8 Breastfeeding Myths a Breast Surgeon Wants New Moms to Stop Believing

Breastfeeding comes with no shortage of rules, from pumping and dumping after a drink to massaging a clogged duct. But according to Dr. Katrina B. Mitchell, much of that familiar advice isn’t actually supported by what we now know about breast anatomy and physiology.

A breast surgeon, international board-certified lactation consultant, and perinatal mental health provider, Mitchell brings a rare combination of expertise to breastfeeding care. She is also the founder of Physician Guide to Breastfeeding, a widely used evidence-based resource for parents and healthcare professionals. Her new book, Go With the Flow, out today, takes on some of breastfeeding’s most persistent misinformation. We asked her to break down eight myths new moms can stop believing.

+ You can’t drink alcohol while breastfeeding.

New research shows that even binge drinking is unlikely to result in any significant blood level of alcohol in an infant. This is because the baby consumes a fraction of the volume of alcohol that mom does (for example, 1 ounce, not the entire beer) and then has to metabolize that through his stomach, gut, liver, and into his bloodstream, after the mom’s stomach, gut, liver, and bloodstream have already done the same. The main issue is being too drunk to hold your baby and nurse. But if you’re on a getaway without baby and planning to pump and dump, save that precious milk instead.

+ You also can’t drink caffeine while breastfeeding.

This myth is particularly painful for exhausted new moms craving a badly-needed pick up. Unless you’re pounding countless uber-high-caffeine energy drinks a day, caffeine (even on the high side of coffee consumption) is safe. While there is some very minor transfer into breastmilk, like alcohol, the amount isn’t clinically significant.

+ Use heat to treat mastitis or a “clog” of milk in your breast.

It’s impossible to get a discrete “clog” of milk in the ducts of your breast. Milk is stored in milk-making cells, not ducts. You have billions of microscopic ducts in an interlacing, cobweb-like design, not a few straws that form cysts that need to be melted, or squeezed out or popped. When you get swelling and redness in your breast, it’s from a lot of blood flow in the area – not a stuck “clog” of milk. Like you would for a sprained ankle or after surgery, ice continuously to reduce the swelling and pain.

+ You need APNO for your nipples.

APNO (all-purpose nipple ointment) is an expensive, compounded product that contains an antibacterial, antifungal, and steroid component. But the nipple is one of the last places on the body where a fungal or bacterial infection wants to occur. Steroids can be dangerous if used for long periods of time. Women deserve better. No man would tolerate an APPO—all-purpose penis ointment—and we should not consider APNO acceptable for our bodies either.

+ Bras cause mastitis.

Bras do NOT cause mastitis. It’s like saying that a tight belt causes an intestinal obstruction. The bra myth too often results in moms’ experiencing unnecessary neck pain, back pain, aching breasts, redness, and swelling. Likewise, you do not develop mastitis because your posture was wrong, you were wearing a seat belt, you slept on your side at night, or you used a carrier for your baby.

+ Massage helps “unclog” a “plug” of breastmilk.

The idea of massaging a lactating breast is probably the most dangerous concept in lactation, and one that persists in all corners of the internet. Massage leads to the worst breastfeeding complications: mastitis and even abscess if you’ve massaged those delicate cells and blood vessels into a literal breast soup. All you need is ice and to treat your breasts gently like you would any other spot in your body that is irritated.

+ Milk stasis causes mastitis.

The milk stasis myth causes people to pump frantically, heat, and massage, which often ends in mastitis, galactoceles, and abscesses. Women have been taught that breastmilk forms a cesspool of infection if they don’t regularly “empty” their breasts. But remember that we do not need to eat on a schedule to prevent a gallbladder or stomach infection. We don’t experience an intestinal obstruction from fasting. Our bodies are designed to accommodate variability in feeding patterns, and we up and downregulate blood flow and secretions in response to fluctuating stimuli. Trust your body, not the lactation industry.

+ A “yeast infection” is the cause of your nipple’s pain, itching, redness, or rash.

Yeast grows problematically in very specific parts of the body (generally the vagina and esophagus), NOT in your breast or on your nipple. Excruciating, toe-curling, razor-blade-like or shooting, shocking pain? That’s nerve pain that can be treated by certain types of medication (NOT anti-fungals). An itchy, flaky red rash is most likely dermatitis (eczema) that resolves nicely with stopping exposure to a specific allergen (for example, lanolin nipple balm) and a short-term prescription steroid cream.

The post 8 Breastfeeding Myths a Breast Surgeon Wants New Moms to Stop Believing appeared first on The Chalkboard Mag.

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In the Kitchen With Chef Greg Frey: Why Golden Door Doesn’t Believe in “Spa Food

At Golden Door, so much of what ends up on the plate starts just steps from the kitchen. On a recent stay, we spent an afternoon walking through the gardens with Executive Chef Greg Frey Jr., tasting what was growing and learning more about the way he thinks about food. For Frey, it starts with good ingredients and knowing when to let them do the work.

It’s an approach he’s been refining throughout his career, from the kitchens of Charleston Grill and Bernardus Lodge to more than a decade at Golden Door, where he’s helped move wellness cuisine away from restriction and toward food that is seasonal, nourishing, and genuinely enjoyable to eat.

That philosophy is also at the heart of his newly released cookbook, The Golden Door Table. We caught up with Frey to talk about the kitchens that shaped him, what cooking at a wellness retreat has taught him, his longtime obsession with beekeeping, and the simple cooking tricks and kitchen staples he thinks are actually worth knowing.

In the Kitchen with Chef Greg Frey

Your culinary journey has taken you from Charleston to Carmel Valley to Golden Door. Looking back at your time at Charleston Grill, Bernardus Lodge, Pamplemousse Grille, and Bluefire Grill, how did each kitchen help shape the cooking philosophy you have today?

I love this question because the places I’ve worked are so central to who I am today.

Charleston was the perfect training ground for a young chef. It’s a small peninsula, so after a crazy service, everyone ended up at the same neighborhood bars. You’d be a beginner sitting right next to chefs who had been doing this for 30 years. If you just listened, you could pull a lifetime of knowledge in a short amount of time. Plus, working at the Charleston Grill under Bob and Michelle gave me the absolute best mentors I could ask for.

