Disappearing Act: Tablet Hotels’ 11 Hideaways To Visit Now

While the hustle and bustle of exotic cultural immersion make for a thrilling vacay, sometimes we truly need to get away on our getaways! From the fields of Belize to the forests of Japan, we're all for a travel experience that allows us to disappear into nature's best hiding places. Here are a few of the stand-outs in these stay-in hotels from the experts at Tablet Hotels... Some are high-concept architectural masterpieces; others are simple little hideaways tucked deep into the countryside. What these hotels all share, however, is an ability to nearly disappear into their surroundings, to get out of the way and let the landscape speak for itself.



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Yoga Matters With A Stand-Up Paddle Yogi

Think yoga is just for mats? Think again! This week, we're taking our practice off of the mat and onto the board...the paddle board, that is. More and more yogis from the beaches of Los Angeles to the Great Lakes up north are opting for a new way to zen out: SUP Yoga. This hybrid of yoga and stand-up paddle boarding is not only a fun and innovative way to get your flow on, it offers a killer ab workout and an experience perfect for beginners and advanced yogis alike. Nikki Dean is spearheading the SUP Yoga movement in the Lake Tahoe area, leading others through invigorating poses and calming breaths amidst the beauty of the Sierra Nevada. An avid practitioner of Yoga Nidra and passionate advocate of alternative healing, we asked Nikki to share a bit about her life, in and out of the water...



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7 Tips to Help You Stay Well After Cancer Treatment

Britta Aragon of CV Skinlabs is an adamant proponent of living well through and after cancer treatment, as her own personal care brand helps so many to do. After supporting her father through his own health battle, Britta set her mind to supporting others with helpful information and gentle, all-natural skin care appropriate for cancer patients. In her first piece with us, she explains a few simple life changes that can improve your health and happiness after the treatments are over. You made it. Cancer treatments are over, and the doctor has pronounced you in remission. Happy day! But then you go back to your life and that silent shadow of fear follows you. What if the cancer comes back? What if you have to go through treatments all over again? What if…? Fear of recurrence is a very real challenge facing survivors. One of the best ways to tackle it is to put healthy habits into place that will help reduce your risk of getting cancer again. No one can absolutely guarantee that if you do certain things, you will remain cancer-free. However, you can definitely tilt the odds in your favor by doing some things that will make your body stronger, more resilient, and better able to repair itself, in order to stay well after cancer treatment. First, you must make a choice: Will you live in fear, or will you do what you can to stay well, and trust that God (or whatever power you believe in) will handle the rest? You probably can’t stop those fearful thoughts from popping into your head, but you can choose to let them go, and take action for your best health. How do you take control of your health after cancer? Please share your thoughts.



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Green Goddess Guide: Angela of New York’s Om Aroma

Calling all New Yorkers: shift your spa routine - or get into a new one - with treatments that are entirely organic and still manage to do plenty of heavy lifting. Savor Spa, by Aroma & Co. creator, Angela Jia Kim, offers New York ladies all the top-performing facial treatments, like diamond microdermabrasion and vitamin C facials alongside her award-winning, all-organic skincare. Om Aroma's champagne cleanser, truffle face cream and pure essential oils will do the trick for the urban jungle Jane who wants top-of-the-line effectiveness without dangerous ingredients. With Angela's well-celebrated reputation in the beauty world (Allure and InStyle have both awarded her spa and products with high recommendations), we wanted to to hear a little about the products and personal habits that she uses to keep her skin in tip-top shape. We love her responses below and are ready to make her beautifying meal immediately. Yum...



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How To Make Aojiru: A Japanese Kale Drink For The Hard-Core Juicer

This barley grass and kale juice is not for the faint of heart. A traditional Japanese green drink, Aojiru is just one of the drinks-only recipe videos by Thirsty For..., an original online show created by online food network Tastemade.com and recently nominated for the 2014 James Beard Foundation Awards for “Video Webcast, Fixed Location and/or Instructional” by producers Eric Slatikin and Jay Holzer. Each of Thirsty For's recipes is a new drink from around the world - think Moroccan mint tea and Mexican horchata. We love the videos for their simple quirky close-up quality and fascinating new ideas for what to fill the pitcher on the porch with! Enjoy the video above and tune it to all of Tastemade's delicious offerings here!



