Vibrant Healing with Fern Olivia

The moment you step in the aura of Fern Olivia you immediately pick up on her contagious smile and soothing voice. Her captivating warm compassion and eye contact puts you in a trace like state. Fern has had her share of health struggles with an auto-immune disease but is now building an empire for herself with Thyroid Yoga. We sat down with Fern to get a taste of her dynamic life.

1. Fern , tell us about how you got on the path of healing and yoga?
For nearly a decade, I battled against my body and the horrible discomfort of chronic congestion, puffiness, brain fog, constipation, food allergies, and severe stomach irritability. 

I spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars traveling from doctor to doctor, feeling like a lost patient who was completely disconnected from her body, wanting so badly to just be given a magical solution to it all.  I was told I had hypothyroidism, meaning my thyroid was underactive, and that’s why I was having all the uncomfortable feelings in my body.  I was given every type of thyroid medication in the book to mask the symptoms I was experiencing – rather than getting down and dirty with why I was feeling so awfully rotten in the first place.  At one point I was on 125 mcg of synthroid and 5 mcg of cytomel and still felt like a zombie. The worst part -  I was told that I would always have these symptoms and would just have to “deal with them.” 

After I graduated from college, I thought I was living the American Dream when I landed a swanky desk job at a prestigious investment bank in New York City. However, the 14-hour days felt like anything but that. I often experienced vertigo when staring at my computer and starting getting daily migraines that I took excedrin for regularly. I’d also pop a Zyrtec with my Synthroid before my cereal and soy milk each morning to clear my stuffy, runny nose. And even with all of that, I still felt awful. Finally, at the age of 22, I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Hypothyoriditis, which is the autoimmune form of hypothyroidism. My own immune system was destroying my thyroid cells. This “attack and destroy” can cause wild symptom swings from hypothyroid to hyperthyroid, and back. 

I’d had enough. I thought to myself, “I studied biomechanics and neuroscience, with a degree in Biomedical Engineering. Why can’t I figure this out?” Turns out, I could…but in an unexpected place.

Yoga found me on a lunch break in between stressful meetings and staring at databases in Excel. Yoga fascinated me as I began noticing patterns of how I ate and treated myself, how I was spending my day, and how this related to how I felt on my yoga mat, and getting really excited about what this all meant. I began to take the first steps of being my own healer, instead of relying on test results and no clear direction. This was a whole new world to me, and as I began to feel better, I began to see that what I was putting in my body – and how I was treating it – was making a huge difference on how I felt.

Each time I returned to my yoga mat, I not only felt clear-headed, but also safe, comforted and loved — feelings I had been lacking in my life — and I realized that this practice allowed me to connect with myself in a way that I hadn’t been able to elsewhere. I found immense strength through my own journey and realized that my body had been screaming at me so long, just asking me to listen. 

Now, I’ve made it my career to empower men and women to tap into their own intuitive healer and live their most vibrant, healthy, fulfilled life, too. 

2. Do you have a daily ritual or mantra?
I like to say that daily rituals are habits made holy. Rituals bring us into alignment with who we really are and showing up for ourselves makes a declaration that we are committed to our own success and well-being. 

Sadhana, or daily practice, is a must for me, and it’s a pillar that I talk about in my Thyroid Yoga course. It's a non-negotiable holy practice that reminds me that I am worthy before I go out into the world - and yes, that means before I turn on my phone and check email or my Instagram feed. 

Every morning, I look in the mirror and gaze into my own eyes for three minutes, repeating the affirmation: “I see you, you’re beautiful.” Sometimes I laugh, sometimes I cry. Each day may bring up a new feeling – of appreciation, of understanding, of compassion. I remind myself I am worthy of all abundance that is coming in. 

I also began experimenting with essential oils to nourish and support my thyroid and as I learned more about the incredible healing potential of nature’s medicine cabinet, I began to create my own blends. I became empowered in my own self-healing, adapting holistic rituals to support my vitality. The simple self-care ritual of rolling a seductive fragrance on my throat and heart chakra every day while repeating affirmations has radically changed my life. Inspired by my own practice, I created Grace Alchemy, a rose and patchouli blend that makes all men within a 10-foot radius swoon. It’s true, you have to try it. Everyone - including a top dating coach - keeps telling me that it’s their new signature scent!