After some traveling, I landed at Bernardus, which completely shaped my cooking style. Chef Cal is a wizard in the kitchen with one of the best palates I’ve ever seen. But the biggest takeaway for me was his relationship with local farmers, fishermen, and winemakers. It wasn’t a PR stunt; it was how we lived every day. As a young Chef de Cuisine, I just tried to soak it all in. That’s where my real understanding of garden-to-table cooking was born.

Later, Pamplemousse introduced me to the San Diego culinary scene and really taught me the business and financial side of running a kitchen successfully.

That led to Blue Fire Grill, where I had the honor of reconceptualizing the menu to focus on farm-direct cooking, balancing a healthy perspective with resort dining. It really solidified who I wanted to be as a chef and acted as the guiding river that brought me to the Golden Door.

You've been Executive Chef at Golden Door for more than a decade. What drew you to the property in the first place, and what has kept you there and for readers who may not be familiar, how would you describe Golden Door and what makes it different from other wellness retreats?

It is honestly hard to believe that I have been at Golden Door for over 12 years now, in chef years, that is an incredibly long time! What has kept me here is a combination of the amazing team I work with every day, having the most incredible dining room a chef could ask for, and an ownership and management team that understands giving you an open space to create allows truly amazing things to happen.

One of the unique things about my time here is that we radically changed direction when I first arrived. Back then, the food trend leaned toward austerity. It felt clinical and far too strict, which didn't align with what I believed Golden Door should be. To me, Golden Door exists to help us live, enjoy, and appreciate a better life. I believe that means eating the bounty of what the world has to offer, rather than constantly saying 'no' to this or that.

I set out to completely destroy the old stereotype that spa food is just a hard-boiled egg, a rice cake, and some microgreens. I wanted people to look at healthy food and realize it represents everything beautiful that nature has to offer.

How is cooking at a wellness retreat different from cooking in a traditional restaurant or luxury resort?

This is easily the toughest part of the job. At a normal luxury resort, guests go out into town, visit friends, or try different restaurants on the property. But at a retreat like Golden Door, our biggest challenge is keeping 41 incredibly well-traveled, multicultural guests happy eating at the exact same place 21 times in a row.

Think about it, you don’t even eat at your own house 21 times in a row! So when people come here to be pampered, the pressure is on us. We have to design our menus so that every single meal period feels fresh, exciting, and like somewhere they actually want to return to every single day.

You've spoken about how tasting produce directly from farmers transformed the way you think about food. What should people look for when shopping for fruits and vegetables?

To be honest, it started even before farmers, tasting what I grew in my own garden as a kid completely ruined grocery store produce for me! You just don't get that real flavor at the supermarket. To be fair, commercial farmers have to grow varieties that look pretty, pack well, and travel long distances. I always say that produce gets jet lag just like humans do!

But if you want to know what to look for when shopping, the absolute biggest secret is understanding ripeness. People buy unripe fruit thinking it’ll magically get better on the kitchen table. It doesn't, it just starts to rot. My number one rule, especially for fruit, is to use your nose. It should smell amazing before you even cut into it. Grab that pack of berries; if it doesn't smell like a fantastic strawberry from the outside of the package, it’s not going to taste like one when you get it home

What’s worth splurging on in the kitchen, and where is it totally fine to save?

In my opinion, you should absolutely splurge on your vinegars and oils. The quality of those two things makes a ginormous difference in the final dish. On the flip side, it’s perfectly fine to go inexpensive on things like flour, grains, and even sugar. The only caveat there is to look for the least processed version possible. For example, we use natural evaporated cane sugar for that exact reason.

You're also known as a passionate beekeeper. How did that journey begin and what's your favorite way to use honey in the kitchen?

While I was at Blue Fire, the property's general manager challenged me to develop a unique project that would bring added value to the restaurant and resort, similar to a kitchen garden. Because we lacked the space for a full garden, the idea shifted to installing beehives on the property to harvest our own honey. After doing some research, I fell in love with the concept and decided I didn't just want to oversee the project, I wanted to be the beekeeper. As for my favorite way to use honey? It's hard to beat eating it straight off the spoon.

After years of guests asking for recipes, what inspired you to finally write your upcoming cookbook, The Golden Door Table, and what can people expect?

Golden Door actually has a history of publishing cookbooks, I believe this will be our fifth, but our guests started asking me for one just a year or two into my time here. Writing a cookbook is a massive undertaking, but I'm glad we took our time because the final result is exactly what it needs to be.

The Golden Door Table isn't an ego project or a book about luxury. I wrote it for the everyday home cook who wants to eat healthier. I want to shatter the myth that healthy cooking is complicated or difficult—it’s actually pretty simple.

My main goal was to make these recipes incredibly approachable. You won't have to visit twelve different specialty stores to find the ingredients. While there are a few unique items that might be new to some readers, everything can be easily found at your local grocery store or ordered online straight to your doorstep

How do you build flavor without relying on excess salt, sugar, or heavy sauces?

I like to summarize this by sharing a piece of advice from my old chef. He told me, 'Greg, you aren’t creating flavor, you’re harnessing it.' Our job is to collect flavor, advance it, and present as much of it on the plate as possible.

When you cook with fresh, high-quality ingredients, heavy sauces actually ruin the food because they mask all those bright, natural flavors. Salt and sugar should only be used as subtle enhancers to wake a dish up, but you should never actually taste them in the final bite.

What's one kitchen habit you've developed over the years that makes cooking easier?

The simplest one is to clean as you go. Keep your work area clear, your cutting board wiped down, and your knife clean. It really comes down to the old saying: a clean and organized space gives you a clean and organized mind.

What's a kitchen gadget that's actually worth the counter space and investment?

VitaMix blender.

What's your go-to meal when you don't feel like cooking?

Carbonara

What's a chef's trick that home cooks rarely use?

Reaching for the acid vs salt when the flavor is less than expected.

What are three pantry staples you think everyone should keep on hand?

Great great quality vinegar and agromato olive oil and diamond crystal kosher salt.

If someone wanted to bring a little bit of the Golden Door philosophy into their own kitchen, where would you tell them to start?

I always tell people to start by looking at their plate like a pie chart: one-quarter protein, one-quarter complex carbohydrates, and the entire other half fresh vegetables. If you do just that, you are already halfway there.

