Heading to the "6ix"
Hello blog, it’s been awhile and I’ve missed you so I decided to come back and write again.
The New Year came in and I barely noticed it. My sister and I always say it slows down but in honesty it really doesn’t. The only difference is we aren’t doing live shows during the first few months of the new year. As I mentioned in an earlier post we’ve embarked on a healthier lifestyle making fitness and eating well a part of our routine.
In March Caron and I had chance to go to Toronto for a week and attended an Etsy conference so we decided to make it a holiday of sorts. We are originally from Toronto and I hadn’t been back in a long time so for me it was like visiting home again as I grew up and went to school there and have so many memories. I was anxious about our flight as the last time we flew to Kona Hawaii the turbulence was really bad and it was terrifying so I haven’t flown since. The trip to Toronto was pretty smooth and I was able to watch the new Star Wars movie The Force Awakens (ps I've only see the first Stars Wars and I was able to catch on pretty quick) on the way there. I love the simplicity of the clothing Daisy Ridley wears and it reminded me of the simplicity in skincare and how fewer ingredients can make a big impact.
DAISY RIDLEY STAR WARS THE FORCE AWAKENS PHOTO BY NEWSARAMA.COM
When we got to Toronto friends picked us up at the airport and it was cold so I was glad I had on my winter coat but didn’t bring boots.
During our week there I got to meet up with my best friend that I’ve known for years. We went to a great restaurant called SOCO Kitchen and Bar and I had a delightful quinoa/kale dish. The scent were savoury and herbaceous and got me thinking of essential oils and how they impact our senses. The second time we met up she took us to IQ Food Co a hip place where we had a raw chocolate smoothie and a noodle box. The atmosphere was very cool with lots of urban folks popping in for a bite to eat. Everywhere I go I tend to think about why a place attracts customers. Being able to see dishes being prepared in front of us made us feel involved in the experience. Afterwards she took photos of us near her work at Queens Quay.
QUINOA DISH AT SOCO KITCHEN & BAR • CARON AND I AT QUEEN'S QUAY IN FRONT OF THE CN TOWER. • IQ FOOD CO
We covered as much ground as we could in the city while we were there including visiting my favourite childhood Italian bakery called Sanremo’s Bakery and it tasted better then I remembered. Notes of coconut, vanilla and spicy scents of pizza and pepperoni filled the air and I was reminded why I love scents to so much even now as they were a part of my every day life as a child. I visited my old school, home and library and it was a reminder of the rich life I’ve led and the cultures I’ve been exposed to and I realized how far I’ve come from those earlier years. I now have my own business and two degrees and I’ve had the privilege of travelling to places like Guyana, the Philippines, Europe and some states in the USA (Arizona, New York, Oregon to name a few). Now I’m living on the other side of Canada in the west coast.
A GLIMPSE OF SANREMO'S BAKERY
MIMICO LIBRARY
The Etsy conference was lively and went by like a whirlwind. I met some lovely new friends and learned new skills along the way. The food was amazing and we went for dinner at The Wickson Social which was out of this world. What made this night so special was the the buffet style of food that was laid out for us and also the low lit lights. There was also this chill out and relax from the every day pressures of life.
Cute Stationary from Etsy
There was slush ice and snow everywhere with an unexpected cold wave. It was freezing cold during our time there and it snowed with slush and ice everywhere. It was a delicate balance navigating but I took it all in stride and instead focused on the things I loved about the city I was born in. I loved seeing all these places with new eyes after so many years away. I was reminded of the scents that surrounded me as a child, the warm almost cinnamon scent of sugar cookies, the scent of hot chocolate chip cookies and the about cups of tea I would drink with their warm almost vanilla like aroma. Some of these scents are infused in our products like our Tofino Morning chai soaps and candles.
As we knew the transit system we liked the option of jumping off and on as our whim dictated. I kept thinking of the one product I wish I'd had brought with me and I was dying for our wild crafted shea butter but not just any butter we'd made before. This one was going to be infused with our wild crafted cottonwood that we picked over a year ago and have been infusing ever since. The smell is sweet but sort of warm and with a faint smoky scent. It's very hard to describe but so addictive.
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