Mini-Cycle is Moving + 25% Off!

You may know I've worked at Boutique Mini-Cycle for a little over a year now. I'm so proud to be on the team of this women-run business, committed to sustainability and zero waste wardrobes. 

I have always had a small budget for my kid's clothes, leading to my passion for thrifting, which avoids the reliance on fast fashion and still keeps things affordable.  Let's face it, buying responsible brands comes at a cost. If you're paying the people who make the clothes a fair wage and the clothes are made with organic or recycled materials, that's bound to cost more than fast fashion. But not everyone can afford the cost, and I get that (and I am in that boat myself!)

Clover, Oli, and Lily, all in Mini-Cycle
(some pieces new, some from the Re-Cycle Shop)

Mini-Cycle believes in limiting fashion waste and opening up sustainable options to more parents, so they guarantee to buy back everything you've bought from them (see details here), significantly reducing the overall cost. What's more, you can shop their Re-Cycle shop, which is full of pre-loved (used) clothing, footwear, outerwear, and textiles purchased from clients. I see it as the cream of the crop thrifting. Everything in their Re-Cycle shop passes their standards of eco-responsibility and durability, but is much more accessible in price. 

Another way they're aiming to make sustainable clothing more accessible is the occasional sale, which I've learned is a big sacrifice for small businesses to offer. This week they have a big one, so take note!

June 28, 29, and 30 everything on their site will be 25% off or more. 

The sale is to prepare for their move to a larger, brighter studio space. I can't wait to do photoshoots in this airy, open loft! Mini-Cycle will remain in the same building, but is now suite 491 rather than 325. Enjoy the sale!

Mini-Cycle's new home: 

5524 Rue Saint-Patrick, Suite #491 Montreal, Quebec H4E 1A8

SHOP QUEBEC - Argile et Osier

Many of you already know about this Etsy shop because of my Instagram giveaway last month but I wanted to share about Argile et Osier here too for those who aren't on Instagram and looking to encourage Quebec small businesses. 

In fact Argile et Osier is a bit of a combination of two loves for me, because it's run by a mom in Quebec, sourcing pottery, toys, and baskets made by Tunisian artisans. Brad and I first met while travelling in North Africa and have sense returned several times, so to find a local business supporting other North African small businesses was a treat! 

I was gifted a lovely large basket which I use to store EVERYTHING - towels, toilet paper, books, toys, stuffed animals, groceries, things to be donated to the charity shop... it's perfect for all the things! I was also gifted two ceramic bowls which I use for salt and freshly ground pepper and always keep by my stove. I've always had this practice but the bowls I was using before weren't nearly as lovely, so I was glad to donate them and replace them with my Argile et Osier ones. 

Argile et Osier has some really lovely things and they're lifting up artisans in Tunisia so I'm glad to support them! 

This post was written in Collaboration with Argile et Osier

All opinions were 100% my own. 

To book a collab, contact me!

Autumnal Terracotta Vase DIY x Astilbe

My interest in the terracotta painting trend started small. One lamp, some simple black paint, and some baking powder. But all along I had my sights set on buying some autumnal hued paint and going to town on a collection of vases, which is exactly what I did with a couple of girlfriends last week. 

Mixing 1 tablespoon of baking powder with about 1/2 cup paint makes the paint thicker and more textured and gives a matte finish reminiscent of terracotta pottery. It's incredibly easy and transforms your old vases - such a gratifying project! 

                    

I loved this project because it combined my three decorating loves: buying secondhand, DIY, and shopping small. All of our vases were bought for $0.99-$3.99 secondhand and then we filled the painted vessels with gorgeous dried florals from local florist dry bar Astilbe. 

                   

It was hard to choose just two colours of paint from the many autumnal shades available, but we wanted to keep things simple, so finally I narrowed it down to one terracotta orange and one warm dusty rose. At most paint stores, you can buy a sample size of any paint colour for $5 and between three of us one small sample size in each colour was enough to paint a dozen vases of varying sizes. Since we were also splitting the cost between us, this project was incredibly affordable! I should add that I had white paint and paint brushes on hand.

I was so pleased with how my vases turned out! I filled each one with dried florals from Asilbe which I'd chosen earlier that day, and I have to say it was a very hard decision! Asilbe is typically an events florist, but in our Covid world, they've pivoted to focus more on their boutique, which has the widest array of dried florals I've ever seen! Their dry bar has all sizes and types of dried florals, and you can make your own bouquet with as much or as little. I was after some pampas grass and a few delicate florals to add to smaller vases. Astilbe did not disappoint! 

                 

I love the pops of warm colour that these vases add to our mostly monochromatic home. A really fun project to do with girlfriends and a must for affordable Fall decor! 