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Blogshop NYC: Mornings with The Ladies Behind Our Fave New Workshop

Welcome to our peek behind the scenes at Blogshop New York! Half the bloggers we know are finding a seat inside these fun and quirky Photoshop classes taught (and DJ'ed) by two girls who know what they're talking about. Friends Bri Emery of Designlovefest and Angela Kohler, the commercial photographer behind angela + ithyle, are photo and graphics magicians, as evidenced by their own amazing work. Instead of hoarding all the blogging loveliness for themselves, they're lending their skills to these pop-up classes for bloggers around the country. We love the idea, but even more so, we love Bri and Angela's take on just how fun a class can be. Blogshop is not your mama's computer class. Hosted in variously cool spaces, like this one at the Green Building in Brooklyn and here in LA at Unique Space, Bri and Angela keep classes rocking with custom soundtracks, mid-morning mimosas and killer goodie bags. Find out where Blogshop will be next, book a class and, until then, enjoy this sneak peek with Bri and Angela as they spend the morning prepping for their recent Brooklyn gathering...



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Rock On: Bramble Workshop’s DIY Crystal Installation

We recently spent the day in the studio with Jessica of Bramble Workshop poking through all her art supplies and watching her whip up these ginormous florals for a few shop windows. And that was fun. But don't think we'd leave you hanging without your own bramble-y DIY! We asked Jessica to share her process for making this incredible, geometric DIY installation at home. We love the minimalistic look of these shapes in plain old black and white, but Jessica suggests trying shapes in different colors too - bright neons, metallics or a color scheme to match an upcoming birthday party or shower! We love this unexpected, yet easy to make, display for hanging over bar carts and buffets or as a striking addition to your office walls.



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Just ‘Do It: 6 Gym Hair Upgrades We Love

Running, jumping, lifting and lunging - whether you're going high or low impact, no one wants a sweaty mane falling in their face! While the classic pony tail and headband suffices in a pinch, there is absolutely no reason you can't rock a cool coif while pounding out your push-ups. From braids and bubbles to twists and topknots, we've rounded up five fab gym hair upgrades to your go-to looks, no matter how you choose to sweat!



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Hinoki and The Bird’s Delicious Pumpkin Toast Recipe

Although it is tricky to find, everyone who has made their way into Hinoki and The Bird's beautiful dining room knows that the hunt is one worth making. Nestled down between rows of Century City's glittery hotels and Hollywood agencies, Hinoki and the Bird feels calm and earthy, the entire dining room lined in reclaimed wood. The back patio is light-washed and garden-lined, retaining it's sense of calm even throughout it's power-packed lunch hour. Chef Kuniko Yagi, formerly of Comme Ça, brings Japanese and French influence into a solidly California place with recipes like the one below. Watch out, avocado toast - this colorful baguette makes for a sweet and nourishing breakfast on-the-go or the perfect treat for a gathering of your closest girlfriends. Make this toast at home or enjoy on the patio at Hinoki and The Bird along with braised shitake mushrooms, crispy kale and a freshly-made Hinoki Swizzle with elderflower, apples and champagne.



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The Never List: Beautycounter’s Ultimate Un-Shopping Guide

We've had so much fun with Christy and the Beautycounter team this month. We asked their team to share their super-convenient, don't-even-think-about-touching-it ingredient guide, The Never List. Here they are with a little more about it. Bookmark this one! Decades of studies indicate that serious health issues (including but not limited to asthma, learning disabilities, cancer and infertility) are on the rise, due in part to our ongoing exposure to toxic chemicals – whether it’s in the shower on our commute, while we lunch at a local restaurant or when we clean our kitchens at home. It’s time for a change. Because we deserve better. At Beautycounter, our mission is to get safe products into the hands of everyone. We never, ever use ingredients known to be harmful. That includes the 1,300 ingredients banned or restricted in the E.U. and the 11 ingredients banned in the U.S. We also rely on our proprietary Never List, which includes dozens of common toxic ingredients that we avoid at all costs . We’ve ruled out over 1,500 ingredients from our consideration set to date. We’re really proud of our Never List. Print it out, put it in your bag, and reference it if you need a little help deciphering the ingredients in your next purchase. Here’s to working together towards a future where our children will no longer have to look at the ingredient label! Our Never List is a robust roundup of ingredients that you will never find in Beautycounter products. We have done our homework to make recognizing, understanding, and avoiding these ingredients easier for you. Print out an always-with-you Never List and carry in your wallet for easy reference while on the go.



