R&S: Condom Earrings!

Ever since I was in high school I have been stacked with condoms. I used to keep them in my locker at school and give them out to students when they asked. And despite some peoples total delusion and denial toward young people and sex, there was (and still is) a really positive response to being able to get them in a judgement free way. I have stood out on streets giving out condoms, distributed them at events, parades, house parties, given boxes as house warming gifts to university students, birthday presents, carried bags of them across the world to friends who didn't have any, I even collect condoms from different conferences & places I have been in the world. In short condoms have kind of always been a part of my life both sexually and non-sexually.

Recently I decided that condoms can be, and should be jewelry! This came about as a solution for expired condoms. Condoms should never be used after their expiry date! So I can’t very well give them to people, as the latex from which they are made has more than likely deteriorated making them more susceptible to breakage…ultimately defeating the purpose of using them.

I have worked in several AIDS service organizations (ASO) & community health centers (CHC) and I have seen more condoms thrown in the garbage than I care to acknowledge. So when I was looking through my distribution stash at home for expired condoms, I just couldn't bring myself to throw them all in the trash! So as a recycle & save project (R&S) I decided to re-purpose condoms in a way that they do not have to strictly be used for sexual experiences. They can be used to make a statement, start conversations, or normalize condom carrying in non-threatening, and more importantly fashionable way! They are really easy to make, do not require many materials and since condom packages come in all kinds of fancy colours and designs now a days you can seriously have a lot of inexpensive fun with this! 

Materials:

Instructions:

1. Assemble materials
2. Poke a hole at the top of condom package
3. Use needle nose pliers to open jump ring
4. insert jump into into hole in condom package
5. Use jewelry cutter to cut desired length of link chain
6. attach cut link chain to jump ring and close
7. Open bottom of fishhook attachment with pliers to attach to unattached end of link chain
8. close bottom of fishhook attachment

Thats it!

even my plants <3 condoms!

xcited about condoms

My approach to sexual health isn't to bombard people with information in a fear mongering way, but to make it fun and accessible. If someone on the street sees me wearing these earrings and it gets them thinking or talking with their social networks then I think that is one step closer to challenging the shame & silence that has so far been of no help.

If you live in the Toronto, Ontario area here are a few places you can get FREE condoms and FREE HIV rapid tests. You do not need to have a health card or be referred to access these services!

West Toronto:

Rexdale Community Health Centre

8 Taber Road

Phone: (416) 744-0066

Jane Street Clinic

662 Jane Street

Phone: (416) 338-7272

Crossways Clinic

2340 Dundas Street West

Phone: (416) 392-0999

Central Toronto:

The Talk Shop

5110 Yonge Street

Phone: (416) 338-7000

Hassle Free Clinic

66 Gerrard St E

Work: 416 922-0566

Central Toronto Community Health Center

168 Bathurst Street

(416) 703-8482

                         Women's Health in Women's Hands                          

2 Carlton Street, Suite 500

416-593-7655

East Toronto:
Scarborough Sexual Health Clinic

180 Borough Drive

Phone: (416) 338-7438

Very Important Note: Do not poke holes into condoms you want to use for sex...

Smiles :)
Tuly Maimouna

R&S: Takataka an ode to Meja Ngeti

Takataka
[tak-ah-tak-ah]
Bottle cap necklace

When I was in east Africa anytime I went out friends they would always ask with a look of slight disgust "why are you picking garbage up off the floor?" without confidence and shifting eyes I would reply "...I want to make something..."  In reality I had no idea why I was picking bottle caps up off of the floor when I thought no one was looking, but it really did seem right at the time. On my trip back home I was acquainted with a rather strange but charismatic major in the Kenyan air force who we always addressed as Meja Ngeti. Now Meja Ngeti while obnoxious in his own right was whole heatedly generous, when we hadn't eaten and were hungry he fed us, he provided advice to young men and challenged them to think seriously about themselves, he avidly demanded that I was respected as a lady but mostly he bought us drinks...a whole lot of drinks. Now that I think about it, I am actually not sure if his obnoxiousness can be attributed to him having a few too many, but none the less his company was always a pleasure.