To take it a step further, make sure that vegetable half is a rainbow of colors to ensure you are getting a rich variety of nutrients.

Finally, challenge yourself to go completely without salt for three days. It will be tough—maybe even feel impossible, but it resets your palate. Once those three days are up, you will taste ingredients differently and start using salt in a much more mindful way going forward.

The post In the Kitchen With Chef Greg Frey: Why Golden Door Doesn’t Believe in “Spa Food appeared first on The Chalkboard Mag.

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Not All Glutathione Supplements Are Created Equal. Here’s Why Formulation Matters

Glutathione is having a moment, but the real story is not just that another ingredient has entered the healthy aging conversation. It is that more people are starting to ask better questions about their supplements. What form is being used? Can the body actually absorb it? Why are certain ingredients paired together? And is the formula built with intention, or is it simply following the trend?

That matters with glutathione because the ingredient itself is already doing important work inside the body. It is one of the body’s most essential antioxidants, naturally produced in the liver and tissues, and it plays a central role in helping protect cells from oxidative stress.

But as more glutathione products enter the market, the labels can start to look similar. According to Dr. Terry Kitagawa, Senior Innovation and Education Sales Planning Manager at Youtheory, the difference often comes down to how thoughtfully a product is formulated.

“The most meaningful formulations are typically those where the science, dosage, and intended benefit are aligned,” he says.

Why Formulation Matters

A well formulated supplement should not just combine popular ingredients because they sound good together. It should have a clear purpose. In the case of glutathione, that means looking at the form of the ingredient, how it is delivered, the dosage being used, and whether the supporting ingredients make sense.

As Dr. Kitagawa explains, thoughtful formulations start with a clear understanding of the ingredient and the research behind it. The goal is not to make the biggest promise. The goal is to build something that makes sense from a scientific and practical standpoint.

That is especially important in a category where consumers are seeing glutathione tied to everything from skin glow to immunity to healthy aging. The most useful question is not just “does this contain glutathione?” It is “how was this formula built, and why?”

Why Delivery is Part of the Conversation

One reason glutathione supplements can vary so much is that delivery matters. Some compounds do not make it through digestion easily. Others may degrade before the body has a chance to absorb them efficiently.

In those cases, Dr. Kitagawa says, “simply increasing the dose doesn’t always solve the problem.”

That is where liposomal delivery comes in. Liposomes are tiny spheres made from phospholipids, the same type of molecules that make up our cell membranes. In a supplement, they can help encapsulate and protect certain ingredients as they move through the digestive tract.

For glutathione, this can be especially relevant because the molecule is relatively fragile. Liposomal delivery is used to help protect the ingredient and support its absorption and bioavailability.

It is also part of a larger shift in supplementation. The conversation is no longer only about discovering the next trending ingredient. It is also about finding better ways to deliver ingredients the body already knows how to use.

As Dr. Kitagawa puts it, “the future of supplementation isn’t just about discovering new ingredients, but also finding better ways to deliver them.”

What to Look for Beyond the Hero Ingredient

Another sign of a thoughtful formula is whether the supporting ingredients actually make sense. In the glutathione category, that means asking whether additional ingredients are there for a clear reason, or simply because they make the label look more impressive.

Dr. Kitagawa says Youtheory approached its Glutathione+ formula as “a system rather than a single ingredient product.” The reason, he explains, is that glutathione’s effectiveness depends in part on how well it can be delivered and utilized by the body.

In Youtheory’s formula, that starts with liposomal glutathione. It is then paired with taurine and resveratrol, two ingredients selected for their complementary roles in supporting healthy glutathione levels and the body’s natural defenses against oxidative stress.

Together, he says, these ingredients create “a more comprehensive and advanced approach than glutathione alone.”

The broader takeaway is not that every formula needs to include the same supporting ingredients. It is that the supporting ingredients should have a purpose. A longer ingredient list is not automatically better. A more intentional one usually is. SHOP Glutathione+ HERE 

How to Tell if a Formula is Thoughtful or just Trendy

As glutathione becomes more popular, it is worth looking past the front of the bottle. A smarter formula should be clear about the form of glutathione being used, the delivery system, the supporting ingredients, and the intended benefit.

It should also be realistic about what glutathione can and cannot do. Glutathione is not an overnight fix. For most people, it works behind the scenes, helping support antioxidant defense, cellular protection, and the body’s natural resilience over time.

That may not sound as flashy as some supplement claims, but it is probably the more honest version of the story.

A good formula should be able to answer a few simple questions: Why this form? Why this dose? Why these supporting ingredients? And what is the product actually designed to support?

If those answers are vague, that may be a sign the formula is more trend driven than science driven.

The post Not All Glutathione Supplements Are Created Equal. Here’s Why Formulation Matters appeared first on The Chalkboard Mag.

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We Found the Dreamiest Porcelain Vases That Look Like Draped Couture

For fifteen years, Sullivan Owen made her name in flowers. She was named Best Florist in Philadelphia just six months after opening her studio, designed luxury weddings and events, landed in Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and Martha Stewart, and earned a spot in Rizzoli's In Full Flower alongside a new generation of floral artists. Then 2020 emptied her calendar overnight and shut her studio for nineteen months.

She threw herself into a garden renovation at home, something she'd never attempted before, and then, once the summer heat made digging unbearable, into a beginner pottery class. It was meant to be a temporary distraction. It turned into four years of teaching herself clay chemistry, mold-making, 3D software, and how to build and maintain the printers she now works on, all in pursuit of something she already knew: how a flower actually behaves once it lands in a vase.

The vases came out of all that. She thinks about the stems first and the shape second, and those folds that look like draped fabric are really just clever hiding spots for a flower that won't cooperate. We sat down with her to talk about the leap from florist to vase-maker, the pieces she can't stop arranging in, and her case for why a supermarket bouquet has more potential than you'd think.

In Conversation with Sullivan Owen

For readers discovering your work for the first time, how would you describe the world of Sullivan Owen and the feeling you hope your pieces create?

My day to day looks like a lot of solo-preneurs': juggling a growing business while pushing new ideas forward. I made my vases because I knew the literal constraints of modern designer vases firsthand- pretty to look at on a shelf, not so great for actually arranging flowers.

