- Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel

summer is the season for jamz.
dis my main summer jam 2018.

Being back in Canada for a brief few weeks, of course I have a bucket list! #allthethings
Usually my bucket list is centered around my interests: stationary, art, food, coffee, and of course combining all those things with friends, family and my hometown Hamilton.

I've long been a fan of Wonder Pens, a small family run stationary shop in Toronto that specializes in Fountain Pens and hard to find inks. In an increasingly digital world, analogue record keeping and  correspondence has significantly decrease (case in point: as I sit here and blog) but more and more people are finding they miss putting pen to paper. Wonder Pens is a great little shop that meets those needs and has a wonderful staff with great high quality products. They just moved their store from Leslieville to Little Italy and I seized the opportunity to pop in when I was in Toronto a few weeks ago. I also needed to pick up some Noodlers Ink to refill my fountain pens with. As a Zero Waste proponent, I'm a huge fan of refillable fountain pens, and as someone who journals regularly I've found that all I need is one black, archival ink that suits all of my needs. Some people have massive fountain pen collections and a whole rainbow of beautiful inks, but as someone who is a minimalist and travels frequently, it's simple not possible for me. Off I trotted to Wonder Pens to refill my trusty stash and check out the new shop!

In short.. Wonder Pens lives up to its name. Here are some pics of their thoroughly instagrammable interior. Also, they stock a wide collection of hard to find Japanese stationary products (Superior Labour, Classiky, Travelers Notebook), as well as the staples like Field Notes, Rhodia, and Leuchtterm and a huge variety of fountain pens and ink.

love the upcycled coconut milk can ^_^

Liz has scattered great little postcards for purchase around the shop.

Mammoth Lamy pen just chilling in the corner... like nbd. 😂

Love this custom postcard drawn by Gotamago, a local Toronto artist.

green plants everywhere!

It's been so wonderful to to watch Jon and Liz do so well with this little shop. They host letter writing nights (free to join!) and classes and have even been able to hire additional staff. I browsed for quite a while and was impressed with the customer service they provided. Unfortunately, the Noodlers I was looking for was out of stock, but I had a lovely chat with Sarah and went on my way with a little sample to tide me over until the next restock.

ALL THE INKS!

Wonder Pens is a charming spot, definitely check it out if you are an analogue lover. While claiming the store is the BEST stationary shop in Toronto may be rather opinionated, it's definitely in my top three. I have yet to check out Paper Plus Cloth's new shop on Queen West but it features highly on The Bucket List. Until that happens I will reserve my use of superlatives.. 😉

Enjoy this Toronto gem, and if you are a stationary nerd like myself or a fountain pen enthusiast.. these people know all the things.

Hugs,
d.

I sit here in the friction of my heart, restless.
Feeling like i could burst out of my own skin, almost on the verge of something, not sure if I should just drop it all and completely abscond into the greater world.

Abscond, what a delicious word.

Sometimes, my heart seesaws between responsibility and absolute reliability (i have this quite caring, mature, taking the world onto my shoulders side) and sheer spontaneity filled with a devil may care attitude (often epitomized in my generation with 'Yolo' and 'Wth').
Shirking responsibility within reason, disappearing into the mystery of the unknown world. Isn't this the tension we live in? The desire to be known, to know others deeply, fulfilling that deep seated longing to be accepted, to show our dark side and our vulnerabilites and to be accepted. To grow a garden and know our neighbors and put down roots. And then that other side, that says to hell with the status quo and the middle class life that speaks of diapers, morgages, conversations about grass seed and property taxes and how the world is going to hell in a 100% organic cotton handbasket. Forget the North American dream I'm gonna live in a Tiny House or even better, an upright Sprinter Van, become one with the mosquitoes and bears
and work remotely,
and make millions of dollars blogging....

Isn't that just .. another type of North American dream? My generations reaction to the previous ones stability? The #vanlife generation. 

It's called sabotage.
We sabotage ourselves.
 Comparison, jealousy, dissatisfaction and social pressures to conform, to be _________.

To be ____________________ (cool, desirable, unattached, sexy, intelligent, sophisticated, up to date on every pop culture reference.. the list goes on).

For me the thrill of absconding is always waiting for me. That childlike stubbornness, unwillingness to give in, a flash of the eyes and a 'I'll show you' toss of the head as I leave you in my dust.