                  

A Warehouse Sale + a Dream Come True

You all know I love a bargain, which typically means I buy things secondhand but when I can't, I always look for a sale. Almost every store has a clearance section, and it's the first place I go. Today I struck gold at a warehouse sale, finding a long desired and special piece of furniture that makes me nostalgic beyond words and incredibly thankful. 

When I heard that Prunelle, a local Montreal small business with a wild selection of Scandinavian furniture was having a warehouse sale, I was there in minutes. Not kidding! Easy in this case since the sale is right in my neighbourhood, Le Plateau-Mont-Royal. What I found was a lovely little tulip based white marble end table, which we'll use as our coffee table in the living room. Since we have a cosy living area, we've always used an end table as a coffee table surrounded by our sectional sofa. Small space living tip: always buy furniture to scale and not what you think you ought to have. But I digress... 

It's been a dream of mine to have a white marble table somewhere in my home since I was newly engaged, so over a dozen years. I've seen white marble in every kind of home from traditional to modern, which tells me it's a classic. It will never go out of style or not fit in my home. I distinctly remember writing a speech for my grandmother's funeral in an Airbnb in Stockholm on a white marble table. I sat for hours with my memories as Brad took the kids out to explore (we received the terrible news as we were flying to Sweden). I sat on the floor at the coffee table and wrote my speech. Every morning of that trip I woke early and had my coffee and breakfast at the same table. A significant number of our pictures from that leg of the trip have the white marble table in them because I was so drawn to it's beauty. Yes, it's just a table and my life was full and complete before Stockholm and before today when I became the proud owner of my own. But these little bits of beauty are worth noting, so I hope you'll indulge me. 

I would have preferred a white base, but at warehouse sales one can't be picky. I will likely paint the base white or even just a matte black as the current tulip base is rather shiny. Buying a marble table at full price isn't an option for us however, so I'll gladly take my slightly chipped black tulip base and dream up ways to perfect what already feels too good to be true. 

The warehouse sale has all sorts of items, priced from $19 to $499. There are incredible savings to be had! I saw our beloved tulip base dining table for 1/3 of the regular price and our dining chairs for 80% off. Everything is either discontinued or with minor scratches. Given the quality of these pieces, a small scratch doesn't deter me at all. The furniture at Prunelle is designed and built to last, which often means it's also expensive (and rightfully so), but not at this sale!

The sale is at 1589 Ave Mont-Royal East and they're open every day. If you're interested in going, I encourage you to hurry as the sale ends on October 4! All the information can be found here. 

The Kids' Shared Tween Room!

As always, our three kids, girls and a boy, happily share a room. I know this is scandalous to some, but it works for our fam! Over the years our kids have grown incredibly close and I think it's in large part thanks to them sharing their toys, books, and space constantly. Some day we do hope to move to a slightly larger apartment in the city and have three bedrooms, which would provide a bedroom for two of the kids to share, and one solo kid room, but that's not happening any time soon. Our kids understand this, and any of their friends who have siblings share a room too - it's city life! But as they get older we have made a few changes which culminated in this bedroom makeover with the goal to keep them as happy as possible in their shared space.

Decorating for a shared room with girls and a boy has it's challenges, but typically my style is quite neutral anyway, so it works for us. I've always aimed to keep their furniture and bedding white and let them add colour with their favourite objects, toys, and artwork. To see the kids' room before this makeover, see here. We used to have grey and white striped walls (which I painted nine years ago!) and mainly white bedding and furniture. It felt very personal and bright, but it was starting to feel a bit kidd-ish, especially since the kids' room hadn't seem any major changes since the kids were toddlers. Lily in particular, who is about to turn 10, has started wishing her bedroom was a bit more grown up. Oli, who's almost 9, is easygoing about their room, but he's starting homeschooling in the Fall so I was interested in making some sort of desk corner for his work during the day. Chloe, who is almost 7 didn't care what I did as long as I kept a place for her stuffed animals and her owl collection ♡

The biggest change was painting over the grey stripes with a warm white (Benjamin Moore's Chantilly Lace). I didn't realize what terrible shape the walls were in until I painted over the countless scuffs and stains. Nine years and three kids can do a lot of damage! Painting the trim was so gratifying! It's such an easy chore and makes a huge difference. 

Another big change was the kids' bedding. I teamed up with Maison Tess to try out their new kid's line of Muslin bedding. I'm usually kind of colour-phobic and keep things as neutral as possible, but their colours are so beautiful!! We chose the Amber Muslin Duvet Cover for Oli's bottom bunk and the Rose Muslin Duvet Cover for Lily's top bunk, both with a Whisper White Muslin pillowcases. Since the floor trundle bed isn't seen during the day, we've planned to keep our regular white duvet there. 