Having spent fifteen years as a florist, I have a deep love for the people who grow my flowers and the many characters I buy wholesale from, and I saw my vases as a way to grow their businesses too. By making vases that people genuinely crave to fill, everyone gets to enjoy flowers more easily, any time, in their own homes.

You spent more than 15 years working as a floral designer before beginning to design vessels. How did that experience shape the way you see flowers, form, and proportion?

Fifteen years of arranging flowers for other people means you notice things most vase designers never do,  because most people who design and make vases, especially for wholesale, don't actually arrange flowers themselves. I see the stems inside the vase first: where they need to sit in the water to hold a visually pleasing composition above the rim. The folds and ridges that mimic fabric aren't just decorative,  they guide the stems into place, giving the arranger specific spots to tuck a rogue stem so it falls exactly where it should.

Your design process moves between hand-sculpting and digital tools. Could you take us from the first sketch or clay idea through 3D modeling, flower testing, mold-making, and the finished porcelain piece?

I sculpt in a variety of mediums,  wax sculpture clay, sometimes a gloopy combo of fabric and Mod Podge  then move to high-tech scans of those 3D sketches and sculpt digitally from there. I'm entirely self-taught in 3D modeling, but like most digital mediums, it allows for so much play and iteration.

Once I feel I'm heading in the right direction, I 3D print the piece in my home lab, which is built from printers. I also had to learn to build and service myself. I print in a plant-based filament that lets me make full-size, watertight vases I can actually put real flowers in. A lot of pieces don't make it past that first print, they stay on shelves, in boxes, for me to come back to later.

Every piece in the collection came together differently. Some were instant- Draped No. 1 barely changed from wax clay to 3D print to final porcelain form. Others took years: my new Pedestal No. 1, a fresh take on centerpieces, took close to three years of iterations and studying other forms.

A piece is really ready when I can't stop arranging in the 3D-printed version. At that point I make a scaled-up model, which goes to Oregon to have a pottery plaster mold made, that's what lets us produce the porcelain pieces.

Your vases have the folds, curves, and sense of movement we normally associate with fabric. When you begin designing a new piece, what comes first: a particular flower, the gesture of an arrangement, or a visual reference from fashion or art?

It really varies. With Draped No. 1, it was the flower. My collection of rare tree peonies, which only bloom for five or six weeks. I wanted a vase that could hold a lot of their huge blooms but still let them fan out and shine individually.

Sometimes it's a gesture like holding a handful of stems in your hand as you're cutting from the garden, or picking up small bunches at a market stand. Most people are looking at the flowers above their grip; I'm looking at what those stems need to hold them exactly as they are in my hand.

And sometimes it's a reference like an image that strikes me. That can spark an idea so vague I can't connect it to a piece yet, or it can lead somewhere entirely new. Right now I have a few references I'm considering for candlesticks and votive holders, a product category I haven't made before.

Twist No. 1 was influenced by archival and contemporary Dior and the way fabric is draped around the body. Can you walk us through how you translated that softness and movement into the form of a vase?

During the pandemic, when couturiers were working from home with old fabric, Maria Grazia Chiuri's team posted a neon tulle drape, not a full design yet, just pinned to a dress form. I was struck by the color and the way the folds flowed diagonally across the body. My grandmother was a fashion stylist and buyer going back to the early '60s, so I grew up with a broad knowledge of the greats of that era, and that neon dress reminded me of a piece from Mr. Dior's own time, that same line was there.

I started sculpting that line into what would become Twist No. 1, widening the opening at the top like the neckline of a dress so flowers could spill out, and trying to capture some of that same movement in the "hem" of the piece.

I was so excited later to see JW Anderson referencing some of the same archival pieces in his early collections. There's an embrace of femininity and curve in these houses that lends itself naturally to flowers, a lot of designers even refer to their flowers as "she."

You have described your garden as a living floral arrangement, planted in evolving palettes with textures and colors designed to unfold across the seasons. Has growing your own flowers changed your definition of what makes an arrangement beautiful?

Growing my own flowers has only deepened my appreciation for them, and for the people around the world who grow them for all of us. My garden has taught me patience and given me more optimism than I ever thought I was capable of. I grew up a cynical little New Yorker. Picture a five-year-old in all black, holding court with the eighty-year-old regulars at the corner cafe.

But planting a tiny plug plant, a sad-looking bare-root peony, or sowing seeds too small to see is an exercise in hope. It's a belief that you'll be here to see those flowers bloom, here next year for the next round, here in ten years to watch the tree they're attached to mature. It took me until I was forty to really understand that, and I'm grateful I finally did.

Why has Barely Cinched become one of the pieces you use most often yourself?

It was my first vase, so it's incredibly special to me. In 2020, I was in a dark place, like a lot of people were. I'd spent a decade building my floral design studio into something that supported me and my small team. We were doing work we were proud of, with clients who trusted new ideas. Then it all went on hold, which to me felt like it had simply gone away, through something entirely outside my control. I blamed myself for not being prepared, for not somehow foreseeing a global pandemic.

I threw myself into the garden doing everything myself that I'd planned to hire out, growing my own plugs, moving tons of compost, exhausting myself daily just to sleep. By August, with 100-degree days, that wasn't sustainable anymore. I needed an indoor project, and a video of someone throwing a planter on a wheel was the spark. Philadelphia has a wonderful nonprofit called The Clay Studio, and they'd just resumed small in-person classes. I signed up for the one technique I'd never tried in eight years of art classes, including two years of art college: slip casting and mold making.

The minute I made my first mold, which was a simple two-part mold of a lightbulb I was obsessed. You can achieve folds and wall thicknesses in slip casting that hand-building or throwing can't touch. I took the class twice and, by the end, became an Associate Artist, meaning I could work on and fire my own pieces independently. I still hold that title; it's still my play space.

I made the first Barely Cinched in my second class session. It was a hard piece to mold. I wasn't 3D printing or sculpting in wax yet, so it was rough. But the vase itself was a joy to arrange in. I'd made it for the handfuls of flowers I'd walk around the garden cutting, and it just worked.

I used it, people loved it on Instagram, but I didn't think about actually selling it until I gave one to a client, the mother of a bride in 2022. She found me again in 2023 and told me she used that vase every week, sometimes every few days. It never left her kitchen island. That was the spark for turning it into a collection. Without knowing someone had used and loved it for a full year, I don't think I'd have had the nerve to invest the years it took to make the rest of the collection real.

