Skincare

Your Skin Has Been in Survival Mode All Winter

Hey friends — Stacie here.

March in Central PA is a funny thing. One day you’re scraping ice off the windshield. The next, the windows are open and it smells like mud and possibility. Spring doesn’t arrive all at once around here. It sneaks in a week at a time, and then one morning you realize you’ve turned the heat down and left your coat at home.

You Made It Through Winter. Your Skin Has Questions.

Hey friends! Stacie here.

If your skin could talk right now, I think it would say something like: “Okay, what are we doing now?”

Because here in Central PA, the shift from February into March is… confusing. One day it’s 22 degrees and your hands are cracking. The next it’s pushing 55 and the windows are open and everything feels different. Your skin is right there in the middle of it, trying to figure out what you need.

The Lip Balm Frustration (You Know This Feeling)

Hey friends! Stacie here. Let me guess your winter morning routine:

1. Wake up with dry, cracked lips
2. Apply lip balm
3. Lips feel better for about 20 minutes
4. Dry again
5. Apply more lip balm
6. Repeat all day long

Sound familiar?

I lived this cycle for YEARS. Tube of lip balm in my pocket, one in my purse, one on my nightstand, one in the car. Reapplying constantly. Lips never actually getting better.

“Is Handmade Soap Really That Different?”

Hey friends! Stacie here from Momma Bears Creations.

When I tell people I make soap by hand in our Enola, PA home, I usually get one of two reactions:

Reaction 1: “Oh, that’s nice! Smells good!” walks away

Reaction 2: “Wait, is there actually a difference between handmade and what I buy at the store?”

The honest answer: YES. Big difference. But not always in the ways you’d expect.

“Is That… Soap?”

Hey friends! Stacie here. You know what question I hear at literally EVERY craft show?

Customer picks up a lotion bar, smells it, looks confused

“Wait… what IS this? Is it soap?”

Me: “It’s a lotion bar!”

“A lotion… BAR? Like solid lotion?”

Me: “Exactly!”

“So… how do you use it?”

And that’s when I know we’re about to have a great conversation.

Lotion bars are one of those products that confuse people at first glance - they look like soap, they’re solid like soap, but they’re definitely NOT soap. And once people understand what they are and how to use them, they become obsessed.

If You Live in Central PA, You Know Exactly What I’m Talking About

Hey friends! Stacie here. Let me paint you a picture:

It’s January in Central Pennsylvania. The temperature is hovering around 20°F. The air is so dry you can practically hear it crackling. Your indoor heating is blasting, sucking every bit of moisture out of the air. You walk outside, and the cold wind hits your face like a slap.

Hello Enola Neighbors! Let’s Talk About Soap.

Living right here in Enola, PA, we all appreciate the sense of community and the simple goodness life offers near the Susquehanna. But have you ever thought about the soap you use every day? Switching from commercial bars to natural, handcrafted soap can make a surprising difference for your skin, and you can find fantastic options made right here in your hometown!

As your local soap makers at Momma Bears Creations, we wanted to share why making the switch is a choice you can feel good about.

“Wait, Hemp? Isn’t That…?”

Hey friends! Stacie here, writing from our Enola kitchen where I’m surrounded by soap-curing racks and ingredient research.

Let me address the elephant in the room right away:

Yes, hemp seed oil comes from the hemp plant.

No, it won’t get you high. No THC. No CBD. Just pure, nutrient-rich oil.

I get it—the name throws people off. At our first East Pennsboro Pumpkinfest with our Hemp Charcoal Eucalyptus facial bar, at least five people asked if it was “legal.” (Yes! Completely legal! Just good skincare!)

Hey Friends, Let’s Talk Shea Butter!

Stacie here (Momma Bear). If you’ve ever looked at the ingredient list on one of our Momma Bears Creations products, you’ve probably noticed that shea butter shows up… a lot.

Our soaps? Shea butter. Our body butters? Obviously, shea butter. Our lotion bars? You guessed it—shea butter.

People ask me all the time at Carlisle Creative Vibes and at craft shows: “Why is shea butter in everything? What’s so special about it?”

The Ingredients I Trust (After Years of Trial and Error)

Hey friends! Stacie here, writing from our Enola kitchen where I’m surrounded by jars of natural ingredients—shea butter, coconut oil, essential oils, dried herbs.

Let me tell you what I’ve learned after making soap and skincare products for over a decade, testing every single batch on my own skin before I’d ever sell it to a customer.

Here’s the reality: Not all “natural” ingredients are created equal. Some work beautifully. Some are overhyped by wellness influencers. Some are great IN THEORY but don’t hold up when you’re actually making products in your kitchen and using them through brutal Central PA winters.