On one of our many encounters Meja Ngeti taught me a really cool trick, how to open a bottle of beer with another beer bottle. With every round that would come to our table he would tell the barmaid to leave them all closed and insist that I open everyone's beer. You might wonder why this newly acquired skill mattered so much to me. Well, as soon as I mastered the skill I was from then on able to collect bottle caps in a discreet fashion! I no longer had to pick them up off them floor, I just popped the caps off and put them in my pocket free of disgusted looks. Sadly, not long after I returned to Canada I heard that he had passed away, so to Meja Ngeti, asante sana kwa chaluka tamu, moto ama baridi tutakunyuwi White Cap, Sumit, Tusker, Pilsner na Amarula kwa wewe. I am sure he would be proud to see how far my beer-on-beer opening skills have come.

Yesterday as an ode to Meja Ngeti I felt inspired to make a R&S takataka 'garbage' necklace with all the bottle caps I collected on my many adventures with him, as well as some random ( and delicious) beer drinking adventures I had on my own facilitated with the help of the bottle opening skill he passed down to me. 

Materials!

It was a really simple process! I recycled an old link chain in my box of stuff and used my jewelry making supplies (pliers, jump rings & hole punch) to get this project popping.You can buy all the materials at the dollar store or your local beading store. You can get like me and sneak bottle caps from the floor into your pocket at the pub when no one is looking, or...drink dozens of beers for their caps? You'll have to get creative with that part and figure out what works for you. 

Instructions:
1. Assemble all materials
2. Flatten bottle caps with mini pliers
3. Use one hole punch to punch a hole at the top of the bottle cap
4. Use mini pliers to open jump ring & attach the bottle caps to link chain 
5. Fiddle with it to get it to sit how you want it to
Thats it!

Final Product!

  
I now get to wear all of my favorite beers on my neck! I was told it makes me look like a drunkard, but this simple project that costed me nothing but time to make means so much more than that. To Meja Ngeti, where ever you are thank you for your kindness and welcoming nature. It was a pleasure knowing you and may you have found peace and an abundance of blessings. 

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

Sexploration: Tantalizing Titties! Crochet Pasties for Areola of Colour!



Tantalizing Titties
Crochet Pasties
$15.00

I have been on this interesting personal journey for a while. I am currently in the midst of trying to expand my sexual possibilities and figuring out what that even means. I initially thought that this journey was only about exploring and finding a personal definition of what sex is, but after having some really insightful conversations in some really...interesting locations I have come to find that so many other aspect of myself are tied into this three letter word.

Prior to taking the first few steps of this journey I had to first sit down and seriously think about what my boundaries are and what I need to say and do in order to keep things safe, consensual and above all sexy. As many things it has been an amazing up and down learning experience.Thus far I have learned that my boundaries aren't static, they shift and really do depend on context; like how I am feeling that day, who the person(s) involved are, or where I am and these different variables influence how I navigate my exploration from one experience to another.

So as a part of this sexual exploration I am now calling sexploration my girl who has whole heartedly supported many of my wild ideas, together we will be venturing into the unknown to check this fetish party and the first thing she asked me was 'ooooh my gosh girl, what are we wearing?!' Now I dunno about y'all, but I think that whether you are going to a wedding or a fetish party what you wear is a question that must always be answered, and your answer must be delivered in the most fly way possible!....but how? 

A few days ago another friend of mine was really excited to show me these nipple pasties that her friend had bought for her. They were really dope, but there was one problem...they were made for white peoples breasts. I am not  saying that there is anything wrong with white people breasts, in fact I think all breasts equally rule! But just like clothes that don't fit right I am not going to wear something that wasn't made for me or made to suit my body. So we resolved to make our very own sexy pasties for areola of colour! I decided to call them tantalizing tittes because I think mine are just that! I always tell people that I want my titties to look as tantalizing as possible, and lets be honest here whose wouldn't be when adorned with crochet goodness, and golden nipple piercings with chain tassels?

Sexploration for me is keeping an informed and open mind in finding out what works for me, and what I wear (or don't) is a reflection of just that. So I'll flaunting my sexy, big and brown areola in my own fashion.

shake your big brown areola, cause they tantalizing too!

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

Niaje: What's up fall?