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Cut It Out: 10 Ways to Avoid Chronic Inflammation

Inflammation is one of those core health issues we love to talk about. Like acidity, inflammation is a health issue that underlies so many others - once you learn about this one factor and it's connection to your health, it feels revelatory! Nutritionist JJ Virgin has her finger to the pulse of this crucial health issue. In her book, The Virgin Diet, she lays out the big picture of just how inflammation effects our on-going health and the simple changes we can make - especially to our diets - to remedy this. Read her list and find ways to make adjustments for your health! Inflammation comes in two flavors, if you will. Acute inflammation is when you stub your toe. The resulting flare-up actually benefits long-term healing. Chronic inflammation, though less dramatic, over time leads to damage and disorder in the body. Acute inflammation hurts, but chronic inflammation kills. In fact, it's connected with nearly every disease on the planet, from obesity to diabetes to heart disease. What causes inflammation? The abundance of omega-6 fatty acids in our diet: vegetable oils, grain-fed meats, and wheat bread are full of them. Food intolerances can also create inflammation. And so can sugar. The best way to fight inflammation is to pull highly reactive foods (I discuss the top 7 in The Virgin Diet; ironically, some of them are deemed "healthy") and eat plenty of anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids. Wild-caught fish, grass-fed beef, walnuts, chia and flax seeds are all healthy sources of omega 3s. I also recommend supplementing with a high-quality professional fish oil, especially if you're not eating wild-caught fish three or four times a week.



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Superfood Spotlight: Dendrobium

What you need to know: Dendrobium is a tonic herb derived from an orchid that blooms yellow and pink flowers and has stems that are widely used in Chinese medicine. Most notably, dendrobium is utilized to replenish fluids in the body, moistening the stomach, lungs and respiratory system. It has been clinically shown to aid in the recovery from illness, fever, dehydration, sunstroke, athletic exertion and even dry mouth. Why you should try it: Just as the orchid is known for its beauty, dendrobium is known for its ability to bring beauty to those who take it. It does this by increasing moisture in the body, leading to smooth, radiant, supple and clear skin, and preventing dryness. In addition to its beauty-promoting qualities, dendrobium is also suggested to be used by those engaging in frequent sexual activity. It can replace the spent energy and replenish fluids lost, which is why it is also called the "honeymooner's herb." Talk about the perfect wedding gift. Let's get together: Tonic herbs come in many shapes and sizes, so whatever your preferred delivery system is, we have you covered. If you are fond of tea, try Yin Replenisher drops, which also feature goji and rehmannia. Simply add a few drops to your favorite tea, or to maximize its benefits, add it to other beautifying herbs such as white peony and schizandra berry. Need something for on-the-go? Pick up a bottle of Eternal Jing. This formula not only contains dendrobium, but it also contains a powerhouse of other tonic herbs that make it the premier anti-aging blend. We recommend you give it a try for a true re-birth of energy, womanhood, and youthfulness.



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Pasta Double-Take: Raw Noodles That Will Change Your Life

Pasta...oh how we love you. But with diets that shy away from gluten and both wedding and beach season on the horizon, our love affair was looking dismal....until now! This raw dish - which is actually considered a salad by the chef - brought joy to our hearts as soon as we realized that we could have the best of both worlds, mixing our love for a good noodle with our love of summer sleekness! Laura Jane Koers, better known as the Rawtarian, makes one of the best spiralized zucchini 'pastas' around and this Asian version with a decadent cashew sauce captures just the texture, feel, and taste we're craving. It didn't take long for us to whip this up in the kitchen and indulge in each and every single guilt-free, heart-melting bite. Here's The Rawtarian... This nutritious and palate-pleasing 'salad' can be made in a snap. With savory ingredients like sun-dried tomatoes, cashews, carrots, hempseed hearts and a little spice from basil and chili powder, this is one salad you’ll be adding to your favorite recipe list ASAP!



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Mornings with Darling Magazine’s Adorable Editor

Sarah Dubbeldam's passion project, Darling Magazine, has swiftly become a bedside and coffee table staple of empowered women everywhere. The magazine, with it's thoughtful essays and adorable layouts, adds a welcome female voice to the newsstand, affirming throughout it's heavy paper pages that femininity and strength are not mutually exclusive. This former model, entrepreneur, dreamer, and doer has us all kinds of inspired as we flip through the latest Spring issue. Darling encourages us to be more of the fully-expressed woman we want to be: strong, sweet, stylish, grounded, wistful and wise. Take a peek into how Sarah starts her mornings. Find out what keeps her inspired and how she keeps the magic in all things that make her truly darling.