These duvet covers are incredibly soft and look even better with several washings. They're so soft we have no need for a flat sheet and even on hot nights the kids insist on using their duvets! You may remember that Brad and I also use Maison Tess linens so we already knew we'd love the product. They're handmade in Portugal and the quality is unmatched. I also love Maison Tess for being a women-led Montreal small business. Initially I wanted linen for the kids' room because it's what we have and we love it, but Muslin is truly the perfect kid's fabric. It feels like every kid's favourite blanket!

I also reorganized the kids' books and bought two new bookshelves to house their growing library. Tip: Making stacks of large book series saves a lot of space on the shelves and it's sometimes easier on the eyes than the rainbow coloured spines 😂

The large chest of drawers holds all of our Playmobil and some of our boardgames. Each child also has their own drawer for their personal treasures. Their closet keeps all of their clothing, costumes, and countless bins of Lego. The mirror on top is a new addition, something I found for $10 last summer while thrifting. It makes the room look larger and Lily especially loves it! The tall book shelf with two drawers is where the play food and doll clothes live. It may look like they have no toys, but they have a fair bit, just tucked away. I assure you, during the day it's never this clean, but we have a rule that around 3pm each day they need to pick up their room. With three kids in one room, it's impossible to keep it clean for long, but I also figure with three pairs of hands, the work to keep it clean should be light. 

This makeover took 12 hours and was a whirlwind (it's amazing what you can do when childcare is incredibly scarce and you find yourself with a few hours of it!) I painted the first coat of paint when a friend of ours offered to take the kids out for ice cream and some park time for a couple of hours. While the paint was drying, I fed the kids dinner, hung out with them, and tucked them in on our pull-out couch. With the help of Melatonin, they were all asleep very early (6:30pm) and far from their bedroom. I finished the second coat of paint at 8:30pm. I then painted the trim and did some touch-ups on their mid-century desk while the paint was drying. by 10:30pm the paint was fairly dry so I started moving the furniture around a bit and cleaned the floors where I'd dripped paint. Their new duvet covers were stuffed, beds were made, all furniture was placed and the room was cleaned by 1:00am. The next day I was literally limping! I didn't realize it at the time but painting is hard work!! I was in rough shape for the next 24 hours, but it was worth it to finish a burdensome project so quickly and surprise the kids in the morning. 

I'm thrilled with the end result and so are the kids! Their room feels more mature, organized, and fresh and at little cost of money or time. We still have another two or three years in this apartment before we'll be ready to leave and I think they'll be happy in this tween space until then. 

Sources:

Bunk beds, floating shelf, two bookcases, white lamp on desk, circle rug - Ikea

Oval couch (actually an ottoman covered with a spare linen sheet) - thrifted 

White chest of drawers - Goldtex Kids (see here for post)

Top and bottom bunk linens - Maison Tess kid's collection (coming Summer 2020!)

Bird wall art, mirror, accessories on dresser, Chloe's owls, most books - thrifted

Mid-century desk - roadside find (see here for the transformation!)

Desk chair - Prunelle (similar also on Amazon, Structube, etc)

Top bunk dress pillow - H&M Home

Bottom bunk dress pillow - Indigo

This post was in collaboration with Maison Tess

All opinions are 100% my own.

To book a collab, contact me!

Going Back to Work After 10 Years At Home

When I began my maternity leave with Lily I had no idea that I'd be home as the primary caregiver for my children for the next decade. And now, ten years after becoming a mom for the first time, I'm working outside the home again.

The kids and I out for ice cream with my work friends
(both girls are wearing shorts from Mini-Cycle and Oli's t-shirt is from them, too!)

We always took me being a stay-at-home-mom one year at a time, so all I knew at the start was that I'd be home for the next 12 months, thanks to the generous maternity leave offered by the Canadian government. I had a double university degree and a job I loved, plus, as an extrovert I enjoyed spending my days with dozens of people in a professional capacity. However, we'd always lived frugally and always wanted several kids in a small span of time, both of which led us to being a one income family and me as the primary caregiver. 

I learned I was pregnant with Oli when Lily was just four months old, so instead of going back to work after my maternity leave ended, I was preparing to give birth again. Without any nearby family to step in, we were raising two babies on our own. Both Brad and I working 40+ hours a week on top of caring for our babies would have been extremely chaotic. Totally possible (and I know it's done all the time), but not what we wanted if we had the choice. My income was missed, but Brad's increased a bit and we weren't spending anything on childcare on top of finding other ways to save money (cloth diapering, buying only used clothing, and living quite simply saved us thousands). 