I was once asked what makes me feel sexy. You know in the summer time when the sun is shining on you and you get that warming sensation? That is precisely when I feel my sexiest. That warming sensation puts me in tune with my skin getting its luscious sun baked brown tint that gives me a sensual glow. I absolutely love it! So the end of August has to be the saddest time of the year for me. Having to temporarily say goodbye to the tube tops, dresses, flowing skirts and sexy sunshine hurts. While not as sensual as summer, I must admit that I do adore the flavour of fall! The colours, the layers and everything else that comes with it has a certain swag that is sexy in its own way. 

I have been steadily working against the disappearance of summer to complete my fall swag and I have come up with a simple quadra-purpose (is that a word?) scarf I am really amped to wear! This pink, %100 wool, 120" x 10" shell stitch scarf is long enough to be wrapped in multiple ways to face the harsh and temperamental forecasts of fall and winter. So kwaheri majira ya joto in kiswahili means 'goodbye summer', but I'll be saying niaje which in sheng (Nairobi slang) means 'whats up' to a new kind of sexy come fall! In my own fashion I had to add some additional floral flavour for originalities sake, peep the pics below!

NIAJE
(knee-ah-jeh)
1. A regular scarf 

NIAJE
2. A hood

NIAJE
3. An infinity Scarf

NIAJE
4. A shawl

When saying goodbye to something old, we will inevitably have to say hello or niaje to something new! So my way of coping with the loss of summer is making something that will get me excited about, and feeling sexy in the new season! 

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

Shags: Ode to a Village Bar

SHAGS
Bamboo Bead Necklace
$20.00

Ever since I was young I always wanted to have one of those bead curtains. I think they are absolutely tantalizing! About five months ago my friend and I came across them and it was like a childhood dream come true! I snatched one up and hurried home to hang it up. When my mom saw it she said dryly with a look of distaste 'it reminds me of something you'd find in an old village bar' Dreams crushed I took it down and lay it to rest...until recently. I decided that if I couldn't hang it lavishly in my doorway I would hang it from my neck. I hesitantly cut off the beautifully strung beads and made an array of necklaces and earrings, and this is one of the many final products! As an ode to a lost childhood dream and some old village bar charm, I have appropriately called this necklace shags which is the slang word for 'village' in my mother tongue of Gikuyu. 

Now I get to carry a little bit of childhood fancy with me!

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

Out My Mind Just in Time: Block-o-Rama!

I've been losing my mind in the past couple of weeks trying to sort out the pieces of my life, but who needs a mind anyway it slows you down! Now, I'm back and I'm busy! I'll start off by saying that I can name few things better than community engagement, a $1 BBQ, performances and crochet! One part of my life has been around trying to get ready for this event coming up in Torontos own Regent Park! If you are free this weekend Saturday August 17th and in the neighbourhood, you should definitely check out Regents Parks annual block party Block-o-Rama! The event this year is titled "Own the Block", why you ask? Amidst the massive revitalization project happening in the area, this youth lead and organized initiative serves to reclaim and own space in the community. I have been blessed with the privilege of being welcomed to be a part of this community initiative and I am so so amped! I'll be selling some goodies and will be hosting a free and always fly crochet picnic with my girl Crafty Chas. So seriously come check it out and see how we do what we do!

Who? Performers, vendors, myself, you & your friends

What? A Block party!

Where? Daniels Spectrum @ Regent Park

When? Saturday August 17th 2013

Why? Why not?

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

R&S: 'Natural'

Over the past few years it's like black women have finally realized how truly funking fly they are and I have been observing how women where I live have been coming into themselves, which is an absolutely beautiful process! From my personal experience I have noticed that this emerging dialogue of self love is deeply rooted in changing the way we talk about, interpret, and experience our natural (unprocessed) hair. As I mentioned in a previous post R&S: Genie Locs the Story of a Queens Crown I have had my crown for around 11 years now, and because of that I have felt very disconnected from this conversation. My crown is no reflection of self realization and I never intended for it to make a statement. Yet I find that more and more people assume that my hair is some political statement of self acceptance:

"I love me a natural sister"

"I am so happy to see a young woman accepting who she is!"

"How long have you been natural?"