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Natural Product Junkies: 10 Fresh Picks from Expo West

OVERWHELMED WITH new things to learn, new products to try, and new foods to eat: that's how we feel after our yearly excursion to the Natural Products Expo West! The leading trade show when it comes to natural, organic, healthy brands and product, Expo West hosted over 60,000 industry professionals and 3,000 exhibits last weekend, right here in LA. We were there on the look out for Chalkboard approved finds and, as you can imagine, the only struggle was narrowing down our faves. Check out our top natural picks, ranging from health-brand staples to rising superstars soon to hit your local market...



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Over the Beautycounter with Gregg Renfrew

Gregg Renfrew means business when it comes to beauty. No, really. And we couldn't be happier about it. When women with great taste and tough chops start brewing up big ideas, we pay close attention, and Gregg's year-old Beautycounter is an idea we've taken to instantly. Like most of us, Gregg's spent the last few years discovering just how serious the need for safer beauty products really is. Deeply impacted by the need for better, safer products for herself and her loved ones, she set out to build the very brand she would like to buy. Launched just last year, Beautycounter's growing collection of natural makeup and skincare products have become every cool girl's new go-to - the ingredients are clean, the formulas are effective and the packaging is as glossy as it gets. Women like Gregg remind us why we love our jobs here at The Chalkboard so much. When supremely cool women like Gregg, with her killer taste and Martha Stewart-touched business sense (she sold her first company to Stewart), decide to take on the world of wellness, we all benefit. Read a little more about one of our newest health heroes below, and enter our Beautycounter contest this weekend on Pinterest to get your hands on a few of her top-selling face oils... The Chalkboard Mag: Beautycounter is all about providing women with non-toxic beauty options. Tell us the moment the light came on for you about toxic ingredients. Gregg Renfrew: The light came on for me about toxic ingredients after I watched An Inconvenient Truth in 2006. That was the tipping point for me. I then started doing a lot of research, and I read Stacy Malkin’s book, Not Just a Pretty Face. TCM: What makes your heart flip in this industry: GR: The opportunity to start telling the truth. TCM: We love that natural beauty is having a glamorous moment. What are your favorite design influences that have informed the Beautycounter esthetic? GR: Celine, Chanel, J.Crew, Southern California. TCM: What would you say the biggest surprise has been in the Beautycounter journey so far? GR: The biggest surprise has been how many people’s lives have been impacted by exposure to toxic chemicals, and how thankful people have been that we are doing something about TCM: Your health heroes? GR: Robyn O’Brien, Ken Cook, Frank Lipman. TCM: One beauty ingredient you'll never touch: GR: Where do I begin? Anything on our Beautycounter Never List. TCM: The beauty ingredient you're in love with: GR: Coconut oil. TCM: Healthiest beauty habit: GR: Sleep, when I can get it. TCM: Favorite beautifying meal: GR: I drink a very healthy smoothie every morning filled with greens. TCM: 3 natural brands you love: GR: Naturepedic, Tom's of Maine, Babo Botanicals. TCM: Top 3 non-toxic learning resources: GR: EWG Skin Deep database, Healthy Child, Healthy World, Stacy Malkin’s Not Just a Pretty Face. TCM: So many people are overwhelmed by making the switch to a non-toxic lifestyle. What is your best advice there? GR: Focus on anything that touches your body - what you put on your body, what you sleep on, what you bathe in - and go from there. TCM: Current mantra: GR: This too will pass.



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Margarita Mondays: Gracias Madre’s “La Purista” Cocktail

When we heard that the team behind Cafe Gratitude was opening a new location with a south-of-the-border flair to its consciously-sourced menu, we knew it would be an instant hit. We waited patiently for months for this healthy hotspot to open, and were naturally some of the first to hit Gracias Madre's gorgeous, olive tree-lined patio and light-filled dining room. The new restaurant is nestled into the perfect spot along Melrose Avenue and - like all Cafe Gratitude locations here in L.A. - is bustling with glowingly healthy diners and health-conscious celebrities. Head into Gracias Madre for the mind-blowing healthy fare (think roasted Brussels sprouts with cashew cheese and butternut squash tamales), stay for the fresh and clean cocktails that have us rethinking our early evening plans! If you're in L.A. or San Francisco, find your way to this permanent vegan fiesta yourself. For everyone else, try this house margarita recipe by Gracias Madre beverage director, Jason Eisner!