I begin each morning with a run out my front door, through the sand, into the cool Pacific Ocean. Splashing in the waves invigorates me and stimulates my lymphatic system - and as a bonus, is super anti-aging. Cold water plunges are incredible for immune health, and I’ve noticed that I feel significantly more energized when I have my ocean plunge first thing in the morning. When I’m traveling, I swap in cold showers for the ocean, which certainly isn’t as fun but does the trick.

At night, I lay on my sheepskin rug with a massive rose quartz crystal on my heart chakra. This crystal found me in Sedona and it provides immense grounding and healing energy!

3. What are your three staples for glowing health? 

Beauty is the healing food I nourish myself with, the sensual alchemy that kisses my skin, the gorgeous friends I choose to enjoy time with, the sacred home I have created, and the retreats and healing experiences I treat myself lavishly with every day. Beauty is taking care of myself in the most loving and kind-hearted way.

Here are 3 of my staples:
My beauty ritual begins the moment I open my eyes and mentally say a prayer of gratitude. Then, I prepare herbal loose leaf from my friend Nicole Granato - she has an organic hibiscus rose petal tea that is just so beautiful, I feel myself getting more gorgeous as I watch it steep. Why use a plain tea bag when you can fill your cup with fragrant, lush herbs and flowers? 

During my recent visit to Aja Malibu, a stunning luxury-boutique mountain retreat for the health and wellness-seeking connoisseur in Malibu’s Latigo Canyon, I had the gift of receiving an intimate tour of the property’s biodynamic vegetable and medicinal herb gardens with the beautiful founder, Iannya Magick. As I picked and tasted whole herbs fresh from the earth - Tulsi, Sage, Jasmine, Lemon Balm, and Holy Basil - my taste buds smiled and I felt reconnected to the beauty of life. Returning home, I have made infusing my tea and lemon water with fresh herbs a daily beauty ritual.

I moisturize my skin throughout the day with Solar Sun Protect, a skin protectant from my own organic beauty apothecary, Ajai Alchemy, made from all organic essential oils in a base of carrot oil and coconut oil to protect my skin. Living in Los Angeles and travelling frequently to sunny destinations such as Sedona, Hawaii and the Cayman Islands, I made this to give my skin some extra love as I spend my days practicing and teaching yoga on the beach. It gives my skin a dewy, radiant glow and the cedarwood and geranium essential oils protect against breakouts. The scent is sensual, aphrodisiac and adored by both men and women, and was recently named the signature scent of the Further Future Festival, which I taught at this past spring.
I apply Radiance Hair Serum to my hair, which keeps my beach curls wild and sexy without the frizz. Ever since moving to California, I stopped damaging my hair with the flat iron. My hair is the happiest and healthiest it’s been in YEARS! 

4. Tell us about Thyroid Yoga?
We are constantly told we are broken, or something is missing, or we need drugs.

We are constantly looking outside ourselves for answers.

When I began to look inside, I became more intuitive and began to finally notice huge shifts in my life. Yoga was the catalyst for me and as I have been experimenting with so many different healing modalities, I’ve learned how to finally feel good in my body again. I’ve worked with hundreds of clients over the past six years and have been shocked and how fast these practices really work - and how doctors often completely overlook these potent tools!

I have cross-pollinated ancient yogic wisdom and healing practices to create something refreshingly new, yet refined with rich substance and deep history. This is precisely why I created Thyroid.Yoga™ about 4 years ago, a method designed to empower men and women to say goodbye to survival mode and embody radiant health again.

In other words, in Thyroid.Yoga™, we discover how to unveil all the bullshit holding us back - and release it. It’s like nothing out there.

What makes my work unique is that I bring together the strongest possible offering for the physical, emotional and cultural health of my students and community.

I’ve been able to curate a program that works for everything, through combining the best of the best knowledge from the most renowned teachers, healers and experts. This is the game-changer - and it just recently launched on MindBodyGreen - I invite you to watch it here!

I’ve also created the Thyroid.Yoga™ Inner Circle, a special membership opportunity for those looking to understand their symptoms and finally free themselves from the mercy of thyroid and other hormone imbalances. I’m thrilled to offer my expert advice along with the support of the healers and leaders in the holistic health space, along with exclusive content - meditations and yoga sequences from me and I’ll be providing my answers to the most challenging thyroid questions in a safe and supportive forum.