While I wasn't making money, I was incredibly fulfilled with Motherhood. I loved our comforting routine, the flexibility we had without work or daycare, and being there for every little moment. I loved that I was the main influence in our children's lives and that they too were together all day, forging an incredible bond. And surprisingly, I didn't miss work at all. I've always been ambitious, so when I became a mother my ambition just pivoted to our kids and our home from my previous work.  

Chloe came along less than two years after Oli, completing our family, and for a couple of years we had all three children at home together. It was loud, chaotic, exhausting, and wonderful. Lily started kindergarten at age five and I began taking on writing work and growing this blog to the place where I was accepting sponsorships and collaborations when they felt right for me and my message. Writing and blog work continued for the next five years, as it does today, but that was all working from home and easy to fit in around naps and quiet times. Even when Chloe began kindergarten last year, our schedule was quite full and the kids still needed me a great deal. Adjusting to school in a new language, extra-curriculars, church involvement, volunteering, and keeping our home kept us all busy, and Brad was by then working quite long hours. 

For ten years Brad and I never once questioned our decision for me to pull back professionally and be a full-time homemaker. But as the kids grew and our life settled into a routine, we both began to see time that I could invest outward again. Over the past year we had many discussions about what it would look like for me to take on work outside the home. I wasn't looking to work full time and I wanted evenings and weekends off. Ideally, I'd find something that was precisely when the kids were in school (9-3) and that was a great fit for me personally, lining up with my values. This felt like a unicorn of a job posting and not one I'd likely find, but that's exactly what happened when I was offered a job with Boutique Mini-Cycle. 

You've read about Boutique Mini-Cycle on the blog, and know I love to shop secondhand and local. Their business model lines up perfectly with things I'm passionate about  - sustainability, thrifting, reusing, capsule wardrobes, and simple design. For those who don't know, Boutique Mini-Cycle is a Montreal-based children's clothing shop that sells sustainably made and high quality brands, as well as secondhand clothing. Their new and used clothes are all beautifully designed and well made (no fast fashion!) and they guarantee to buy back the clothes you buy from them when you're finished with them. The best past was that upon being hired I was given the choice to work as much or as little as I'd like when in the office, so I could coordinate with Brad and the kid's schedules. I now work every Monday (Brad's day off) from 9-4 at Boutique Mini-Cycle taking pictures, organizing and valuing secondhand pieces and then another ten hours from home creating content for their site.  

While it's just part-time, it's been a big shift for our family. I have less time with Brad, missing the whole day that he's off (he works the other six days a week), so we need to be more intentional about guarding our evenings together, but on the plus side, Brad gets more quality time with the kids. I enjoy my work so much that it often feels like a break from regular life (especially the past three months of homeschooling). My colleagues are lovely and the work environment is so positive and stress-free. The added income is a huge bonus too, as we look forward to paying for braces and semi-private highschool in the years to come.

I had initially thought that starting in September when the kids were back at school would be the best time to look for a job, but when I was offered employment during the Pandemic I jumped at the opportunity to be out of the house for a day each week (with social distancing measures in the office, to be sure). I am a homebody and love being with my kids, and for the past ten years I've had no regrets as a stay-at-home-mom, but this new season feels like the perfect fit for our family and I'm so ready to take the next steps. 

HOME TOUR 2020 living + dining rooms

As we all heed the expert's advice during the Coronavirus pandemic and STAY HOME!, I've spent more time than usual in these two rooms, which really are one big room. Our home is "open concept" in that the living and dining rooms as well as the kitchen are all openly connected. There are no doors, which helps with limited natural light. Every room (besides bathrooms and bedrooms) being connected also helps our small space feel a bit larger. Over the past month of being mostly home I've thought a lot about the style of my home as I clean and organize and purge items we no longer love or use. What works in my home may not work in yours, or simply just not appeal to you, so I'm not pretending to give advice - simply sharing what I've done and why.

First of all, in such a small, yet open space I felt like we needed to go with one neutral, light colour throughout. I decided on light grey but sometimes wish it was white (and I'll probably choose white for our next home). Either way, the light neutral works and I'm happy with it! 

I also like keeping a decor theme or vibe the same for every room so it's more the style of my home and not room by room. It simplifies everything and I think makes the home seem more calm and organized, though especially these days it's rarely either for long! Pieces you'll find in both rooms often have a lot of white, black, beige, grey, and natural materials such as wild flowers, rocks, paper, and wood. 

