Keeping up with Kait: What's New, What's Old, and What's Up

Hi friends!

It’s been a minute since I’ve had the time—or the inspiration—to sit down and write a blog post. But funny enough, since my last post, something really exciting happened! I was approached by an iconic women-led publication (I won’t share the name just yet since I don’t have explicit permission) to write a column for their first-ever electronic edition launching this April. Eeeek! I’m beyond excited because this will be the first time my writing is featured in an actual publication!

In the past, both Glasshouse Cosmetics and I have been featured in various online interviews and gift guides, which has been amazing. But this is different. This time, I get to write about a topic I’m deeply passionate about, in my own words.

If you’re new here—hi!! Welcome! 💖 A little about me: my full-time job is as an associate paralegal at a fast-paced, high-stakes criminal defense practice in Kitchener, Ontario. I love what I do and genuinely get excited to go to work every day. I’m the happy co-owner of this cute little biz and I also co-own a really fun digital media company that’s just kind of something we do when we feel inspired to collab with other business owners to elevate (or create!) their brand. I also do some freelance legal research and writing. But this opportunity to write? It feels like a full-circle moment, and I can’t wait to share the column here once it’s published! OH AND last but certainly not least, I am a Mama to humans and a dog. A little about me, not in order of importance. 

Now, onto what’s been on my heart lately…

Things feel a little heavy right now, don’t they? Social media has this way of turning serious things into jokes and memes, and sometimes it makes the world seem less sensitive—or maybe we’re all just coping the best we can. Either way, I feel it too.

When Sara and I started this business five years ago, our vision was simple: lip glosses. We thought it would be fun, exciting, and a relatively easy market to break into. Our first collection had four shades:

✨ Basic – a classic, clear, hydrating gloss ✨ 9-5 – the perfect nude gloss-lipstick hybrid (seriously, it looks good on everyone) ✨ Old Money – a stunning deeper nude-brown with hints of copper shimmer (a fave for those who don’t usually wear lipstick!) ✨ In No Mood – my personal fave, a bright pink with the dreamiest opaque yet moisturizing formula

These glosses were made in California, and at the time, we didn’t even have a proper website—just a subpage on Sara’s Tamed hair salon site called Shop the Glasshouse. But we quickly realized we had something special, and that changed everything.

The Pivot: Becoming a Proudly Canadian Brand 🇨🇦

As demand grew, two things became very clear:

1. We needed our own website ASAP.

2. We didn’t feel great about manufacturing in the U.S.—something kept pulling us to produce everything in Canada.

From a business perspective, this was a terrifying decision. As a self-funded brand with zero investors, every dollar counted. And let’s be real—so many products are made overseas because it’s significantly cheaper. The idea of paying mere cents for a product and selling it for $20? Tempting. But it didn’t sit right with us. We wanted to build something ethical, something we could proudly call Canadian-made.

Was it risky? Absolutely. But looking at the state of the world now—especially with all the tariff chaos—I’m beyond grateful we made that decision. Had we gone the cheaper, mass-production route, I honestly believe our business wouldn’t have survived.

Expanding Beyond Lip Gloss 💄

Once we nailed down Canadian manufacturing, we started thinking bigger. I’ll never forget the day Sara asked, “What if we made BB creams?”

At the time, I had no idea what BB cream even was. I was struggling with persistent, painful cystic acne and heavily relying on foundation. I was actually about to start Accutane when she brought it up. But then I thought—what better way to test our products than on my own super-sensitive, acne-prone skin?

Would they irritate my skin? Would they make my acne worse or better? Would they truly work?

Well, fast-forward five years, and let’s just say—our BB cream is one of our best sellers. It flies off the shelves every single month, and I do a little happy dance every time someone DMs me asking for a shade match to their go-to Charlotte Tilbury, MAC, or (what’s Rihanna’s brand called again? 😆). The fact that people are switching from major brands to ours? It’s humbling, and I’m beyond grateful.

Besides that and by way of a personal update since I always like to keep it real for you, right now I am in the thick of Mommyhood, wifehood, sisterhood, and I wouldn't change a thing. Things are busy and messy and fun and crazy and really beautiful.  And busy…did I say that? For the first time in a very long time things in my personal life are just, peaceful... Stable. Full transparency (and you may already know this): the second half of 2023 and almost all of 2024 was a really tough time for me. It was hard to show up online to promote my business, and Glass House Cosmetics was running on fumes during that time, or at least the parts I am responsible for maintaining were. Forget about showing up online, I felt like I could barely show up anywhere, during that time. All of my energy went in to just keeping my head above water, as I navigated a high conflict divorce with surprises at every turn. My focus for well over a year was making sure that my kids felt safe and supported, and that I was taking care of myself so that my children and my regular career didn't suffer in any way. What did that girl say in that song? "What doesn't kill you makes you hotter?" Well cheers to that because now that I am on the other side of that unfortunate time, I feel younger, better, more energetic and healthier than I ever have. My kids are thriving. My family is solid. I didn’t know it could get this good. 

 

Outside of that, we are just wrapping up hockey season and gearing up for baseball season and new to our family this year- soccer season! We have 3 boys in travel sports so it gets a little crazy but this is the season of life we’re in. Catch me chilling in the sun in a lawn chair with as assortment of different beverages enjoying summer. Go sports! We’re also working on some house improvements, renos/ redecorating, and spring cleaning. I have felt like I’m levelling up into a new tier of adulting. There’s absolutely nothing I love more than a busy weekend of wholesome quality family time, delicious home cooked meals (by my hubby not by me LOL), checking off boxes on the old to-do list, opening a bottle of wine, and enjoying our mortgage. 

So I guess all of this suffice to say, I am feeling extremely grateful. I don't know if grateful is even a strong enough word. It's crazy how these things happen organically, but once I got serious about my goals and strict on things I just wouldn't accept as my fate, good opportunities started presenting themselves. Once I stopped listening to the noise about my "pointless blog" a writing opportunity fell into my lap. Once I stopped listening to "get off Instagram" my sales increased. Once I started living authentically, my life got better. The last five years have been a wild ride to put it lightly. I am so excited for the next five, I cannot wait to see where that takes us and this "silly little business". 

 

Until next time!

Kait