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Watch This: A Mindful Meditation By YogaWorks

Think meditation needs to involve hours of silence, a giant gong or incomprehensible Sanskrit chanting? Think again! The benefits of even five minutes of daily meditation are endless, from lowering blood pressure to fighting inflammation and depression. Meditation is not some one-size-fits-all practice; rather, it's a lifestyle choice that anyone can make and skew to fit into the busiest of days. YogaWorks' Birgitte Kristen knows that sometimes we only have a few mindful minutes to sit and breathe, so she put together a meditation on gratitude and appreciation specifically for TCM readers on the go. You'll need some sort of blanket or cushion, a few spare minutes away from the hubbub of daily life, and most importantly, an attitude of gratitude! Become more mindful with YogaWork's online studio to help jump-start your practice: Subscribe using our exclusive promo code and you'll receive an entire month of MyYogaWorks.com for free. Here's what you need to know...



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7 Things You Need To Eat At The New Sage Vegan Bistro

Folks in LA's Echo Park neighborhood have packed into the first Sage Bistro location - whether for a healthy brunch or late afternoon vegan ice cream break - for years. And now, Sage's beer garden and bistro in Culver City is blowing the minds of Westsiders too. Part of the newest breed of healthy restaurant in LA, Sage takes it's design esthetic seriously and hosts its vegan, gluten-free or just plain healthy diners in style. We couldn't be more thrilled about this design-oriented trend in organic eateries and are loving Sage's glossy, urban-feeling environment to enjoy our hippy-happy foods. Sage is truly pushing the envelope when it comes to vegan and gluten-free food that tastes as great as it makes you feel. We're dying over a few of these notable Sage Bistro dishes - gather a hungry gaggle of friends and start ordering up these killer plates. You won't believe it took you so long to discover cauliflower wings and squash tacos...



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Balance Sheet: Keeping Life In Balance with the Founders of 31Bits

What's better than good? Fashion for good, according to the ladies of 31Bits. This is not a point that we're reluctant to accept - especially after leafing through the latest lookbook for 31Bits collection of Ugandan-made jewelry and accessories. These baubles are no fashion-sacrifice - they're worlds above the rubber bracelets for a cause or artisan-made charitable goods you wear as you do your children's own handmade gifts (with love, but not much panache.) 31Bits is creating beautiful bib necklaces, layered bracelets and even a beaded wedding sash we'd buy whether charitable or no. But, of course, the brand is charitable, which makes shopping their collections a complete thrill. Run solely on product sales, this fashion accessories brand is creating economic and educational solutions for their growing team of female artisans in Uganda. Through the creation of the African-made goods and their introduction to the U.S. market, 31Bits is able to provide fair-wage jobs, education, micro-loans and other economic opportunities to a large cross-section of women struggling to recover from decades of catastrophic war and displacement camps. We love that. We also love that these ladies know how to keep life sane. Running a mission-driven company can too often leave the well-intended as emotionally malnourished as the folks they set out to help. It's with that in mind that we've been talking to folks far and wide about how they keep their lives in balance as they go about their life's work. Whether it's a Hollywood career, an international cause or a house full of children that keeps each of us busy, we can all use a good reminder about the benefits of rest and self-care to keep us happy and strong. Here's 31Bits co-founder Alli Swanson on daily necessities and finding sanctuary in the day-to-day...



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A Patagonian Travelog: Eco-Travel On The Edge

We're living vicariously through a pair of travelers fresh from the Argentinian/Chilean border. Patagonia is a top destination for any self-respecting backpacker and one of the most intriguing vacations for adventure-junkies offered by Adventure International. One of the coolest travel services we've come across in a while, Adventure International is a service that began years ago with just a few African safaris led by local guides. They now offer some of the most incredible travel expeditions in the world, criss-crossing continents to the most exotic locations all with a focus on keeping a light footprint and enhancing the livelihood of local communities. There are a few of these excursions we're more likely to enjoy through the lens of another's camera - the gorilla tracking trips and mountain-biking safaris are well beyond our almond milk latte-drinking grasp. But others, like this amazing Eco Camp in Patagonia and the Tanzanian yoga safari seem within reach - exotic luxury with just enough adventure for your trainer at home to appreciate. Overall, this travel company is raising the bar on our idea of what a vacation should be. We love this couple's reflections on their trek through the Andes below. Let it spark a few vacationing daydreams and then shop the unorthodox catalog at Adventure International to book your next vacay on the next level.



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