Our home is a big mixture of old and new, and I love mixing the two. Some examples of old: my collection of vintage tea cups are all thrifted or were inherited, the 50 and 100 year old hymnals and books of common prayer were thrifted and adorn our shelves and the big thrifted basket on the dining table (which also holds our English and French Bibles), the teak mid-century modern side table in the living room that I bought off Craigslist several years ago, and the knit doily which adorns our round wooden table in the right corner of our dining nook. 

Of course, we do have some new items as well. The Structube metal mirror, our oval dining table and beech wishbone chairs from Montreal furniture store Prunelle (see more about that collaboration and learn more about them here), the white Eames-style chairs from Amazon, the glass hanging pendants in the dining room from West Elm, the Ikea lamps throughout, the round wooden table was a gift from Bois et Cuir, and our white rug in the living room from Rugs.ca. 

As much as I do aim to keep these spaces clean and I love an orderly home (gosh that was easier before the Pandemic brought us all home 24/7!), I want to fill these rooms with useful items. These rooms are for living after all! You'll always find tons of books in both rooms, and the basket of Bibles and hymals never leaves our dining table so we can always grab them. There's always a chess board nearby for Oli and Brad's duals, and the white metal cabinet (Ikea) which supports our TV is full of boardgames. There's also a black metal basket on the floor in the dining room that houses all of our family yearbooks and albums from our trips over the years, which someone always seems to be looking through. 

Let's talk about art. I've collected many pieces over the years, mainly from secondhand shops. My theory is that it takes years to have the art you love and best reflects you, so don't try to rush it. When we first got married I was in such a hurry to make our house put together and "finished" that I threw up anything - regardless of it was my style (what was my style anyway?) or reflected us. The longer I gave myself, the happier I am with the end result. We have never spent a ton on art (I'd love to, we just can't afford to), but I've found some real treasures over the years. The geometric watercolour above our TV was made by me, the South Pole map hanging in the dining room was a gift from Bold Tuesday, the black and white flower sketch on the shelf above my couch was a gift from Juniper Print Shop, as was the pink NYC buildings print, which I had printed by Photo Wall in a collaboration. Juniper Print Shop is a great budget-friendly option which I've used long after our collaboration. You download the prints that you buy, so you can print them to be whatever size you want. Every print is the same price (around $25) and there are so many gorgeous options! On the top shelf above the couch there's a framed book cover that reminded me so much of our neighbourhood. Do you ever buy books just for the cover? When thrifting, I love looking for beautiful old books that I can frame or use as decorations. There's also a print of Eve being comforted by a pregnant Mary that I gave to Brad for Christmas this year, by Scott Erickson.

Adding meaningful touches are what makes a home different from a hotel room, but it's not necessarily my style to have family photos on every wall or a lot of trinkets, so the way I aimed to do this was by adding a few meaningful pieces here and there. The teacups are heirlooms and speak to my deep love for all things British. The pussy willows on the fireplace were picked by my kids last March on a visit to Morgan's family farm. The Eve and Mary print is a remake or an older piece that Brad has loved for years. He's often pulled up the original image online at Christmas or Easter and it's always moved him greatly, so when I saw Scott Erickson's version which fit so well in our home, I knew it would be the perfect gift. The old books and hymnals speak to our faith and the various quotes on our letter board above the couch speaks to our values. I'll also rotate in some small pieces from recent vacations every few months, too. You can see a black sculpture from the Greek Island of Milos.

I do love the "open concept" though it poses some challenges, namely that we're always together and there isn't much alone space! From the front door you can see right through to the back door. From Brad's office, which is in our entryway, you can hear the TV. From the living room you can smell what's cooking in the kitchen. Noise and smells and chaos travel as fast as the children who tear through this home day after day. I'm not trying to complain, just being realistic about what a space like this means. I never want to paint a picture of perfection on here!

Despite the challenges, I do love our small home. We're five people in just over 1,000 square feet, sharing two bedrooms and two bathrooms with no garage or basement, and we truly use every centimeter of space. In 2-3 years we'll be hoping to move to a slightly bigger three bedroom condo in our neighbourhood and will miss this space enormously. Honestly, if we had just one more bedroom and maybe 500 square feet more, I'd want to live here forever!

Up next, a kitchen tour! Thanks for reading and looking!

Curbing Fashion Waste with Boutique Mini-Cycle

As an avid thrifter and minimalist, it's no secret that limiting clothing waste is important to me, but there's often another interest of mine that's not covered in my thrifting endeavors - high quality pieces. Thrift stores are amazing places to find decent pieces at bargain prices, but it's unlikely you'll find high quality brands at your local fripperie. I've lucked out a few times but it is a lot of work and time to commit to the hunt. With three growing kids the amount of clothing that we buy and quickly outgrow is overwhelming and I can understand how the fashion industry is one of the largest polluters. Recently I came across a local company after my own heart that I wanted to share with you that checks every box I value as a mom and consumer: high quality clothing, ethical brands, secondhand shopping, and realistic prices.