And yet, at the end of the day, a resignation to the responsibilities. To a desire to leave the world just a little bit better than it was yesterday.. a total refusal to let the evil steal my joy and so I fantasize about kicking 'it' in the face. Those sour memories of being the one left holding the bag, the disappointment in the ones who absconded without you, left you to clean up the mess. The looks of disappointment in faces of those you let down, who trusted in you. A belief in the importance of finishing what I started. Knowing when your heart is deceiving you with the niggles of comparison and knowing when you really need to throw off the shackles and run free through that field of flowers. When you need to slip off your shoes and dance barefoot in an empty room.

To dwell in this friction.
To be human, in this broken, marvelous, wild world.

A Zero waste deodorant recipe that will cost you about 1 dollar!! A loony!!! A buck.

While I've heard many rave reviews about Natural and Zero Waste deodorant creams like Meow Meow Tweet, I've always found them super expensive (15 dollars?!?) and hard to find for those of us who are not American. Shipping is often killer when you live outside of the US or North America (usually add 10$ on top of the price and I could eat alot of Greek yogurt for that price!).

One of the main reasons I went zero waste was to reduce my overall costs. To be totally honest, I'm not a rich person, in fact, I'm pretty darn broke. That being said, I have an abundance of things that I consider way more important than money, like friends, family, and health. On the flip side, I'm definitely not living an impoverished life! I have enough. And honestly, one of the appeals of the zero waste lifestyle is frugality. Zero waste does not have to be an expensive lifestyle!! I truly believe this. 

I digress. Back to the deo. Why spend so much money on a deodorant when you can make your own for supa supa cheap!
*cha-ching.

this is my deodorant.

One caveat:

I tried a few zero waste recipes before I found one that worked for me. So there were definitely some STINKY TIMES, y'all.  I felt awkward, uncomfortable and super self-conscious. I even caved and bought an expensive alum rock deodorant that worked extremely well for 20 days then totally stopped!! AGH. What a waste of money and the plastic it came in. *fail*
The point is: not everything works for everyone, so don't go out and triple this recipe before you actually try! If you don't like it you will waste a lot of ingredients (been there done that). Make a small batch and test it out first. However, for me this recipe has been the bomb diggity! and my wallet is rejoicing.

Enter the Zero Waste Chef's deodorant recipe:
Genius in simplicity. Above excellence in accessibility. Beyond measure in ease of assembly. 

1/4 cup baking Soda
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons Coconut Oil
optional: add essential oils (lemon, grapefruit, cedar, teatree.. whatever makes you feel fancy!)
I used Thieves.. because thats all I had.

Mix dry ingredients before adding coconut oil. Make sure coconut oil is runny or at least softened enough to transfer and mix easily. Warm up if necessary. Add essential oil last. Stir.
This recipe is not super precise, I had to tweak the amount of coconut oil I added until I reached a texture I was happy with. Have fun with it! 

Lastly, I wanted to do a SquawkFox style price breakdown (because she's super awesome):
1/4 cup of Baking soda = $0.29
1/4 cup of Cornstarch   = $0.26
3 tablespoons of Coconut Oil = $0.49
and I'm sorry.. I have no idea how to calculate 10 drops of essential oil price... I'm not Kerry. 
Overall actual price for this jar of deoderant?? 
$1.04 !!

So far mine has lasted for almost 6 months already! How about you? Do you have any zero waste deodorant tips you swear by? Would love to hear your experiences.

Have a great day,
d.

my puntastic lettering and drawing skillz, motivated by the clever #homwork prompt

• Hammock errryday. total ha-addicted.
• started this murder mystery series, not earthshattering but it's nice to have a novel to read that also isn't super racy. Bonus, interesting balance of two professions, priest and police officers. Also, I know nothing about Lutherans. Must research.

• Atta giRl, Booklyn 99 (season 4 on Netflix) has been bring me so much joy these days. Ridiculous, over the top, and hysterical.

• this great Youtube channel named Exploring Alternatives is run by Canadians! Woooot! Also chock full of amazing content and Tiny  House tours as well as some rad content including treeforts and airstreams.. basically addicted. 

What's bringing you joy this week?
Share it with me in the comments below.
Have a great week!
d.

a series I'm starting where I post things that have made my happy this week, hoping it can bring you some joy in the mundane. inspired by this blogger's series called Things that are saving my life right now.