I’m also really excited to be offering a one-of-a-kind teacher training program - for healers, teachers, or anyone looking to understand their thyroid and how to finally liberate themselves to speak from their soul. It’s happening at RA MA in Venice this upcoming November 3-6 and will be available globally via livestream, too! You can learn all about it here.

5. Your energy is healing and contagious, how do you move through adversity?

Thank you! I’m constantly bathing myself in sage and practicing yoga so I can keep my energy field strong and release any tension that I may have picked up. As an empath, I always feel for others and there was a time when I took on the energy of everyone around me, and I realized I was getting exhausted ALL THE TIME. I’ve learned how to move through challenges with grace - I have to, because I have a big purpose on this planet, so challenges will come up to stretch me. I meet resistance with determination and motivation to get to the other side and know these situations will make me stronger. 

I am kind to all those who I meet, because I know that when others’ may be short with me or not friendly for some reason, they are going through their own journey. I protect my own energy by setting boundaries from a place of integrity, love, and conscious communication. 

6. Who are some sources of inspiration for you?

Elena Brower - Elena an amazing yoga teacher, mamma, healer and dear friend. She does it all, and she’s so classy, calm and poised. She manages so much and stays true to herself and her students. She’s a blessing in my life, and I am very grateful to have studied with her extensively in New York.
Dana James - Dana  is one of my most influential role models and friends. She embodies grace and femininity, and is a true powerhouse in the wellness world. She rocks at what she does, she’s driven and is like a big sister to me.
Taryn Toomey - Taryn is the badass of the fitness world. She’s created something called The Class, which is a spiritual somatic experience. There’s nothing like it - you’ve got to try it. I love that she just is fearlessly herself and has dedicated her life to empowering women to fearlessly be themselves, too.
Guru Jagat - Guru Jagat is the founder of RA MA Institute, a kundalini yoga studio in Venice and an epic global community. She’s uncensored - she really wants her students and the world to be aware and awakened to what’s really going on. I love that about her. She’s been the catalyst for me to step into my power here in LA and I admire everything she’s creating with RA MA around the world.

7. Share with us 3 steps to start our mornings with abundance?

As you open your eyes, thank heavens for this ability to be alive another day, to be in this body and to have another day to be great! Thank all of the beautiful relationships and experiences you will cultivate today. 

Take a shower and feel the water on your skin. Close your eyes and take 10 deep breaths as the water graces your body. It's an amazing way to consciously set your energy and intention towards your day.

Bless your breakfast, your coffee, and your green juice! Consume slow and consciously, notice the textures and the feelings on your lips. It was made with so much love and intention, and it will nourish you so you can crush this day!

8. What 3 yoga poses do you recommend to the community to use on the daily basis?

1. Cat/Cow spinal flexion:  If you only have three minutes in the morning to dedicate to your yoga practice, this simple exercise is the one I recommend most to eliminate brain fog and fatigue, which are two of the most common symptoms of thyroid imbalances.

Why? The movement of cat-cow, known as spinal flexion, increases the circulation of the spinal fluid, which contributes to greater mental clarity, according to Kundalini Yoga, because all 26 vertebrae receive stimulation and all the energy centers receive a burst of energy.

Begin on hands and knees, with knees under hips and palms directly under the shoulders. As you inhale, press your chest forward past your upper arms and spread apart your sitting bones, making sure to keep your arms straight, shoulders and knees in position. Be sure to lengthen through the lumbar spine and broaden your shoulders as you press your breastbone forward. 

Try to speed the movement up to a rapid and rhythmic pace to promote energy flow, which in turn presses out the stagnant energy and decreases inflammation, releasing blockages that have been stored in the organs and glandular system. Keep up for 3 minutes.

2. Three minutes of Frog Lifts.

This exercise incorporates yoga asana (movement) and pranayama (breath work) to stimulate the glandular system and balance the metabolism. 

As you inhale, squat down, balancing on the balls of your feet, heels touching and raised up. Place your fingertips on the ground between your legs and slightly in front, spine arched, and chin slightly lifted. As you exhale, bow into your legs drawing the navel point inward as you straighten your legs, heels remain touching and lifted, and fingertips remain grounded. The movement is rapid.

3. Chair pose with the eagle arm variation

This particular arm variation is one of the best ways to nourish your thyroid because you are creating space in the throat region, through the leverage created by the hook of the chin over the upper arm. 

Each time you finish the pose, notice the warmth around the neck region. This powerful exercise strengthens the lower body while it flushes chronic stress and stagnation from your adrenals and activates your thyroid.