So I have been asking myself, for real tho, what is this thing called natural that everybody keeps talking about? If I have a face full of make-up am I still natural? If I daily eat processed foods am I natural? If I clean my house with products that pollute the environment am I still natural just because I have unprocessed hair? Y'all know how I feel about saving money and within this I have come to find that being natural should aim to be a more holistic lifestyle and not just about how we look, present and see our selves. It should aim to include how we treat both our bodies and natural environment and look at the effects of what we put into them. After all the state of our environment greatly affects us and our health, including our hair! So my R&S project is...natural cleaning products!

I have to apologize I didn't mean to build up all that suspense to bore you with cleaning, but I am really serious! Improving the health of your living environment and ridding it of toxic and abrasive chemicals is just as beneficial as cleansing your hair from harmful chemicals such as perms, dyes and products. While admittedly cleaning your house does not have the same social meanings and realities as black women's hair, I would welcome you to think about the parallels between the two.

1. It is far cheaper than buying chemically processed products
2. You reduce the amount of pollutants you use and expose yourself to
3. It is a lifestyle change that forces you to think about how to treat and value your environment/body

I always think, why should I clean my house with highly toxic products that clearly state that if I have had prolonged exposure, have ingested, inhaled, or has caused skin irritation I should call poison control? And then they try to tell me I can cook on and use these surfaces daily? Yeah right. In the same way people have stared to ask why we should use hair products that damage, strip, dry and thin our hair. The only difference between the two is that the outcomes of using toxic products in our hair are more or less visible we can see, feel and touch the damage. As opposed to exposure to toxic cleaning compounds where it is harder to identify tangible negative outcomes. You could alternatively buy all those eco-friendly products, but they make investing in less toxic eco-friendly environments really inaccessible by being grossly over priced. Forget em! I have a 'natural' money saving cleaning method that only requires two products!

1. Baking Soda

2. Vinegar

Vinegar is acidic and acts in the same way as bleach, when you leave it and let it soak it is an effective disinfectant and cuts grease. Baking soda acts like soap and easily scrubs off and lifts any kind of build up of dirt, and can be used as a deodorizer & laundry freshener. You can also use baking soda to cleanse you hair, whiten your teeth, bake, exfoliate your skin, clean fruits and the list goes on. Both are non-toxic, non polluting products that you can find at any dollar store, and are used for purposes beyond cleaning. Each is like a 100-in-1 multi-purpose product! All this 'natural' goodness for just one dollar each! I'm about it! In short changing the way we talk about, interpret and experience our selves should be linked closely to how we do the same to our environment as it also influences and impacts us physically. What ever natural means to you it has the potential to shift towards having a healthier, more respectful and positive relationship with our environment, and just as equally with ourselves. 

love your natural environment, love the natural you and your wallet will love you too!

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

Meno: Eco-friendly?

MENO
[meh-no]
$20.00
wooden necklace w/ teeth

 I was recently approached by a classmate of mine who asked me to make some pieces for an organization she works for. They are looking support local crafts persons who make eco-friendly products. I was surprised to be approached because I have never really thought of my products as eco-friendly, but after a short conversation I realized that being 'eco-friendly' is a large concept that encompasses many different components. If you have been following my blog for a while y'all know how I feel about recycling and saving, but my point of view was more from personal economics. I never thought that being broke helped to reduce my environmental footprint! 

Instead of throwing away a necklace of mine that had broken, I decided to take it's best parts and make something new! I love wooden beads, they have a beautiful look that no other material has. This recycled black and white double stranded necklace is detailed with four teeth, so I decided to call it meno which in kiswahili means 'teeth'. I like to wear this on days when I am feeling fierce! 

Now, not only am I saving money & looking fly, but through reusing existing materials I am to a small degree reducing my personal eco-footprint!

Reduce, reuse & look fly!

Tuly Maimouna

My vulva is...

My vulva is...http://myvulvais.blogspot.ca/

A couple of months ago I wrote and artducation post talking about the crochet vulva pins that I make and my personal response to how bodies of colour have historically been sexualized and represented. They have been selling out completely, i never would have imagined that they would be received in such a positive way by such a diverse array of people. Since that post I have had many interesting conversations that have opened my eyes to the different social, political and biological meanings that vulvas have. So I have been busy at work putting together a new blog where people who have vulvas, love em or simply want to know more about them can come and share knowledge that speaks positively about our bodies from our own experiences. I so humbly invite you to check out My vulva is... and to think about/share what your vulva means to you and why you would wear your vulva.