Oli's t-shirt and swim shorts both found at Mini-Cycle

Boutique Mini-Cycle is basically my dream come true as they sell both new and used ethical brands for kids up to size 12. And the best part? If you buy from them, they guarantee to buy back everything in good condition when you're done with it for their Re-cycle program, which sells used high quality pieces. Boutique Mini-Cycle does the thrifting for you in their well organized store and the best part is, the brands are all incredible and the clothing is all in excellent condition.

I love thrifting and will probably never stop visiting my brick and mortar charity shops both in Montreal and wherever the wind takes me, but I've now become to regular browser of their Re-cycle section and will be a customer of theirs for as long as I have kids that will fit their wares. I've even sold a few of our high quality pieces to Boutique Mini-Cycle for their Re-cycle section, so keep your eyes peeled for those pieces if you're interested! 

Boutique Mini-Cycle recently gifted us a few pieces from shops like Louis & Louise, Petit Bateau, Go Gently Nation. We also selected a few secondhand pieces from their shop too! Their selection is beautiful and impressive and their prices are great, especially the Re-cycle items which are the same or cheaper than I've seen at my local thrift store! 

I'm such a big fan of what they're doing at Boutique Mini-Cycle! Check them out!

This post was in collaboration with Boutique Mini-Cycle.

All opinions are 100% my own. 

To book a collaboration, contact me!

SHOP QUEBEC - Lou Wolf

As one of the only Quebec retailers that carries some of my favourite European brands, and often marked down to up to 50% off, Lou Wolf is certainly a must mention in my SHOP QUEBEC series. I first discovered Lou Wolf online, but later learned that it's a local business, based in my own neighbourhood! Run completely from their Plateau Condo, Lou Wolf carries pieces which are not only playful and unique but extremely high quality and ethically made. 

Oli in a Whistle & Flute, Lily in Hugo Loves Tiki, and Clover in Mini Rodini, all from Lou Wolf.

Most of the brands are difficult if not impossible to find in shops in Canada, but I recognize from our trips to Europe. The thing with these admirable brands is that they're often way beyond our budget, but that's why I am especially fond of Lou Wolf - they have insane sales!! Every day in Instagram stories, Lou Wolf posts a few pieces that they'll offer at a deep discount for one day only. We're talking Mini Rodini, Hugo Loves Tiki, Huxbaby; often at almost half their retail value. 

They ship everywhere (I've already had Instagram followers let me know they've ordered from all over the USA), but local shoppers will have their packages delivered by bike messenger. Swoon! Their packaging is eco-friendly too. Check out this fun kid's shop on Instagram and online!

This post was in collaboration with Lou Wolf,

a shop I love for my own children. 

All opinions are 100% my own. 

To book a collaboration, contact me. 

Shop Québec - Daily Story + Kid's Story

Daily Story is a company I discovered on Instagram a few months ago and I immediately knew their sweaters would be perfect for our Fall capsule wardrobes. This Montreal-based company has a small collection every season of the perfect wardrobe staples, and recently they launched Kid's Story, their adorable kid's line!

When I had the opportunity to collaborate with Daily Story recently, I was so excited. Their sweaters are my favourite! As many of you saw on my Instagram stories, I chose the over-sized crew neck with stripes that had a tiny message if you look closely - you're not the only one. I love that! Looks like a classic Fall sweater, with a little hint of empathy too. 

For the kids I knew the second I saw their Bel humain de demain sweaters that I wanted them for my beautiful little humans. They stock up to size 8, but heads up they do run a bit small. In some stores Lily can wear a size 8, but here Oli is wearing an 8 and Chloe is wearing a 6. My sweater is the perfect over-sized fit in a small, but the kids fit snug, which I don't mind at all - it looks like a very thick and cozy long sleeve tee, which is fun!

Shop Québec - Maison Tess Linens

I'll admit, I've fallen hard for the linen trend sweeping the home decor world. For a couple of years now, I've had my eye on linen clothing and housewares for the sheer appearance of it all - the texture that's visible to the eye, the rawness to it, the typical rich colours and natural look to linen, it all took me in. But I soon learned that all linen is not on equal footing. I purchased a big box store linen dress pillow and a linen dress from the Internet and both disappointed me. The dress was extremely harsh and not at all soft, even after several washings, the cushion, so thin that it had none of the texture that linen is known for and will likely wear out within a year. Both were cheap short cuts and neither satisfied, so in the end my money-saving attempts were money wasted. Lesson learned. It's worth investigating the ethics behind a company, the sourcing of their materials, and the quality of their linens before investing. That's exactly what I did with Maison Tess and why I'm writing this post - to sing the praises of this little Montreal linen start up until I lose my voice! Not hard, since I'm just getting over a bout of Tonsillitis, but you get my point. I love love love these linens and find their quality to be high above that of the big box linens I've seen for near the same price. Let me introduce you to Maison Tess.