This post on Cup of Jo about money.. incredible sharing and storytelling in the comments section

Also, been reading through Luke and thinking about money, how I deal with money, frugality and generosity.. Jesus' teachings are not easy to follow but amazing and challenging.

Discovering new artists and being creatively inspired!
Stefan Kunz Youtube channel has some great tips for lettering and composition
Peter Mckinnon's Youtube videos are informative as heck.

Molly Jacques sharing about her secret super power.. (she gets vulnerable!)

Mimi Chao just released her new Skillshare course, it's free this week only (after that you need Skillshare premium subscription). Her style is whimsical and full of magic.

Has anyone read this series? I love me a good mystery series and just discovered this one.. excitedly waiting for my digital hold to come through (yay free books!)

have a wonderful weekend,
d. 

As much as we are living in a digital world, it is impossible not to use some sort of writing implement. Especially if you are an artist or a student (guilty on both counts). Last weekend, I decided I need a break from the rural European village I live in and went into a nearby city to run a long overdue errand. I've been eyeing the Pilot Metropolitan fountain pen for half a year now, since I passed up an opportunity to buy one at Wonder Pens Pen Swap in Toronto during the summer. Clearly... I have regrets about that. So off to the big city I went, with my eyes on a wonderful little Pen Shop that I stumbled on during my last visit.

I'm going to pause in my story to answer a few questions here:
If I'm going to go Zero Waste do I even need to use pens?
Ideally, no. In an increasingly digital age we can manage many things on our phones or computers. However it is impossible to be exclusively digital so we all need to use pens at some point. Even Zero Waste guru Bea Johnson uses a pen.. to sign her books of course! The ideal solution to the problem of a cheap BIC pen that you throw away after it runs out is the fountain pen. Fountain pens can be refilled with ink from a glass bottle. Most of them will last a lifetime because they are made of steel and other hardy materials. Not only do you reduce your trash by having nothing to throw away but the amount of $ saved is significant as well. Substituting a pencil instead of a pen is also a great idea, for example, for your shopping list, you can write it in pencil and then erase the list after shopping and reuse the paper*. Endlessly. Brilliant!


After finding my way to the Pen Shop I spent about half an hour conversing with the owner over the varieties of pens (cue: nerdy fountain pen talk that I will omit). He graciously allowed me to test 5 or 6 different pens, while answering my many questions. I'm incredibly picky about the thickness of the ink flow on my paper and nothing I've written with has been thin enough for me. The only exception is the Sakura Micron 01 Fineliner. It's a wonderful pen really, but after a few months it runs out of ink or the tip inevitably gets pushed in. You can hack the pen and add more ink (watch this video) but I haven't found a way to prevent the tip from disappearing into the body of the pen over time. Also, the Microns are INCREDIBLY expensive here in the Netherlands being sold for 3.50 Euros ($5.40 CAN). I'm sure I could go through 6 or 7 pens in a year which would cost me $37.80! Phew. Expensive. I write a lot: journaling** as well as taking notes for school so I'm quite hard on my pens and use them multiple times a day.

Which brings me back to that glorious afternoon at the Pen Shop. The gentleman proprietor after seeing my distaste with all the thick writing pens (Lamy, too thick. Pilot, too thick!) pulled out some vintage Parker pens from his stock and added an old fine nib. It wrote like a charm. Smooth and thin like a tendril of silk across the page. (omits several lines of swoony poetry to Parker) Mission accomplished!

A key thing to remember when buying a fountain pen is to make sure it has a converter. A converter allows the pen to be refilled by drawing up ink into the pen so it can write for a period of time without running out. Be aware that many fountain pens are also run on cartridges. This involves buying new cartridges when the cartridges run out of ink.. aka spending more money and producing more waste, therefore negating the environmental reasons why you wanted to purchase a fountain pen in the first place! Be sure to ask if the fountain pen can take a converter as most models are able to do both.

Here you can see the converter and ink well of my fountain pen.

