemade gifts for Christmas. Since then Lani, who suffers from eczema, has created a brand of all-natural bath products safe for sensitive skin. In March of 2013, Lani was a contestant on Shark Tank, where her brand was invested in, enabling Simple Sugars to become monumentally successful with products sold in over 700 retail locations worldwide. Simple Sugars’ products can be found online as well as in several locations in the city of Pittsburgh. Click here for a complete listing.
Taiga Bees
Online
Taiga Bees may be the youngest company on our list, having just gone public in February 2016, but founder Nina Marie’s whipped body butters, healing salves, and bath melts have been met with high praise from friends and clients long before the opening of her Etsy store. The name of the shop is derived from the Russian word for forest (Taiga), a language and culture which is precious to the owner of Taiga Bees. Nina Marie says the the word ‘forest’ embodies the characteristics she cherishes in her products: organic, wild, pure, and uninhibited. And none of these products would be possible without bees, which Nina Marie so lovingly refers to as “our magic pollinators”.
“Your body is your temple. We have to be kind and nourish ourselves as purely as we can.“- Nina Marie of Taiga Bees
Una Biologicals
Lawrenceville & Online
Skin Food is the term Una Biologicals uses to describe their products; lotions, creams, and balms that use organic ingredients to promote strength and hydration. Una’s products are vegetarian and vegan, and promote healthy skin with ingredients like avocado oil and mango butter. Visit them at their brick and mortar location in Lawrenceville or visit them online for a list of upcoming events where they’ll be selling their products.
Worn Cosmetics
Online & Head Space Salon
Makeup and Hair Artist, Brittany Horrell, is the creator of Worn, a line of lipstick palettes that come in hand stained wooden boxes made from recycled materials. Brittany creates these creamy matte lipsticks out of her own home and has produced 4 shades which nourish and maintain their intense color throughout the day. With her recent success, Brittany is currently working on adding more neutral shades of lipstick to her line as well as lip liner. Worn Cosmetics currently offer lipstick palettes with colors which could be described as pomegranate, plum, nude, and stone and each order comes with a complimentary lipstick brush. You can find Brittany’s products online and in store at Head Space Salon on McKnight Road.
Pip & Lola’s
Online & Various Retail Locations
This Munhall based business is the brainchild of Samantha Story-Camp. After years of making soap for friends and family, Samantha became a self-proclaimed “professional saponifier”. Her “barely scented” soaps were inspired by the overwhelming lack of natural soaps on the market not completely oversaturated with scent. Having skin issues herself, Samantha decided to focus on making restorative bars of soap for allergy and scent-sensitive folks. The shop currently produces 70 different types of vegan and vegetarian soap. Their products can be purchased online as well at Creative Cupboard (Chicora, PA) and in America Shoppe (Waynesburg, PA). This Spring and Summer, Pip & Lola’s will be bringing their products to several farmers markets in Western PA. And don’t forget to check out their Soap of The Month Club.