masagana:

It all started in 2016 with a question from Kevin (my now-husband):

"Did you know that lawns are not native to North America?"

That sparked my curiosity and led me to ask myself how much I know about Canada and if it feels like home. (I emigrated from the Philippines in 2009). I started gardening in the same year with Kevin, and at the same time that I was helping plants get established in the garden, I was also getting rooted.

I used to think that the prairies were boring (compared to the tropical island of the Philippines)—until I realized it was because didn’t know this landscape then. Through gardening, I opened my eyes to the quiet beauty of Manitoba. I turned to books that reshaped my perspective, learning about the land, sustainability, and community. The more I learned,

the more I feel grounded.

In 2018, I married Kevin, moved to the countryside where he lives, left my career as an international flower buyer and started turning our lawns into garden beds.

Then came a discovery that changed everything—natural dyeing using botanicals. I learned this in 2019 through farmers who raise sheep for yarns to make clothing and dye said yarns with flowers and indigo that they grow in their gardens. It was a revelation that flowers could do more than as a display—they could create lasting colour and deepen my connection to nature. This is how my Tinta Experience offering was born. (Tinta mean dye, color.)

Today, I help people awaken their creativity through hands-on, imaginative, and immersive natural dyeing experiences using botanicals grown at the farm.

We embrace the art of slowing down, (re)connecting with nature, ourselves, and each other, and create wearable art as a tangible memory of our time together.