Many people balk at the initial prices of fountain pens, appalled at spending 20$ for a single pen. Remember, you are not buying a one time use pen, instead you are buying a pen that you can use for the rest of your life! I believe in moving beyond a single-use mindset, the type of thinking that says I'll just use it once and then throw it away. I know for me I love owning a few fountain pens, not only because of the aesthetic value (hello, classy to the max, Instagrams like a boss etc.) but because it is a valued item. Out of my 4 fountain pens, two were gifts from dear friends and although the ink flow is not perfect, they are still excellent writing utensils. I'm also much less likely to lose them, unlike your cheap plastic pen, because I highly value my pens. Just as you wouldn't easily loose your passport because it is of high value to you.. we need to remember to treat our possessions with care and they can last us a lifetime. Not only did I end up buying a secondhand item giving it a new life, but I had a wonderful experience discussion a topic I'm passionate about with a local shopkeeper. I would have missed out on all these things if I had zipped out to a dollar store to get a plastic coated pack of cheap pens.

insert heart eye emoji

**A Note on using paper and pens: if you read the Zero Waste Bible AKA Bea Johnson's book Zero Waste Home she is strongly against analogue items like journals, day planners, letters, etc. She advocates a complete switch from analogue to digital unless absolutely necessary. While I agree that we need to be aware of our paper consumption, I also cannot completely leave behind an analogue lifestyle. Nothing will ever replace a pen and paper. I try to reduce the amount of notebooks and sketchbooks I own, but I still love to create handmade cards and send snail mail. I love creating art and handlettering. It is important to find what you love to do and not throw everything out the window because certain people don't value it. Definitely be aware of the environmental impact, try to buy more papers made of recycle paper etc., but don't throw your identity out the window when you go Zero Waste because then it becomes a trend and not something that will last. Find what works for you, we are all unique and have our own style and passions. There's definitely alot we can do as artists to reduce our waste without sacrificing our craft, I'd love to hear from you if you have any tips or suggestions! :)

*one of the many tips gleaned from Bea Johnsons book Zero Waste Home

Earlier on in the year I was checking my Instagram and saw that Lindsay from A Pinch of Yum was doing a month of No Sugar. I love it when her posts pop up because she makes delicious, easy and healthy food and honestly.. i find the recipe process videos SUPER addictive.

Here's one:

that feeling when the BEST cauliflower soup is also the easiest. 😍 just five ingredients and ultra creamy. all you need is an onion, cauliflower, butter, broth, and cheese. SO EASY. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ you'll need: 2-3 tablespoons butter 1 yellow onion 6 cups chicken broth 1 head cauliflower cut into florets 1 heaping cup cheese (your choice!) 1 tablespoon truffle oil if u fancy ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ heat the butter, add the onions, and saute until softened. add the broth and cauliflower and simmer until the cauliflower is fork tender. puree mixture until the soup reaches your desired consistency. add the cheese and stir until melted. add the truffle oil and stir to incorporate. we like top ours with croutons, kale pesto, and more cheese. 👌🏼 YUM! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ #cauliflower #soup #cheese #eeeeeats #easyrecipes #recipe #video #recipevideo #buzzfeast #buzzfeedfood #bhgfood #feedfeed #instayum #onthetable #eatingfortheinsta

A post shared by Lindsay Ostrom (@pinchofyum) on Jan 13, 2018 at 10:10am PST

Fun, right? Happy stalking.

Anyways, reducing my sugar is something I've been wanting to do for a long time, especially since diabetes runs in the family. Not so much because of lack of exercise but more due to a sweet tooth and access to incredible baking (hello, Mom). Generally I eat quite healthily, but I do love my baked goods and always add something sweet to my coffee. This is the number one habit I wanted to kick this year. Although I've switched from cane sugar to honey in my coffee, I know the sugar content is basically the same. Add some desert everyday and a few chocolate cookies and there's quite a bit of unneeded sugar in my life.

So when January 1st rolled around I didn't add any sugar to my coffee. Only a splash of milk. It took about 2 weeks to get used to, but eventually I realized that a lot of my coffee cravings were cleverly disguised sugar cravings. Tricksy. I also cut sugar out from my breakfast. I was eating a sugary muesli with yoghurt (standard college food) and instead I have been making overnight oats with yoghurt only sweetened with fruit. This took some time to get used to! Thankfully, breakfast is a quick meal and eventually I downed the oats and started to enjoy the sweetness of the fruit (mostly a nice apple or banana). This morning I had avocado on toast. Yum. I don't feel like I'm suffering here people.. not unless you wave cheesecake in front of my nose (at which point I will probably cry a little inside and cave in for a a quick teeny bite).