I'm writing this post at an ideal time to be reviewing bed linens. As you know from my stories, I spent all last week in my bed (if not at the hospital) with a terrible throat infection. Finally some super strong antibiotics and steroids by way of IV brought me back to the road to health but not after logging more hours in my bed that week than is normal for two. And oh how I love my bed!! It's always been comfortable, but these linens kick things up to a whole new level.

Here's what we went with, from the bottom, up. For starters, we chose the chrome linen fitted sheet.  It's a very generous size, so will definitely fit any style of mattress which I especially appreciated, since our other cotton fitted sheet is always really hard to put on our very thick mattress. I loved sleeping on the fitted sheet right away but after a few washes, even more so. It just gets softer and softer, and has this super cozy feel, like flannel, but without overheating you, as that material tends to do.

Then we went with Maison Tess's cotton pillowcases, which feel nothing like any cotton pillowcase I've felt. I wanted to go with cotton for pillowcases as I'm less a texture fan when it comes to something on my face.  I can't say if there's even a right or wrong answer here, because these sensory preferences are so personal, but I have to say I love the texture and feel of their cotton pillowcases! They use 100% long staple percale woven cotton, which explains why these feel worlds away from our other cotton pillowcases, even those that boast a high thread count. It would be really hard to choose if I had to pick one piece of our bedding that I love the most, but it *might* be these percale cotton pillowcases...

We chose the Maison Tess signature linen duvet cover (which is on sale right now!), and I went with midnight blue which is totally not my usual style but I'm so pleased with it! I'm usually someone who sticks with white or light grey, hence the chrome pillowcases and linen fitted sheet, and right, the entire rest of my house! But when I saw the midnight blue it almost struck me as a bold neutral. It's cool but also warm, depending on the decor around it. It's a statement to add to my very neutral bedroom, but I think it's just right, especially since we usually fold the duvet at the foot of our bed, so it's just that touch of boldness. On Instagram, I asked you all in a poll a while back if adding the midnight blue would be the way to go or if I should stick with light neutrals in my bedroom and after hundreds of opinions, the voting was 60/40 for adding a touch of boldness. It just goes to show that while many of you were with me on my choice, a lot of you prefer colours more like Maison Tess's chrome (a cool, soft grey), or their rose (the perfect dusty pink), and that's cool too!

I'm so excited to share this brand with you, because they seem like one of the only ethical, affordable linen companies out there, and plus, they're based here in Canada, in my city no less. Linen is a pricier material than others, and for good reason - it's more durable, gets better with every wash, has a timeless look and higher quality than basic cottons. And while it's an investment to buy linen anything, Maison Tess's prices are very close to big box linen prices I've seen (H&M, for example), even though they make everything ethically and in small batches! They often share videos from their factories in their Instagram stories and it's such a relief to see that some companies still care about making their products the right way that values people and protects the planet. Their linens are European made and OEKO-TEX certified, and you're supporting a small female-run business instead of a huge corporation with Maison Tess. if you're looking for bedding, or any linen household items (they have beautiful dining room items, too!), definitely check out this amazing company!

Also if you use this link, or any other link within this blog post to buy Maison Tess items, you'll get 10% off on top of their already great sale prices (like my duvet cover which is $75 off right now!).

Would You Ever Change Your Wedding Band?

Three years into my marriage I started wearing a yellow gold chain necklace and it became my signature jewelry. I'm not someone who wears much by way of bobbles - I don't wear earrings, can't stand watches or bracelets, and find most necklaces got in the way of my life with little babies. But this simple yellow gold chain stayed, and is still securely around my neck as I write this, seven years later. I didn't mind that it was yellow and my wedding rings were white gold, but a few years on I became really drawn to yellow gold and it started to bother me. I was already starting to feel uncomfortable with my diamond engagement ring for a few reasons that I'll address in another post, which lead me to thinking about what I would choose for my wedding and engagement rings if I were engaged and married then instead of several years prior.

