crafted with care & tradition
At WAASEYA, we make small-batch skincare with simple, natural ingredients—many of them homegrown, hand-distilled, and personally tested by us. Every product is made with care, rooted in Indigenous knowledge, and guided by a deep respect for the land and our community. We keep it uncomplicated, so your skin gets what it needs—nothing more, nothing less.
discovering WAASEYA
I spent years living and working in the far north of Canada, in Nunavut — a land of wide skies, quiet strength, and deep community. In that stillness I learned to listen to what matters: our roots, our essence, and the rhythms of nature.When I returned home to Victoria, ready for the next chapter, the universe had other plans. I lost my job. I was home all day. My identity, momentum and sense of purpose felt shaken. In that pause, I began to ask: What’s next? And quieter still: Where am I truly meant to be?
from backyard & roses
The answer found me unexpectedly: in the modest backyard of my mother-in-law, where old-rose bushes bloomed every spring without asking for much. One morning I walked past the petals scattered on the patio and thought: there is beauty here. Simplicity. Quiet regeneration.
I started letting those roses guide me: harvesting petals, infusing rose water, crafting my first face spray. With each mist I felt a kind of waking up; for my skin, for my spirit, and for this brand that was quietly forming in my notebooks, my MBA training, and my quiet days at home.
learning, unlearning & becoming
With a business-degree behind me, and a decade of non-profit and public-service experience ahead of me, I realised running a skincare line isn’t just about formulas, it’s about authentic purpose. I spent months experimenting: rose water, kaolin clay, white clay, castile soaps, gentle oils, nothing synthetic, nothing masked.
I learned to unlearn. The industry’s complicated language, the noise of what “should” be. I returned to what nature offers and what our skin truly needs. I rooted Waaseya in transparency, integrity, and a deep respect for Indigenous values and community wellbeing.
a new chapter, rooted in purpose
Today Waaseya is more than a skincare label: it’s a story of coming home. It’s honouring the Anishinabe-Zagame heritage that runs through me, the north where I learned grounded strength, and the backyard roses that reminded me of simplicity and clarity.
It’s deeply important to me that Waaseya give back: 50% of our profits are invested into initiatives supporting Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) — because beauty isn’t just skin deep. It’s justice. It’s dignity. It’s community.
why you’ll see the difference
When you hold that Waaseya rose water toner, or the essential rose oil moisturizer, you’re holding the intention of a journey: one of transformation, of return, of remembering who we are and where we come from.
We believe that skincare can be ritual, can be respect to self, to family, to land. And maybe most importantly can be a gateway to feeling exactly where you’re supposed to be.
Thank you for being here, for reading this story, for bringing yourself along. This is exactly where I’m supposed to be, and maybe it’s exactly where you’re meant to be too.
