After becoming pregnant at 14 and giving birth at 15, I struggled with hormonal acne from puberty and the increased pregnancy hormones. Once postpartum, I was still going through puberty, and not surprisingly, no skincare catered to those needs. I moved to Vancouver when I was newly 19, and my son a few months shy of turning 4, to attend Blanche Macdonald, where I received my Diploma of Makeup Artistry. As an artist of multiple mediums leading up until this point, I craved challenge. When I realized that makeup provided me with the only living, breathing canvas, that was altered by temperature/textures and housed its own opinions, it felt like the challenged I craved.
A year later, I was introduced to preserving lemons due to their rinds being healthy for us to ingest; I researched the physical and mental health benefits associated with adding lemon rinds in various forms into our daily lives when I realized the potential of creating skincare with lemon rinds. I began playing with different recipes and visualized the pores on my face as little mouths deserving skin-food for skin-health from the same perspective. After much creativity in the kitchen (anyone who knows me knows that’s my happy place), it became therapeutic and resulted in a handful of products that changed my skin. I had no intention of releasing them for anyone else, however, after years of working in the TV/Film industry, my bare skin was often mistaken for wearing foundation. This sparked multiple conversations that finally convinced me I could help others, too. We launched with the Vital Serum and will be releasing a handful of others over time. With that being said, we currently have two products in motion.
Communication. The ability to connect through the mind and body.
I playfully call myself the ‘Director of First Impressions.’
The consciousness (the state of being characterized by sensation, emotion, & volition) behind creating East 29th was based on the understanding that we feel with more than just our hands. Down to designing our branding, the two words I gave my design team, ZAK, were ‘Visual Velvet.’ I wanted to feel it with my eyes, so when someone tries our products, they feel it with more than just their physical touch.
While other brands only see your skin, I see space to leave an impact. I’ve come to the understanding that being remembered for how I make someone feel is what’s important to me. The duality of making someone feel softer inside out with
skincare & self-care is hands down, my favourite.
When I was younger, tattoos, body mods, or a lack of a Grade 12 diploma meant you were destined to be unsuccessful. I can’t even count how many times I was told I would never get a "real job"; Pair this with teenage pregnancy, and I definitely would not follow any of my dreams.
I’ve always tried to keep it real with myself; I recently stumbled upon an old half-written letter addressed to my future self where I admitted how deeply afraid I was never to achieve anything after childbirth.
This has not been my reality. I lead any interactions with apologies for all of the above for a long time, as I thought they were negatives, but they were all equally celebrated instead. I felt so empowered. Today they are much more common, which is great, but since we’re traveling back in time, I would tell myself to apologize for less, love myself more. Be softer on yourself.
Honestly, East 29th is a love letter from my current self to everyone in similar shoes as my past, based on my understanding of what I needed all of these years.