How should someone choose between Twist No. 1, Barely Cinched, Envelope No. 1, Draped No. 1, and Baby Twist for a particular arrangement?

I actually answer this for clients all the time, I ask what flower they always want to display.

Peonies in spring, roses in summer, dahlias in autumn? Barely Cinched. SHOP IT HERE

A snip of daffodils, a few tulips, a couple of fall leaves? Baby Twist, to add color and life to a desk or bedside. SHOP IT HERE

Hamptons hydrangeas, tall beachy grasses, a branch of plum or peach blossom? Twist No. 1. SHOP IT HERE

Bits foraged from late winter or early spring, a few herb stems, a stem knocked down in the rain? Envelope No. 1. SHOP IT HERE

Draped No. 1 is different. It's the piece you have to really want, especially at its price point. It's less about a specific flower and more about wanting that particular form in your home. SHOP IT HERE

Which vase would you recommend for someone who loves loose, romantic arrangements but does not have professional floral experience?

Baby Twist is what all my customers would say. It's a great way to try out small designs. It’s personal, low-stakes, and it lets people flex their creativity and find what they actually love in flowers and color. It's also everyone's favorite piece to gift someone who'd love having flowers around more often.

From there, most people build out their collection based on their favorite flowers or a spot in their home they want to fill. I designed the whole collection with something like a vase library in mind, no matter the season or the flowers, there's a form that works. Pedestal No. 1 is the newest addition to that library: a true centerpiece form that's actually easy to arrange in. Bowls are notoriously difficult to arrange in, and I've removed that challenge entirely. I can't wait for people to experience it.

Is there one vase in the collection that most fully embodies your floral design philosophy, and what about it makes it feel so representative of your approach?

I wouldn't put a piece in the collection that didn't work well, but I think Twist No. 1 most fully embodies what I'm trying to achieve. A tall cylinder vase is always hard to arrange in the rigid, straight sides and long reach down to the water means flowers have nowhere to go but straight up, fighting the vessel the whole way. By changing those lines, adding folds and movement to the rim, and leaving room for stems to flare out at both the base and the top, it achieves an effortless, natural-looking arrangement. The flowers themselves are exactly the same. I've just made space for them to behave the way they would in nature.

What is your best advice for making grocery-store flowers look more romantic and elevated?

Take the bunch apart. Grocery bouquets are designed to look full in the sleeve, not good in a vase. Pull them out, cut every stem to different lengths, and remove anything you don't love, this is your chance to curate the bunch to your own taste, not anyone else's. Then add one thing from outside: a branch from your yard, an herb, a few leaves. That one foraged element is what makes it read as designed rather than bought.

What is your best trick for making an arrangement look beautiful from every angle?

First, where is this arrangement actually going, and from what angle will it be seen? If it's going against a wall, you only need to worry about one side, don't waste time perfecting a back no one will see. If it's going somewhere it'll be viewed from all sides, turn the vase constantly while you're working, every few stems rather than waiting until the end. Most people build a front and discover the back later.

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Dyson Supersonic vs. Supersonic r: We Used One for Years. Is It Actually Worth the Upgrade?

There are certain things you replace because they stop working. A hair dryer that cost several hundred dollars and is still working perfectly is generally not one of them.

We had been using the Dyson Supersonic for years, most recently the Supersonic Nural, and genuinely loved it. It was fast, reliable and one of those beauty tools that quietly became part of the routine because it simply worked. Still, we had been eyeing the Dyson Supersonic r for a long time, mostly because the smaller curved shape looked so different from anything we had used before and kept showing up in the hands of professional stylists.

Eventually curiosity won.

The question was not whether the Supersonic r would be good. We already expected that. What we really wanted to know was whether someone who already owned and loved a Dyson hair dryer would notice enough of a difference to make the switch feel worthwhile.

For us, the answer was yes, and not because of one flashy feature. It was because the r made the entire process of drying and styling hair feel noticeably easier.

The First Thing You Notice Is the Weight

Before you even turn it on, the Supersonic r feels completely different in your hand. It is significantly lighter and less bulky than the Supersonic Nural, and that difference becomes even more obvious once you start moving it around your head.

Dyson designed the r with professional stylists in mind, particularly people who may be holding a dryer for hours at a time. The body weighs about 0.7 pounds, while the Supersonic Nural is listed at 1.8 pounds. The measurements are not perfectly identical because Dyson measures the r body separately, but you really do not need numbers to understand the difference.

Our Nural never felt particularly heavy until we started using the r.

The curved shape also makes much more sense once you are actually holding it. Reaching the back of the head, getting closer to the roots and changing angles all feel more natural, with less awkward wrist positioning. That sounds minor until you blow dry your hair several times a week, at which point lighter and easier to maneuver suddenly matters a lot.

I Thought I Would Use the Concentrator Most

The Supersonic r comes with several intelligent attachments designed for different types of drying and styling, and I initially assumed the Pro concentrator would become my favorite. It seemed like the obvious choice for a polished blowout because the airflow is narrow, precise and easy to direct with a brush.

In reality, the attachment I reach for most is the Powerful air attachment.

It creates a concentrated, high velocity stream of air that gets hair dry quickly while still feeling controlled. For my everyday routine, it sits in the perfect space between rough drying and actual styling. I can remove most of the moisture quickly, direct the airflow where I want it and still end up with hair that looks smooth and put together.

That also feels much more realistic for the way most of us actually do our hair. Not every wash day involves a round brush, sectioning clips and the patience for a full blowout. Sometimes you want your hair dry, smooth and looking good so you can get on with your day, and the Powerful air attachment is exceptionally good at that.

The Attachments Are Smarter Than They Look

One of the more interesting features of the r is what happens when you attach one of its styling tools. Each intelligent attachment communicates with the dryer through an RFID chip, allowing the r to recognize what you have connected and adjust the available heat and airflow settings.

Even better, it remembers what you like.

If you use one combination of temperature and airflow with the Powerful air attachment and something different with the concentrator, the dryer remembers those preferences the next time you attach each one. It is the sort of technology that sounds slightly unnecessary on paper but becomes useful precisely because you eventually stop thinking about it.