Instructions
Stand in Tadasana, mountain pose and take five deep breaths here, feeling your feet connected to the earth Take five deep breaths in Chair Pose, knees bent and seat back, with arms alongside ears, then return to Mountain Pose and ensure your feet are still set at inner hips width apart, toes facing straight forward. 

Wrap left arm under right and lift the elbows up and out, tucking the chin into the elbow crease of upper arm, and breathe deeply into the back of the throat. Take five deep breaths here; repeat with the other arm on top. 

Keep sending your seat back while lifting your elbows out and up, as you move your shoulders down away from your ears. Swallow to stimulate release of any congestion around your throat. Try to keep your face relaxed as you take three deep breaths. Find comfort in the boundaries, and breathe space into the back of your throat. Then release your arms and pause in Mountain Pose, standing up tall with your arms alongside your body.

This pose may feel uncomfortable and tight at first. If your palms are not pressing together, that is okay. Just take a hold of the higher wrist and try to pull your wrist up as you lift your elbows. As you do this, squeeze your elbows and forearms together. 

Certain biochemical imbalances in the brain can adversely affect the body and emotions, such as hormone imbalances and challenging afflictions such as anxiety, food cravings, and emotional eating. Balance sequences trigger the right and left sides of the brain, realign electrical circuitry, and restore biochemical balance in your body, according to the teachings of Kundalini Yoga. 

Finish your sequence with a forward fold, feet hip width apart and hands holding opposite elbows. Take 10 long, deep breaths here as you allow your head to drop heavy and your neck to lengthen. This pose brings release to the adrenals, so invite your lower back to expand while you keep your knees bent! 

To come out of this pose, slowly release your arms and roll up to stand, bone by bone, head coming up last. Take a few breaths in mountain pose, standing tall with your eyes closed to notice the effects of these movements and the healing you have offered your body as the breath circulates around your organs. 

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Fern Olivia Langham is a LA-based yoga instructor and wellness expert renowned for her artful approach to self-healing and founder of Thyroid Yoga. She combines her extensive knowledge of yoga, meditation, breathwork, mantra, holistic health, and her own plant-based alchemy Ajai Alchemy into a one-of-a-kind integrative approach. View her offerings on her website, and connect with her on Instagram and Facebook.

Lindsay Mack: Soul Tarot Reading

House of Citrine first connected with Lindsay Mack at this year's Spirit Weavers Gathering. What immediately stood out to us about Lindsay was her pure, blunt authenticity—the kind that hits you in the face but shows you straight to the heart. Her candidness comes from the belief and healing practice that acceptance brings clarity, and it’s the clear and honest path that travels forward.  

A happy survivor of childhood abuse, trauma, and PTSD, Lindsay is dedicated to bringing healing to those experiencing mental, emotional, or physical suffering and helping people to arrive at their whole selves as she did. In addition to her offerings of Soul Tarot Readings and spiritual counseling, Lindsay’s writing on the Tarot can be found in numerous novels and journals.

Lindsay is based in Brooklyn, but her teachings live all around the world as her travels spread her readings and healing practices. She is also the co-facilitator of Brooklyn Fools, a six month Tarot immersion program. Lindsay offers readings, healing sessions, and tarot classes from her apartment, but teaches in workshops across the country and is reachable for her services across the world through phone or Skype in addition to her travels.

1. First off, we’d just like to say that we love and admire your passion with which you help those suffering from mental, emotional, and physical distress. How do you feel you were drawn to this form of healing?

Honestly, how I serve is really no different from how I am in real life—lots of wisdom, warmth, and compassion with a few “motherfucks” thrown in. I keep it very real, very authentic to how I actually am. 

I feel that this work chose me. I never had any intentions of walking a healer’s path. In fact I wanted to be a performer, and did that for many years before being birthed into the initial phases of the work I'm doing now. It all came from choosing to stay alive through tremendous pain, trauma, and suffering, something I think that many healers share. 

I bought my first deck of Tarot cards at age 12 and never thought for a moment that it would become a part of my adult life. I was always someone people came to for advice and guidance, and I always was aware I was somewhat intuitive, but it never occurred to me that that was an option in terms of a life path. It was only after moving through a life-changing breakdown a few years ago that I chose to actually say yes to my gifts and embrace my path as a seer and a healer. It began with a click for me, that all of my trauma, all of the physical and emotional abuse I had endured throughout my life, all of the supposedly terrible, shattered pieces were actually forming this incredible whole. They became the foundation upon which my entire soul’s journey as a healer was built on. 