Smiles:)

Tuly Maimouna

R&S: No pins no problem, the loc pompadour!

One thing that I am not a fan of making are hair pins and hair ornaments. Why? I simply hate using them. It's normal for me to lose bobby pins and hair ties in my hair for weeks, they are painful, and because of my crown they never seem to be big enough. And by the way, have you always noticed that the pack of bobby pins slowly disappears until there are none left...seriously, where do all of them go? I just got tired and annoyed, so I could never think of inflicting my misery on someone else! To save my self the heartache (and some money) I resolved to do away with them a long time ago....but then I had to start looking for different pin-free ways to style my hair. After trying head ties, hair nets, and string of all sorts I had almost given up, but I found that my own locs were the solution! Either using the spine of foam curlers, pipe cleaners or bantu knots/chiney bumps, curling my locs has been amazing in helping me cut the middle person (i.e pins) out of the styling picture. The curls are able to intertwine and hold together really well to make my favourite hairstyle, the Pompadour! This R&S pin-free hairstyle takes about five minutes to do, looks amazing and requires no tools or money. I leave it to loc and circumstance because it looks different every time I do it. I just play around with it until I get the desired look. I started making this hair style about six years ago and ever since it has become my go to style. Peep the pics below to see the pomp over the years in action!

 Get inspired by your frustrations and exercise a little creativity! You'll see how easy it is to turn your problems into solutions you can definitely take to the bank. 

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

By The Way: Would you like to know how to curl your locs? Drop me a line and I can write up a step by step how to post!

Uchungu na Tamu: Life Lessons

This has been a very interesting week that has brought about a lot of reflection on the people around me, family, people who say they are my friends, those who are my friends and those who have come into and left my life. Through this reflection I have leaned that life can have a harsh way of providing us with lessons, and you can only learn these lessons through the mistakes you have made along the way...but from mistakes arise new opportunities. If you choose to ignore the omens placed before you or doubt your intuition, ultimately you are the only one who will suffer from regret or loss.

So onto my not so new creation. I made this scarf a while ago and I got really upset because after I washed it, it stretched about three sizes and didn't look all that good anymore. My mom and I went out for dinner one day and when she put in on I realized it looked amazing as a shoulder poncho!  I added a button to the front that works to adjust the size of the poncho at the neck...I also thought it looked really cute! So this once scarf that I though I had mistakenly ruined provided an opportunity for my 'newest' old creation to come to fruition, which left me thinking of the kiswahili proverb:

 Mla cha uchungu na tamu hakosi: he who eats bitter things gets sweet things too

Uchungu na Tamu
Shoulder Poncho with button
$35.00

Life is an interesting experience and sometimes the lessons we learn leave us thinking of what we should have, could have or would have done...the thing is we have to be able to translate these lessons into our existing relationships and en devours. Otherwise we are at risk of living in vain and rendering those relationships (or in this case a scarf) meaningless. 

I guess we can only know sweetness through tasting bitterness. 

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

Duwara: Full circle

When I was in Nairobi, Kenya late last year I was staying in Eastlands mlango kubwa (big door) with a friend and both of my cameras, her camcorder and all our money was stolen...how unfortunate! But as my mom told me "it was baptism by fire" so I can now call myself a true Kenyan. You have to laugh about the situation, but be thankful that we are both still alive and well. So as a result of this loss the quality of my pictures has decreased significantly, but ultimately I'm flooded with pleasant memories every time I try to take pictures of the new stuff I have made. I have learned that it's the memories, people and experiences that make us, not the things that we acquire along the way. So in regards to that, I have been feeling like I have come full circle this year. The people I have met, the places I have been and the experiences I have experienced have all been blessings in full view. It has been such a privilege to feel the rough edges chipping away to me becoming a well rounded individual, and getting closer to realizing who I am and what I appreciate in life.  So this creation reflects that.