The dryer simply starts adapting to the way you use it.

The Technology Inside the r Is Very Different

Comparing the Supersonic r with the Supersonic Nural gets especially interesting when you look at how differently Dyson approached the two dryers.

The Nural introduced features like Scalp Protect mode, which senses how close the dryer is to your head and adjusts the heat, along with Pause Detect, which lowers airflow and temperature when you set the dryer down. The Supersonic r puts more of its engineering into making the dryer smaller, lighter and more precise without sacrificing power.

At its center is Dyson's Hyperdymium motor, which spins at up to 110,000 rpm and creates a high pressure stream of controlled air. The Professional model is rated at 1,700 watts compared with 1,600 watts for the Nural, while the heating system has also been completely redesigned.

Inside the curved body are 10 heater foils positioned along the shape of the machine. They are designed to heat the airflow more evenly as it moves through the dryer, while temperature sensors monitor the air more than 20 times a second and continually regulate the heat.

That all sounds highly technical, but what you notice as a user is much simpler. The dryer feels extremely powerful without feeling aggressive, the airflow is more controlled and it is easier to place exactly where you want it.

It Feels More Like a Styling Tool

This may be the biggest change in how we think about the r after actually using it.

The Supersonic has always been an excellent hair dryer. The r feels more like a styling tool that happens to dry your hair very quickly.

Because the body is so light and the airflow is easier to direct, working around the roots, front pieces and crown feels much more intuitive. You can change angles quickly, move from one side of the head to the other and get closer to specific areas without feeling like you are fighting the dryer.

You also do not have to be particularly skilled at blow drying to appreciate that difference. If anything, it helps more when you are not. Anything that makes the dryer easier to control makes the whole process feel less tedious.

The Professional Design Works Surprisingly Well at Home

The Supersonic r was originally designed for professional stylists, so there are a few details that make its salon roots obvious. The Professional model has an extra long 12.5 foot cord, which makes perfect sense when someone needs to move around a salon chair.

At home, it is admittedly more cord than most people need, but it is also surprisingly convenient if your bathroom outlet is nowhere near where you actually want to stand. The dryer also has a professional grade filter designed to withstand heavier use, which adds to the feeling that this is a tool built for consistent performance.

One thing worth knowing is that the US Supersonic r Professional is designed for 120V, so it is not something we would bring to Europe with a simple travel adapter. For us, this is very much the hair dryer that lives at home.

Is It Actually Faster?

The Supersonic r is very fast, but the biggest improvement for us is not necessarily a dramatic reduction in drying time. The Nural was already fast, so this was never going to feel like going from an old drugstore dryer to a Dyson for the first time.

What changed is how effortless those minutes feel.

The r is lighter, easier to maneuver and more comfortable to move around the head, while the Powerful air attachment gets a lot of moisture out quickly. There is less switching hands, less awkward positioning and less of that point halfway through where you start wondering whether your hair is dry enough to just stop.

Even when the total drying time is not wildly different, the experience feels quicker because there is less effort involved.

What About the Nural's Smart Features?

The Supersonic Nural is still one of the most impressive dryers Dyson has made, and features like Scalp Protect and Pause Detect are genuinely clever. We expected to miss them more than we actually did.

The r simply has a different appeal.

Rather than focusing as heavily on automatic adjustments, it gives you more physical control. The lighter body, compact shape, strong airflow and intelligent attachments all work together to make styling feel easier and more intuitive.

For us, that ended up being the upgrade that mattered more.

So, Is the Dyson Supersonic r Worth the Upgrade?

If you already own a Dyson Supersonic that you love, you probably do not need to rush out and replace it. That is exactly why we waited so long.

We had been eyeing the Supersonic r for years, but our existing Dyson still worked beautifully and there was never a moment when we urgently needed something new. Eventually we made the switch because we were curious whether the difference would actually feel substantial.

It did.

The biggest selling point is not one specification or one piece of technology. It is the overall experience. The r feels dramatically lighter in the hand, less bulky, easier to maneuver and more intuitive to style with. The attachments are useful without feeling gimmicky, and the Powerful air attachment has become the one we reach for most.

Most importantly, doing our hair simply feels easier.

That is ultimately what makes an upgrade worthwhile. Not because the thing you owned before suddenly became bad, but because the new version improves something you do all the time in ways you actually notice.

After years with a Supersonic, we are very glad we finally made the switch. We certainly did not need a new hair dryer, but now that we have the r, we would not want to go back. GET YOURS HERE

The post Dyson Supersonic vs. Supersonic r: We Used One for Years. Is It Actually Worth the Upgrade? appeared first on The Chalkboard Mag.

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Cycle Syncing Guide: How to Work With the Four Phases of Your Menstrual Cycle

How to work with your body through the menstrual, follicular, ovulatory and luteal phases without turning cycle syncing into another wellness rulebook.

Your menstrual cycle is not one static hormonal state. Estrogen and progesterone shift throughout the month, and with them, some people notice changes in energy, appetite, sleep, mood and the way exercise feels.

That is the basic idea behind cycle syncing: adjusting certain habits according to where you are in your menstrual cycle. Research on cycle syncing as a complete lifestyle program is still limited, so a more useful approach is to understand what is happening during each phase, notice your own patterns and make adjustments when they actually feel helpful.

Herbalism has long taken a similarly phase aware approach to the menstrual cycle. Anima Mundi applies that idea through its Menstrual CycleTea Kit, with four loose leaf blends for the menstrual, follicular, ovulatory and luteal phases. We wanted to look more closely at why certain herbs appear in each formula, where traditional use comes in and what modern research can actually tell us.

What Are the Four Phases of the Menstrual Cycle?

A menstrual cycle begins on the first day of your period and continues until the next period begins. Although 28 days is often used as the textbook example, real cycles vary, and ovulation does not automatically happen on day 14.

There are four commonly discussed phases in cycle syncing: menstrual, follicular, ovulatory and luteal. Estrogen is relatively low around menstruation, then rises as the body approaches ovulation. After an egg is released, progesterone increases during the luteal phase before both hormones eventually fall if pregnancy does not occur.

Those hormonal shifts are real. What they mean for your energy, appetite or mood is much more individual, which is why paying attention to your own cycle matters more than following an exact calendar.