Everything I offer other people has come from being freed by it myself. I really surrendered to and embraced every dark, hellish thing I had been handed in my life as a gift and an opportunity to evolve. I just started to say yes to it all, and once I did, I started really healing and thriving. My tribe of clients soon followed, and the two still walk hand in hand. Tarot’s walked it's way back into my life and became the beautiful glue that binds it all together. My entire life transformed and continues to do so, all because I began to say yes and accept the issues that I had spent a lifetime trying to fix, neuter, eradicate, banish. I woke up to the fact that whatever arose in my inner landscape was a sacred teacher, one I could bow to and learn from. That's when I started to receive sacred offerings and began channeling my healing work. 

I had no idea of all that would happen—I simply wanted to be at peace with myself, so I embraced everything in me, and everything hence flowed from that intention. 

2. What is Tarot, exactly? What is your style for Tarot reading?

Stripped to numbers, the Tarot is a set of 78 cards—22 Major Arcana and 56 Minor Arcana—that are said to offer a visual range of the entire human experience. From deck to deck, there are different sets of images and archetypes used to provide the symbolism for the reading.

I myself facilitate an offering called Soul Tarot Readings. This is the intention to utilize the Tarot for the evolution of the soul, and for the continued disidentification from brain chemistry, old wounding, and the ego. Soul Tarot was born and channeled out of my own intimacy with my guides, my tarot deck, and my journey through deep healing. My practice continues to evolve with me, and the deeper I go, the richer the offering becomes.

3. How have Tarot cards helped you in your life?

I wouldn't be here without Tarot. The Tarot is the language I speak with God, and the visual representation of prayer for me. That sounds really out there, but it's true. It feels like a beloved pet, a guide and a friend. It brought Source and magic into my life when everything was dark. 

Tarot helps me to understand what I am evolving through in any given moment, and to trust in myself and to grow. When I was healing from PTSD and I didn't trust my own connection to my guides, Tarot served as the bridge. Now it has blossomed into the most incredible tool for me. I channel through it, I see life through it, and I have fun with it. My relationship with my deck literally helped to save my life. It's a language that just makes sense to me.

4. Can you tell us a little bit about Wild Soul Healing?

Wild Soul Healing is the name of my beloved wellness practice, under which I offer Soul Tarot Readings, Intuitive Coaching & Mentorship, and Soul Tarot Intensives and classes. Wild Soul Healing is also my heart’s mantra—it’s the drumbeat I walk to in my own life. I believe, to quote Sweet Medicine Nation, that “wildness is our first medicine”. When the soul feels wild and free, we are truly in alignment with Divine. When the nervous system is free of trauma and fight/flight/freeze, we are liberated to live in this wildness, which is synonymous with the truth of us. Our inner children, our wisest knowing, our sexuality, our laughter, our tears, our raw, messy, beautiful selves—all makes up the treasure that we can claim once we commit to a path of healing the wild soul. Everything I offer within Wild Soul Healing is intended to return back to that essence of us.

5. How would you describe a person’s “true soul path”?

It's here! You're on it! The true soul path is this very moment. It's just us, being as available as possible to master and evolve through the moments and situations we are currently in. It's actually the moment we try and figure out what our soul path that we start drifting away from it a bit. You don't have to find it; it's already here, waiting for you with open arms. 

Everything that we believe is a block or obstacle to the soul path IS the true soul path. It's whatever is inviting you to tea, so to speak, and it's usually the RSVP we are quickest to decline. Once we drop the notion that there's a problem with our current life, or that we have to “get on” our soul path (which the primal brain LOVES to think, by the way), we become available to effortlessly receive shifts, upgrades, and changes that are truly aligned with our highest and our best. At times, the soul path is rocky and dark as night. Sometimes it's so clear we can see for miles. It is wherever we happen to be moving through in this moment. It's all good medicine, no matter what. 

6. If you could give one gift to everyone in the world, what would it be?

I would give to each person an embodied knowing that feelings are not facts, and that they don't have to believe their thoughts. 

And a Chakrub. Everyone needs to own a Chakrub! 

7. Throughout all your travels, what has been the most interesting experience involving your work? Where did it take place?