As Lindsay outlined in her post about Sugar-Free January, the point of the challenge is not to be extreme, judgemental or divisive. It's simply to challenge yourself to eat better, without sugar as much as possible, within your limitations. For example, she chose to keep red wine in her diet for the weekends. I chose to keep some dark chocolate on hand for some snacks. I only have a few small nibbles and I'm happy.
Here are my new favourite snacks!

Top 5 Favourite Sugar Free Snacks

1. Crispy apple slices dipped in Crunchy Natural peanut butter. This one is da bomb .com I've devoured a heck lot of natural peanut butter in the last month. Try it!

2. Oh She glows homemade yolos! Recipe here. Or plain medjool dates. Dates are basically orbs of bliss.

3. Raisins, roasted almonds, salted peanuts,  and cashews. Added bonus, these little snacks are powerhouses full of protein and will get you through the hangry moments in class.

4. Stovetop Popcorn! I liberally salt mine. It's a much healthier than chips (whcih are my huge weakness) and with a drizzle of melted butter really seem like a luxurious treat. I'm quite liberal when it concerns butter.

5. Any and all fruit! Going sugar free has made me love eating fruit. I used to eat a piece of fruit maybe once a week.. to be completely honest. Not something I'm super proud of. Now I have at least one apple a day sometimes two. Yum.

CONCLUSION:

I will continue on this challenge! I'm really enjoying the refined sugar free lifestyle and I hope to continue on as long as possible. I feel healthier and more energetic. Most days it's not actually that hard to say no to sugar and on the difficult days, I try to make sure i have a substitute on hand.  I may occassionally say yes to a spoonful of cake on a very special occasion but I hope even by reducing my portion sizes of the treats that I do allow myself to have I'll appreciate the delectable desserts of the world even more. Also, I have a greater love and appreciation for real food. Right now I'm already dreaming of my delicious avocado and toast I'm planning to eat tomorrow morning. Runny egg yolk.. maybe a small wedge of extra old cheddar cheese on the side.... MMmmmm mama.

Also, curious to learn more about sugar? Here's a great BBC documentary I found on Youtube. Enjoy!




Questions? Have you ever considered reducing your sugar?
Would love to hear from you,

d.

Soho, Hong Kong, May 2017.

Here I was sweating buckets in the Hong Kong humidity and thrilled to bits to finally see a real live Shepard Fairey mural! (Thank you to my friends for patiently searching the side alleys of Soho with me and taking my photo.) Now I'm  huddled up in bed, in the rainy windy Netherlands still disbelieving this photo was taken 8 months ago! Cray Cray. Life has been a full on sprint, with barely moments to catch my wind. I'm very thankful to be where I am right now, but I also want to remember where I was. 

This photo in Hong Kong is fun.. bright, colourful and very instagrammable. Life looks great for me right? Living the dream? The reality was that my trip to Hong Kong was not for fun. Quite the opposite. It was quite a stressful visit because it was necessary for my paperwork for my visa.. and it was quite stressful financially! I had changed jobs and was working through mounds of red tape and messy stuff with the company I had left and the new job I was transferring to (I'll spare you the details). Lots of stress and uncertainty, not to mention flights and bureaucracy. On the upside, I stayed with friends the whole time, which was a huge blessing, not only to hang out and catch up but also to ease up on finding a place to stay. I ate good food, was refreshed by Hong Kong's vibrant design scene and yummy restaurants and I read Jackie Pullinger's biography while whizzing through HK streets on the top level of the famous double-decker buses. 

2017 was a crazy year for me, filled with stress and decisions, and alot of adulting. Around New Year's Eve time I always sit and reflect on the past year, and the word "rebuilding" came to mind to describe 2017. I invested myself in a new career, I built up friends and community in a new city in a new part of the world, I pushed myself to be more environmentally conscious and zero waste in an foreign environment, and remember again and again the God is the one who is truly in control of my life. I was truly joyful in this photo, despite the ongoing stress and drama of my job. Who knows what 2018 will bring? I don't! And I'm looking forward to the adventures. :)

I'm thrilled to have this blog back up and running and I can't wait to share more about my Zero Waste discoveries and my most recent (secondhand) purchase of a delicious fountain pen. Terribly nerdy of me... but I won't apologize for it.
Goodnight, world. 

d.

This week I learned an amazing trick for peeling ginger... total aha moment! Anyone can do it!!
.. the man himself Jamie explains:


So simple right??? no more wasted Ginger bits.
I always love finding better ways to reduce waste, or in this case, compost.

Happy cooking!