Menstrual Phase: Focus on Restoration

During menstruation, estrogen and progesterone are relatively low and the uterine lining is being shed. Some people feel completely normal, while others experience lower energy or simply feel better scaling things back.

There is no reason to automatically stop exercising during your period. A large systematic review of menstrual cycle phases and exercise performance found only small average differences across phases and emphasized the importance of an individualized approach. If movement feels good, keep moving. If your body is asking for less intensity, walking, stretching or a gentler workout may make more sense.

For this phase, Anima Mundi uses Moon Blend | Rest + Restore, made with nettle, motherwort, rose, orange peel, cinnamon and clove. Nettle has a long reputation as a nutritive herb, while cinnamon and clove bring warmth to the blend.

Cinnamon is particularly interesting because it has also been studied for primary dysmenorrhea. A systematic review of cinnamon and ginger for menstrual discomfort found promising evidence for reducing pain compared with placebo. Those studies tested specific cinnamon preparations rather than this tea, but they help explain why the spice continues to appear in traditional menstrual formulas.

Follicular Phase: Think Nourishment and Returning Energy

After menstruation, estrogen generally rises as the body moves toward ovulation. Some people notice energy, motivation or exercise capacity beginning to pick back up, while others feel little difference.

The research does not support prescribing a universal follicular phase workout, so this is less about forcing yourself to become more active and more about noticing whether you naturally feel ready for greater intensity. Balanced meals with protein, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats and plenty of plants remain more useful than a complicated phase specific diet.

Anima Mundi pairs this stage with Follicular Tea | Rise + Renew, a blend of raspberry leaf, moringa leaf, chamomile, ginger, burdock root and rosehips. The formula leans heavily into nutritive and digestive herbs. Moringa is particularly interesting because its leaves contain a broad mix of vitamins, minerals and plant compounds, and a 2025 review of moringa leaf describes it as a nutrient dense botanical while noting that stronger human research is still needed for many of its broader health claims.

Ginger and chamomile also have long histories of digestive use, while raspberry leaf has been used traditionally in women's herbalism. Taken together, the blend fits naturally into a phase often associated with returning energy and nourishment without asking the tea to do more than the evidence supports.

Ovulatory Phase: Work With the Energy You Actually Have

Ovulation happens when an ovary releases an egg after a rise in luteinizing hormone. Estrogen is generally high leading into this point, and cycle syncing advice often describes ovulation as the most energetic and social part of the month.

That may be true for you, but it is not a guarantee. Sleep, stress and everything else happening in your life still influence how you feel. If you consistently notice more energy around ovulation, it may be a great time for a harder workout, social plans or a demanding workday. If you do not, there is no reason to force it.

Anima Mundi's Ovulatory Tea | Radiance + Bloom combines damiana, lemon balm, oatstraw, rose and lavender, a group of herbs that leans more toward calm and nervous system support than anything intended to influence ovulation itself.

Lemon balm has some of the stronger human research in the blend. A systematic review and meta analysis of lemon balm found improvements in anxiety and depression measures across clinical trials, although preparations, doses and study populations varied. Lavender has also been studied extensively for relaxation, while modern human evidence for damiana remains more limited.

That calming profile makes the blend an interesting counterpoint during a phase some people already experience as more social, energetic or outward facing.

Luteal Phase: Pay Attention to Appetite, Stress and Recovery

The luteal phase begins after ovulation. Progesterone rises, then both progesterone and estrogen eventually decline as the next period approaches. For many people, this is where shifts in appetite and energy become easier to notice.

There is good reason to pay attention to hunger here. A 2025 systematic review and meta analysis found that energy intake was higher on average during the luteal phase than during the follicular phase. There was considerable variation between studies, so this does not mean everyone will suddenly become hungrier, but it does suggest that an increase in appetite before your period can be a real physiological pattern.

This is a good time to make sure meals contain enough protein, fiber, complex carbohydrates and healthy fats to actually satisfy you. If you also notice that intense exercise feels harder as your period approaches, adjusting intensity or prioritizing recovery may feel more supportive than forcing yourself through the exact same schedule.

Anima Mundi's Luteal Tea | Soften + Settle combines tulsi, linden, schisandra berry, calendula and blue cornflower, botanicals traditionally associated with calm and resilience. Tulsi has particularly interesting research around stress. In an eight week randomized, double blind, placebo controlled trial, adults experiencing stress who took a standardized tulsi extract showed improvements in perceived stress and sleep measures compared with placebo.

A standardized extract is different from a cup of tea, but the research offers useful context for why tulsi appears so often in formulas centered around stress support. Schisandra also has a long history as a tonic in Traditional Chinese Medicine, while linden has traditionally been used as a calming herb.

Where Herbal Tea Fits Into Cycle Syncing

You do not need a different supplement routine, workout plan and grocery list for every phase of your cycle. That kind of complexity starts to defeat the purpose.

What works well about Anima Mundi's Menstrual Cycle Tea Kit is the simplicity of the format. The ritual stays the same while the herbs change. The kit contains all four loose leaf blends along with the brand's 80 plus page digital A Woman's Herbal Guide to Cyclical Living, with additional phase specific herbal guidance, recipes and rituals.

The evidence behind the ingredients varies. Some, including cinnamon, lemon balm and tulsi, have human research behind them, while others are supported more heavily by traditional herbal practice. Rather than expecting a botanical to change the course of each phase, the tea can simply become a cue to check in with yourself. How is your energy? Are you hungrier? Do you need more intensity or more recovery? Over several cycles, those observations can become far more useful than blindly following a generic 28 day schedule.

So, Does Cycle Syncing Work?

The biology behind the menstrual cycle is established. The idea that everyone needs a completely different lifestyle for each phase is not.

Cycle syncing makes the most sense as a tool for body awareness. Your appetite may change. Your workouts may feel different. Your energy or mood may shift, or they may barely change at all. Understanding those patterns gives you the option to respond instead of expecting your body to feel exactly the same every day.

The goal is not perfect synchronization. It is knowing your own patterns well enough to work with them.