Duwara earrings are bright, bold, and so lightweight I even forget I am wearing them. I only make one of each pair and design so they are really one of a kind!

Duwara
[do-wah-rah]
Circle earring

  Also circles just look really cute!

Smiles :) 

Tuly Maimouna

P.S I also have to note that these earrings were inspired by the beautiful designs of Luz Arte who is making crochet jewelry inspired by Spring's flowers, nature and color, check her out!

Acts of Kindness Crochet Picnics!

What is better than spending an afternoon in the sun, eating some food, crocheting, making some new friends, and occasionally having a drink? I love picnics and I love to crochet, so blending the two is absolutely mind blowing! This Crafty Chas/Tuly Maimouna mash up has been such a positive and indescribable experience so far, we have been so blessed to meet some of the most beautiful people living in the Toronto area. Every Sunday from 1:00pm - 4:00pm throughout the summer the two of us will be teaching people how to crochet in various Toronto city parks...but why you ask?

The sad thing about living in a huge metropolitan city is that seldom do you get the chance to sit down and interact with the anyone, it's a bit ironic how easy it is to feel isolated and alone in a city of roughly 2.8 million people. So as an Acts of Kindness (AoK!) initiative we decided it was high time to break down the bizzare social interactions and norms found in the city and open ourselves up to meeting new people through skill sharing. We are taking full advantage of the gorgeous summer weather and using crochet as tool to not only network, but as a means of spreading a little love...which we love to do! 

A group of friendly drop ins

Tuly Maimouna & Crafty Chas

Crochet Excitement! 

The beginnings of crochet artists

So if you're ever in the Toronto area and have a free Sunday, bring a blanket, a friend come learn a skill!

Acts of Kindness

Don't work for your hustle, make your hustle work for you! 

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

'Contemporarily' Historical?

When I was in high school as a part of my a final media project, some peeps and I came together and made a documentary on HIV and black youth in the city of Toronto. Mind you the population of colour in my school was minimal, there were only three authority figures of colour and a scoop of black students. The racial divide was clear, yet the school did nothing to address that. And why should they? Most of us were there due to circumstance trying to attain our french immersion certificate. Bless their hearts, they really tried their hardest to get the darkies out by attempting to convince our parents that French was not our strong suit and we'd get better marks if we dropped out of the program. Dropping out would have led to us ultimately having to leave the school and go to schools closer to where we lived. There is always a clear message and distinction between what people say and what they do. Our school did not provide many opportunities (other than black history month) for youth of colour to address issues that are relevant to them. As I said before in a previous post, black populations are seldom represented beyond traumatic events, and this includes black history month. There is too much focus looking at the past while we ignore the contemporary issues that affect our present. There is a huge disjuncture in creating linkages between historical and contemporary 'blackness', we are contemporarily historical! My problem was and still is that black history month celebrations never seem to be more than a show, in the ones I have attended seldom have I been left thinking about current issues. That is why it was so important to make this documentary around HIV, we wanted to outline how race as a systematic reality in Canada affects vulnerability to HIV and stress why youth involvement in all capacities is beyond necessary.

While that documentary is now a bit dated and I have since graduated high school (and yes of course with my french immersion certificate), recently some friends and I got together to try and address the different aspects of vulnerability to HIV within communities of colour. Taking a more holistic look at what the African, Caribbean and Black (ACB) community looks like, this multi series installment looks at the different challenges and barriers faced by young persons of colour through the different aspects of their identity beyond race. Participants were able to share ideas about what HIV looks like or does not look like, and examine the obstacles faced in those contexts. Through a collaborative effort each individual had their own installment within the larger idea of sex and sexual health. The creative process was entirely up to the group empowering them to explore more personal ideas of self, community and HIV, and to interpret and identify the intersecting points through their own eyes and own lived realities. Check the images below to see a bit of what we did!

