Greenville man creates hair and beauty products

GREENVILLE — Caleb Ball’s wife Lea has a popular hair salon in downtown Greenville. She’s been my “go to” for years. On my last visit I noticed intriguing bottles of products for hair, skin and lips on her counter. There was “Oats and Aloe” lotion, which smelled heavenly, and hair products like a shampoo named “Smell My Coconuts” and leave-in conditioner “Pull My Hair.” And then Lea mentioned she had used Caleb’s products on me during my visit.

I was most intrigued and arranged to meet with Caleb, whose company is called Moosehead Rustic Beauty. It includes a terrific bath and body product line called “Rub It In.”

Caleb never really considered that he would someday really enjoy making beauty, skin and hair products, but after many years working at various mills and factories in the area, he had the good fortune to meet Lea and some time later become a stay-at-home dad for their daughter Eavie. He was casting about for something to do in addition to caring for his daughter.

Caleb has always been supportive of his wife’s work and it was suggested that he might consider coming up with a great skin product to sell in the salon. After hours and hours of research, he sent away for a kit which contained all the ingredients to make a body lotion. He received all the materials plus the recipe – enough to make 28 four-ounce bottles.

“I’ve changed the recipe that they include in the kits,” he said. “People wanted more shimmer so I added additional colors of mica powder.” He figured that if the product sold by the end of the summer he would have done well.

“But, four days later it was totally sold out and I thought — wow! Maybe I have something here!” he exclaimed. He was excited to create more. After “tons and tons” of research he created “Oats and Aloe,” which “took a lot of work!” Caleb was hooked. What else could he come up with? Lea suggested shampoo and conditioner, which she could use in her shop.

Now that their daughter is going to school, Caleb has time for his enterprise. He’s been creating his products for the past year. “It’s kinda fun for me,” he grinned. “I’m not afraid to change the recipes up quite a bit. And it’s so cool to get positive reviews from the people that are using my products.” He looked down at the display he had assembled. “Everything just kind of snowballed from there and I try really hard to take people’s suggestions. It only helps my products.”

One of his recent products is a bug spray. He calls it “Don’t Bug Me!” and I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised when I put it to the test in Kokadjo at the height of the black fly season. There’s no DEET, only lemon and eucalyptus essential oils in a soybean oil base. I rubbed it into my skin and miracle of miracles, those nasty critters stayed away!

He also makes beautiful soaps, that have moose, bear and lobster medallions carefully placed on each. “That’s quite time consuming,” he said. Their eyes are even a different color than their bodies. “It was quite a learning curve for me,” Caleb admitted. “Temperature is very important when you make these soaps and they sure are time-consuming!”

He has also created a toothpaste using activated charcoal. He originally had bought the charcoal for another venture and ended up with about 45 pounds of the medical grade activated stuff. It took him about a year to get the formula right.

“What I really wanted to do from the beginning was make an activated charcoal toothpaste,” he explained “I did a lot of research on this and it’s my baby, what I wanted to do from the beginning. In addition, it is my brand new formula,” he grinned. “Because it is food grade and very safe, it can be used as a toothpaste, a face mask, and a body scrub. In terms of teeth, it prevents tooth decay and is a natural tooth whitener.”

He also makes a bar of charcoal soap that is, in his words, “terrific for your skin. I call it my ‘War Paint’,” he smiled.

Caleb stands behind the quality of his products that can be purchased through his wife’s salon, Lea’s Styles-N-Cuts, located next to NAPA in Greenville. “Rub It In” products can also be found online at www.handmadestores.com/rubitin. If you purchase $100 or more of product online, “I am offering free shipping for that amount,” he said. “And if people buy $100 worth of product at Lea’s salon, they would get 10 percent off. I am also offering first-time buyers a bar of charcoal soap as a freebie.” For the free soap just mention that you heard about Caleb through this article! Check out his website, or visit Lea’s Styles-N-Cuts to learn more. You can also email Caleb at mooseheadrusticbeauty@gmail.com for more information.

Observer photo/Shelagh Talbot
RUB IT IN PRODUCTS — Caleb Ball, pictured with his dog Colt, has created a line of beauty and hair products that he sells online and through his wife Lea’s hair salon in Greenville.