My Curly Hair Journey: The Beginning

July 31, 2020
I grew up in dry climate where my hair always appeared straight, but scraggly, and I struggled with keeping my hair smooth while making it appear not as thin as it actually is (I was also a swimmer, so there's history of damage, too). There may have been little hints here and there that should have told me that I have curly hair (like how it would hold pin curls for days after taking them out, or my hair would puff-up with the humidity of summer), but my hair didn't have any visible curl to it other than the ends, so I never thought much of it.


It wasn't until I took my first vacation to Walt Disney World in Florida (where I brought my straightener along with me) that I started to realise there was something more to my hair. The first day that I was there, I did my hair and then never bothered to do it again. It just did whatever it wanted to, so I didn't see the point, but when I got home it went back to the same old flat hair with a bit of curl at the ends (or more when it was really short).


My trip to Hawaii for my 30th birthday made me a little more suspicious, but, again, I was in a humid climate (with access to salt water) and as soon as I got on the plane it fell flat and "back to normal". Last year I went to a stylist that specializes in cuts for curly hair, thinking that might help, and she was able to get the top layers of my hair to create a wave, but I could never replicate it at home, except for a day (but by the end of the day it had all settled back to normal).

Then, I had a breakthrough moment. About two months ago, when my old shampoo ran out, I decided to try to find some shampoo and conditioner for curly/wavy hair, and that's when I went down the rabbit hole of blogs and websites that told me about the Curly Girl Method. After a little bit of research, I purchased a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner and a cream. The results surprised me, and I thought to myself "perhaps I really do have curly hair". So I dove in deeper, and, after a clarifying wash with a deep moisturizing treatment, I started my journey.


It has been rough, but I have made it through the first month. Curly hair is a lot more work than I expected. Trying to figure out the products and concoctions that my hair needs has taken a lot of research, and figuring out what combination work best can be frustrating. Even my husband noticed that my hair days take a lot longer than they used to (legit it was just wash and go). But I am so happy with the results so far, and get really excited when I see a super tight spiral curl, having thought that my hair was only wavy. I know that this is only the beginning (and I really need a trim), so I am eager to see how my hair evolves!


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Behind the Art: In The Garden

July 30, 2020

In The Garden art print

The inspiration for this art print came from growing up with a garden every summer. I remember, as I got older, that my sister and I would each get a plot in the garden (which was half of our backyard) to grow our own vegetable and fruits. I loved being able to care for my little plot of land.

Fast forward to a couple of years after my son was born, and I was convincing my husband to rip up some of the freshly-laid sod to start a small garden in our backyard. The plot has since grown a bit larger in size, and every year we have enjoyed the benefits of growing some of our own vegetables and fruits. We particularly love making spaghetti sauce, that we freeze for the winter, with our garden-fresh roma tomatoes, and digging in the hills for some potatoes to eat at supper that night.

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Open Ended Toys: Felt and Fabric

July 28, 2020
Nothing opens the imagination up to all kinds of possibilities quite like open-ended toys. Open-ended toys provide endless opportunities for learning such as science and math, social interactions (social-emotional), and creativity, and include items like puppets, dolls, and items for dress-up...toys that don't have a single purpose like many battery operated toys, or even things like puzzles and colouring books. 

As the amount of items I found for this post continued to increase, I realised that I would need two blog posts to share the amazing open-ended items I found from my fellow makers. Here are some felt and fabric open-ended toys that would be perfect for exercising the imagination! You can find the wooden open-ended toys here.











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What We Love: Summer 2020

July 25, 2020


In the past year, I have realised that I have have wavy hair, and since the quarantine, I have realised that I have curly hair (more on that later). I have used a cotton t-shirt as a hair towel for the past year and it has done the job, but these t-shirt towels from Breezy Tee look fabulous, and they are so much bigger! Brie Moore (the designer behind the shop) also creates silk-lined beanies, scarves and scrunchies for all us curl-loving people.



Like always, CBC radio gives me exactly what I need (I love that they play all kinds of musics across all genres, not just Top 40). This song from H.E.R. is the one that caught my attention most recently. I did not hear the name of it, or the title of the artist both times I had heard it (luckily they have a playlog) as I turned the car on in the middle of the song. The smooth voice, the slow soothing sounds of the music, and the spoken word section got me, specifically the lines "You are desensitized to pulling triggers on innocent lives/Because that's how we got here in the first place". It's powerful!



I have been wanting to get back into wearing nail polish this summer, but have been struggling to find beautiful colours that don't have all the chemicals, and last a long time while painting nicely onto the nail. Enter Law Beauty Essentials: Owned by entrepreneur Tanisha Lawrence, Law Beauty Essentials is a Black-owned cosmetics line that has the most amazingly brilliant shades of nail polish that are vegan-friendly and 13-free (go here to find out what that means). The next shop update is next week, so you know I'll be jumping on all those juicy summer colours!!


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