While this is not a craft I normally talk about, it is true that different art mediums produce different responses, outcomes and interpretations. The audience is able to place themselves within an image that fairly represents the artist, and it has the ability to facilitate an internal dialogue that informs external ones. This collaborative effort was effective in doing that because each piece of work served to work as a means to reclaim space and increase visibility in a way that each individual wanted to be represented. I believe that the use art mediums has the potential to challenge ideas that place the onus of talking about and understanding race relations on populations of colour while somehow neutralizing white populations in these discussions. Artistic forms cut across all borders and transfer messages we are seldom given the chance to vocalize. If my high school experience taught me anything it was that we have to work together to create platforms where our lived experiences are given meaning and they become building blocks and tools of power for the present and future.

crafts speak volumes!

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

R&S: Moisturizing Face Mask!

 I remember when I was a child my mom would always have some type of face mask on, and I was always afraid to go near her because she used to get a kick out of scaring me. She'd hide then jump out with her eyes opened really wide making some kinda noise...I guess you have to find the simple pleasures in parenting at your children's emotional expense? While quite traumatic at the time, to my benefit it had no lasting negative effects. Recently after reflecting on that period of my childhood I decided to bring back the face mask at a fraction of the cost and with all natural goodness! This weeks recycle and save (r&s) project is the.. 

Turmeric and Henna Moisturizing Face Mask!

I came about this beautiful mask new years eve of 2009, a friend of mine was over and had brought a container full of turmeric and she said that she uses it mixed with some water on her skin to get this beautiful glow. So I decided to building on that with a few extra ingredients I happened to have sitting around the house. Where to get the ingredients? Firstly, I don't even deal with the health food store, they are too over priced for no reason. Check any food store and you'll find everything you need. As the for the green henna I buy it at the Somali market, but if you aren't lucky enough to have access to one, any Indian food stuffs place will for sure have some. Either way, look around its a great way to get to know your neighbourhood!
DISCLAIMER: If you have lighter skin or are white the turmeric and henna will stain your skin a visible reddish yellow...do this at your own risk!

Ingredients:
1 tbs Turmeric

1 tbs Curry Powder
1 tbs Green Henna
2 tsp Almond Oil
1 tsp Glycerin
1 tbs Lemon Juice

Instructions:

1. First you want to prep your face by putting some lemon juice on a cotton pad to clean off your face. Lemon juice acts like an astringent or toner, and cleans the dirt and oils off your skin. Here is what mine looked interesting after a wipe down...

Cotton pad after cleaning my face

NOTE: Lemon juice is also used as a natural bleaching agent so avoid using it too often! If you have sensitive skin add a bit of water on the cotton pad to lessen the sting.

2. Mix all the ingredients in a small bowl until it reaches a consistency like the picture above. You can add water if it is still too thick.

3. Apply on your face and keep it on until it starts to dry and crack (about 1 hour or so)

4. Wash mask off with soap & water

NOTE: if it is a bit hard to wash off I like to get some brown sugar and GENTLY rub in circular motions to exfoliate the rest of it off

Your skin will be feeling soft, supple and have a healthy glow to it! I use this once a week along with the brown sugar and honey body scrub I shared with y'all earlier to keep my skin game on point. Because of the glycerin and almond oil in the mix you don't even have to moisturize your face afterwards. Your kitchen cupboard and fridge provide some wonderful beauty secrets if you're willing to check em out, giving dual purpose to so many readily available and cheap goods! I haven't bought products in years simply because I don't really have to, in recycling you save some dollars in new ways! Now I have a way to scare my own children while keeping a full wallet and looking good in the process!

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna

Mchele: Rice Bag Purse

I have come to the conclusion that yes, I am naturally a hoarder. Apparently that is a bad thing, so a means of consoling myself I simply define it as "seeing endless possibilities, where others do not"....okay yes my work space is beyond crowed, but you learn to work within organized mess! You can't force inspiration, so until it hits you you'll just have to learn to see the beauty in your pile of junk. This idea finally came to me after wondering what to do with a couple of rice bags that I could not bring myself to throw away, they just look so fly! So before this beautifully designed bag could find its way to a landfill I snatched it up and got to work. It's a good size, light weight and has just the right amount of "where'd you get that?". 

Mchele
[Mm-che-leh]
Rice Bag Purse
13.3" x 11.5"
Material:100% Hemp
Inner lining:100% Cotton

Inner lining & inside pocket

Take some time out of your day to imagine, and you'll see endless possibilities too.

Smiles :)

Tuly Maimouna