SHOP: The Menstrual Cycle Tea Kit by Anima Mundi

All material on The Chalkboard Mag is provided for educational purposes only. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified healthcare provider for any questions you have regarding a medical condition, and before undertaking any diet, exercise or other health-related programs. The Menstrual Cycle Tea Kit is not recommended during pregnancy or breastfeeding. Herbal ingredients can interact with medications and may not be appropriate for everyone, so speak with a qualified healthcare professional if you have questions about regular use.

The post Cycle Syncing Guide: How to Work With the Four Phases of Your Menstrual Cycle appeared first on The Chalkboard Mag.

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8 Clean Foundations That Give You Coverage Without Looking Like Foundation

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Foundation has gotten a lot better at not looking like foundation. Today’s best formulas sit somewhere between skincare and makeup, using serum like textures and skin friendly ingredients to blur redness, uneven tone and texture without covering everything up.

If you want a little more than a skin tint but hate the feeling of a full face of makeup, these are the clean foundations worth knowing now.

Tower 28 Swipe Serum Foundation

Best for sensitive and breakout prone skin

Tower 28’s Swipe Serum Foundation is one of the newest additions to the category and arguably one of the most interesting. The featherweight serum starts sheer but can build to medium coverage, giving you considerably more correction than a traditional skin tint without the feeling of a conventional foundation.

The silicone free formula is made with 82 percent skincare ingredients and includes fermented oat, lactobacillus ferment, squalane and portulaca extract. It is also noncomedogenic and nonacnegenic and was created with sensitive skin in mind. The finish is natural rather than overtly dewy, which means it smooths and evens things out without leaving skin looking overly glossy. It is now available in 36 shades.

Typology Tinted Serum

Best for the ultimate no makeup look

French skincare brand Typology approaches complexion makeup almost exactly like skincare, which is why its Tinted Serum feels so appropriate here. The silicone free formula is 99 percent naturally derived and combines a vitamin C derivative with plant based squalane and aloe vera.

Coverage is deliberately light. This is the one to reach for when you want to soften redness and uneven tone without being able to identify where the makeup begins and ends. The finish is naturally radiant rather than shiny, and the formula is also noncomedogenic. The biggest drawback is the shade range, which currently consists of only six shades. The sheer pigment makes those shades more flexible, but we would still like to see considerably more options.

Westman Atelier Suprême Bio Complex Liquid Foundation

Best clean luxury foundation

If you want your foundation to behave a little more like an expensive serum, Westman Atelier’s Suprême Bio Complex Liquid Foundation is the splurge on this list.

The silicone free formula gives medium coverage while maintaining a hydrated, second skin finish. Its skincare complex includes niacinamide and multiple peptides, along with hyaluronic acid, sunflower oil, rosemary and algae extract. Amino acid based powders help blur without pushing the finish into flat matte territory. It is exactly the kind of foundation we want from Gucci Westman: polished enough for a proper makeup look, but almost impossible to detect once it has been blended into the skin.

ILIA True Skin Serum Foundation

Best overall

ILIA True Skin Serum Foundation remains one of the strongest arguments for swapping a traditional foundation for a skincare makeup hybrid. It offers legitimate medium coverage, but the silky texture moves with the skin rather than sitting visibly on top of it.

The current formula includes niacinamide and allantoin at levels the brand says are intended to visibly improve uneven tone and texture while helping soothe skin. Aloe, jojoba oil, marula oil and squalane round out the formula. It is fragrance free, dermatologist tested and noncomedogenic, with a natural finish that hits the sweet spot between matte and overly luminous. If you want one foundation that can reasonably take you from everyday makeup to a more finished evening look, this is probably our pick.

Saie Glowy Super Skin Tint Foundation

Best for dry and dehydrated skin

Despite “tint” being in the name, Saie Glowy Super Skin Tint Foundation provides medium coverage. The brand describes the formula as 85 percent skincare serum and 15 percent pigment, which explains the unusually fluid texture.

Hyaluronic acid, polyglutamic acid, squalane and glycerin give this one its distinctly juicy finish, while rice bran and amla extracts add to the skincare heavy formula. It is luminous without being a liquid highlighter and works particularly well when you want dry or tired skin to look fresher without layering on several complexion products. If you love the appearance of well moisturized skin more than a perfected matte base, this is the one.

RMS Beauty ReEvolve Natural Finish Liquid Foundation

Best natural satin finish

RMS Beauty ReEvolve Natural Finish Liquid Foundation is for the person who wants more polish without sacrificing the natural skin effect. The silicone free formula offers medium coverage with a soft satin finish, so it sits between the glowier serum foundations and more traditional complexion makeup.

Vegetable squalane and organic aloe help support hydration, while RMS also incorporates its proprietary botanical blend and Tightenyl into the formula. It is noncomedogenic, water resistant and housed in a refillable package. We particularly like this one when you want skin to look finished but not obviously dewy.

Kosas Revealer Skin Improving Foundation SPF 25

Best for smoothing and evening skin

Kosas Revealer Skin Improving Foundation SPF 25 lands at the more perfected end of this roundup, but that is exactly why it earns a spot. You get medium coverage and enough pigment to noticeably even discoloration and redness, while the finish still reads as natural skin.

Its skincare focused ingredient list includes niacinamide, sodium hyaluronate, panthenol, squalane, caffeine and a peptide, along with zinc oxide for mineral SPF 25 protection. It is especially useful when a barely there tint simply is not going to do the job but you still do not want that unmistakable foundation finish.

ciele tint & PROTECT SPF 50+

Best foundation with mineral SPF

Part serum foundation, part mineral sunscreen, ciele tint & PROTECT SPF 50+ makes a lot of sense for daytime. The featherweight formula starts with light coverage and can be built toward medium, with a natural finish that is far less sunscreen like than you might expect from a mineral SPF 50+ formula.

It uses non nano mineral UV filters and is formulated to be noncomedogenic and acne safe. We would still treat your regular sunscreen as the foundation of your sun protection routine rather than depending on makeup alone, but for an extra layer of mineral SPF in a complexion product, this is one of the more elegant options we have found.

The trick to making foundation look like skin

Even the best foundation can start looking like makeup when you use too much. Start with skincare and give it a few minutes to settle, then apply foundation primarily through the center of the face or wherever you actually need evening out. Blend outward and add another thin layer only over redness, discoloration or blemishes.

The goal is not perfectly uniform skin. Leaving some natural variation visible is precisely what keeps foundation from looking like foundation.

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