Better with Joy

10/03/2026

Autumn. Destructive, sobering, yet so beautiful. Life, too.

10/02/2026

Happy International Coffee Day + National Pumpkin Spice + World Postcard Day

Remembering our old haunt, Goodge Place. They always had the best coffee, and it was arguably the cutest corner of South Granville.

I’m also really enjoying using the Winsor & Newton watercolour postcards.

Ink: Winsor & Newton Fineliner in Sepia
Watercolours: Winsor & Newton and Daniel Smith Artists Materials

09/25/2026

Taking over gatherings, one Finnish Rhubarb Cake at a time... I’ve made this 7 times for different groups and events in under 3 weeks, and it’s officially everyone’s favourite. Sharing the recipe here in case you’ve got rhubarb lying around — that final taste of summer. If you’ve always steered clear of rhubarb, this is your gateway recipe. Promise. Enjoy!

Grab the recipe 👉 link in bio or visit betterwithjoy.com/blog

Merci Brenda and tangledbones for the generous supply of homegrown rhubarb!

09/25/2026

Finnish Rhubarb Cake (Raparperipiirakka)

Here's an easy-to-prepare recipe to highlight those tart blushing rhubarbs. The toasted almonds in the batter delivers the most scrumptious cake. Served warm, it pairs well with vanilla bean ice cream or whipped cream. This recipe was adapted from a Finnish Rhubarb Tart recipe published in an issue of Endless Vacation magazine....

Here’s an easy-to-prepare recipe to highlight those tart blushing rhubarbs. The toasted almonds in the batter delivers the most scrumptious cake. Served warm, it pairs well with vanilla bean…

09/25/2026

Warm up sketch + paper test in my new Paul Rubens PaulRubens sketchbook. I’m impressed: even with several washes, there’s no buckling. Paper is smooth enough for a pointed calligraphy nib, but has some tooth to it that my cold-press loving self enjoys.

This is such a wonderful discovery. I wanted a watercolour sketchbook that’s not crazy expensive and that I don’t have to treat so preciously…and this is it.

Chloe of course helped herself to my (clean, don’t worry!) water container before I started painting. Guess I’m getting another decoy water cup soon that looks like this. 😅

08/28/2026

A month after I painted this, I got stung by a bee as I walked out our front door. No provocation — it just flew right onto my hand and delivered an electrifying sting on my finger joint.

I screamed when I saw the mini clove-like stinger perched ever so proudly on my throbbing finger. First time getting stung, and wow.

I still love bees for what they do in nature, but I’m currently terrified of being stung again. Honestly almost as painful as my hand surgery. 😣

08/16/2026

Happy 13th birthday to our dear Chloe. 🐈‍⬛💕🥳 Smart, feisty little house panther of love and energy. We love her so. Little Miss Chloe