Allowing my mind to wander one thing I knew for sure, I would not choose white gold. With my warm complexion and blonde hair, yellow gold suited me, and seemed more classic than the white gold I'd chosen a few years earlier. Funnily enough, I always remember thinking my mother's wedding rings were so "old fashioned" being yellow gold. All of the young girls I knew who were getting engaged in the early 2000's had white gold rings and that's what I wanted too. My friends and I even had a nickname for men's wedding bands that were simple yellow gold - "Dad Rings"! I laugh so hard at this now because maybe they still are Dad and Mom Rings, but we're Dads and Moms!

The thing about getting engaged at 21 is that you haven't really discovered your personal style yet. I was engaged and married in the days before Pinterest if you can believe it, so the idea of having anything in your wedding bespoke and unique was foreign to me. Every wedding I attended was more or less identical, and so mine fit the mold exactly. There were only three wedding magazines in circulation that I knew of and they all advertised the same styles, companies, and themes. I knew I'd have a strapless wedding dress and a white gold diamond solitaire because it was all I saw and thought I wanted. There is so much I would change about my wedding looking back, which I'm sure is always the case ten years down the road from any event, but especially since I was married so young and still learning who I was and what I liked. I can't go back and re-marry Brad, though I would always choose him again and again (SWOON), but as we approach our ten year anniversary next month, I started to seriously consider changing my wedding band.

Which brings me to my question. Would you ever change your wedding rings?

This is a question I posed to my Instagram community several months ago and I've returned to ask similar questions in my stories a few more times. The general consensus is very divided and I always receive strong views on both sides, ranging from enthusiastically in favour to fiercely against. I can understand both views and have taken them to heart, and to make my own decision I spent two years considering it and several months talking it over with Brad and other friends who know me well. I prayed about it, thought about it, and asked others for their counsel, and then I made my decision - I would replace my rings for ones I truly loved and felt comfortable with.

Our marriage is stronger than it's ever been, and a piece of jewelry doesn't cement our commitment or weaken it if replaced. It can be seen as wasteful to replace something that isn't damaged or lost, but I wear this ring proudly every day of my life, so shouldn't I love it? When I talked to Brad about it I really had no idea what he would think, but right away he was not only open to the idea but super supportive. I wondered if he would be offended or hurt that I didn't want the ring he gave me as we vowed, 'til death do us part, but he reminded me that those vows were for us, not for our jewelry.

Neither of us are overly sentimental, especially with material goods, so we both agreed that if it was within our budget, we'd replace my rings. My original white gold wedding band was $75 from a pawn shop in Toronto that we bought on a whim a few months into our engagement when we were running late to meet friends for dinner. Buying that ring together is a precious memory that I'll keep forever, but if my tastes have changed a decade on, why not change it? The memory is in tact. Our marriage is thriving. I also love the fact that now I have two wedding bands, so some day I can pass one on to each of my daughters - not planned but a lovely result of replacing my original band! So I started to shop around for a simple yellow gold band, ideally from a shop here in Quebec.

I came across Vaudry Jewelry Co. on Etsy thanks to some friends on Instagram who recommended them for minimalist wedding bands. My wedding band is the hammered 10k yellow gold band stackable ring. It was under $150 and made right here in Quebec, where our whole life as a married couple has been. I love it so much! I love the simplicity of it, the delicate size (my other band was thicker), the hammered details, and especially that it's yellow gold. Though I do have an engagement ring as well, which I'll write about another day, I often wear just my wedding band. I love it so much I can't believe I almost didn't change it for fear of how others might respond. The simplicity fits my style perfectly and I'm thankful every day that I had the courage to do the unconventional thing and change my wedding rings!

Vaudry Jewelry Co. is a small Quebec business I'm proud to collaborate with on this post. Visit them on Etsy and Instagram and fall in love with their minimalist gold pieces!

Shop Québec - Vestibule Mini

A few weeks ago, on Clover's first official day of summer vacation (my older two still had school for one more day), I was invited to the opening of Vestibule Mini, the kiddos version of Montreal design dynamo, Vestibule. It was the loveliest morning with my youngest girl and the shop was absolutely beautiful!

photo credit: Laurie-Anne Thot

Chloe ate breakfast right before we left to walk over to Vestibule Mini (nice that it's just down the street from us!) but that didn't stop her from eating basically every snack they has laid out at the shop, lol! I think she ate two croissants, grapes, cheese, and fresh orange juice. Oh to be four again!

Vestibule Mini gifted me this beautiful Quebec vinyl print on wooden rails (only available in store) at the opening and I'm so in love! They have tons of sweet kid's room decor. I also picked up these magnetic wooden rails for hanging up the kids art work. Just the perfect touch to a kid's oasis!

Vestibule Mini - 5170 St Laurent Blvd, Montreal or online at www.boutiquevestibule.com/mini