As we celebrate Women’s History Month, we are thrilled to spotlight Black women business owners such as the Cactus Beauty Bar Founder, Carla Halls. Carla’s products are vital to skincare, self-care, and mental health. As well as to help people have confidence on the inside and out. 

We got to chat with Carla about the origins of her skincare journey and what made her pursue opening The Cactus Beauty Bar.

Carla stated that The Cactus Beauty Bar was created out of a need for natural skin care. Not only did her friends have issues but she also suffered from skin issues such as acne and eczema. For a few years while living abroad and when she moved back to the United States, Carla would make and distribute body butter to friends for free.

In 2017 and again in 2018 her family was faced with terrible tragedies, the last one resulting in a loss of livelihood for her husband. A family friend suggested that she sell her butter to other people for a profit. This one suggestion grew to her learning to make soap and anything else that dealt with creating natural self-care.

In 2019 The Cactus Beauty Bar was officially born and so was COVID-19. Being at home allowed Carla to focus on her products so much that she grew out of her home and had to find the first soap shop.

Woman To Woman Talk Magazine readers, please enjoy our interview:

From your experience, what do you think is vital for women of color to know about skincare as we enter the Spring season?

As we enter into spring women of color must do what we do all year long and that is protecting our skin. It’s springtime and we are all ready to go “OUTSIDE”. We must protect our skin from the harsh rays of the sun and free radicals. Invest in a good sunscreen like Black Girl Sunscreen, and of course body butter and soap from The Cactus Beauty Bar. In the spring and summertime people often tell me at markets that it’s too hot for butter. That can’t be further from the truth. Shea butter and oils help to give skin a barrier from the sun and it helps to retain moisture for people that are eczema and dry skin prone. We also have a couple of soaps that fight against free radicals.

What are some of your most recommended skincare products and why?

For the spring and summer months I recommend soaps such as the Pine Tar bar, Activated Charcoal, Hemp Bar, and Hibiscus bar because they help fight free radicals and moisturize the skin.

Lavender and Lemongrass body butters are lovely essential oils for the spring. They are refreshing and help to rejuvenate the skin. However, if you interview a lot of my customers they would say that Caribbean Gold is there to go to the spring scent.

What is your personal favorite Cactus Beauty Bar product and why?

I love essential oils and menthols so my favorite products are always going to include these attributes. I first fell in love with the Sea Moss Bar because of its essential oil, but the moisture level that it gives my dry skin is win-win.

The Acne Bar keeps my face glowing and pimple free. My favorite body butter is Homecoming which was birthed from vending at HBCU homecomings. It’s jam-packed with essential oils.

What have you learned about WOC and skincare that you weren’t aware of when you first started your business?

To be honest, I didn’t know that we (melanated women) are in love with a good shea butter.

Carla Halls

Some women actually collect body butter because they want to ensure that they never run out of what’s going to make their skin glow.

Happy Women’s History Month! What are some words of encouragement you can leave the women who read this article who are on the journey of better skincare?

To have beautiful skin you also have to work within. Great natural skin care products are an essential part of your skincare routine, but you also need to watch what you put inside your body. This does not only mean drinking plenty of water, and eating or drinking vegetables, but it also includes limiting stress. Make sure to do something that makes you happy daily. For some, this is soaking in the tub, reading a book, a massage, or getting your nails done. Some think I’m weird but for me, it is popping popcorn on the stove and curling up to watch farming on YouTube.

Connect and learn more by visiting •Instagram: https://instagram.com/thecactusbeautybar?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=•Website: https://www.thecactusbeautybar.com/