Without question, the most interesting work experience I've ever was teaching at Sacred Tarot for the Wild Soul at Spirit Weavers Gathering in Mendocino, CA. It was a very profound experience to be able to serve so many women from all kinds of backgrounds, all of whom truly aligned with the material I was teaching. That there was so special for me to witness. Holding class outside on the grass, surrounded by redwoods, birds, and butterflies didn't hurt, either!

8. Who has been your best teacher in life? What has been the most valuable lesson that you have learned?

Hands down, my mentor and sacred teacher, Michelle Sinnette. She is a master, and has given me the keys to unlock everything I am on this path and more. I love and cherish her and her work deeply. I've also been profoundly impacted by the works of Tara Brach, Thich Nhat Hanh, Susun Weed, and Clarissa Pinkola Estes. Furthermore, I find that my own fears, traumas, anxieties, jealousies, and shadows have been the best guides and exemplary teachers.

I'm in the practice of intentionally saying yes to anything that arises in my inner landscape; alas, I think that the most valuable lesson to impart regarding teachers is that in any moment you are present, you have the greatest one available to you. Whether it's your child, an asshole in traffic, or an surge of grief, it's all walking you home. I thank Michelle for having absolutely locked this in for me. 

9. If you could choose one piece of wisdom to speak to all those in the depths of suffering, what would it be?

I would simply offer this quote by Rilke: 

“Let everything happen to you, beauty and terror. Just keep going; no feeling is final.”

10. How do you feel that people can benefit from a Tarot reading?

People can profit from a tarot reading in so many astounding ways. 

A good tarot reading offers truth, clarity, and empowerment. It holds a mirror up to our Divine nature. Tarot doesn't fix, cure, or tell the future, but is an excellent guide for the moment, so we can truly embrace the present from our heart. 

A great tarot reading can serve as a healing tool, and can truly help the nervous system and the body let go of some of the trauma and embrace more of freedom. It all depends on whatever is in the client’s highest and best. It's really an amazing experience, and one that can often be life changing. 

11. How often should someone consult a Tarot reader, in your opinion?

As often as they feel the call! Once every three months is a great baseline. 

12. What is the most misunderstood thing about spirituality (Tarot reading)?

In terms of Tarot, the biggest misconceptions are that you will be told your future or your fortune, that it will predict catastrophe, death, or divorce, even that all tarot readers are psychics or cheating you out of money...I could go on and on! 

13. What do you feel has been your greatest triumph as a spiritual guide?

That I don't feel like a spiritual guide. I just feel like a person, a person who is fucking blessed and honored to be able to walk a life of sacred service. It's a triumph for me that I've continued to do my own soul work consistently while working in this way. Sometimes I swing over into too much ego, but I'm knocked out of that pretty quickly by my guides. I am literally in a constant state of evolution, which is at once very uncomfortable and amazing! It's just my life rhythm. Honoring that has kept me very humble; it has kept my work very clean, ethical, honest, and ever-expanding. I'm delighted to be a raw, messy, imperfect human being, on this path with everyone else. Who the hell am I to be a guide if I'm not walking the same path as my students and clients? In truth, they’re just as much the teacher as I am. 

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Lindsay Mack is a Brooklyn based intuitive tarot reader who offers Soul Tarot readings, mentorship, coaching, and healing work. Visit her website to learn more, and follow her on Instagram and Facebook. 

Victoria Larnach: Sustainable Art

Victoria is an artist and environmentalist connecting culture, craft, and sustainability with indigo dyeing. She creates work that has vision yet spontaneity, bridging cultural gaps, and influenced by the rituals and techniques of artistic history. She speaks with us about her passion for the skilled craft of indigo dyeing and how it reflects the history, living art, and sustainability she cares deeply about.

1. How did you get inspired to use indigo dye?

I was introduced to Indigo while living in Australia. It was something I had briefly seen floating around my sphere, but I hadn’t actually tuned into it yet at a level of deep comprehension. Because I come from an artist and fashion design background, I had been exposed to a lot of unsustainable practices in the industry (mainly fashion), and as my love grew towards care-taking for our earth, understanding what we will be leaving behind for the generations to come, and what is important right now to protect, somehow Indigo Dyeing made it’s way into my life by a man named Aboubakar Fofana. He is a master dyer from West Africa and has traveled the world sharing his tradition of natural and Indigo dyeing, the latter in which he revived as it was nearly lost due to industrialization. He has an incredible amount of experience, strong technique, and even stronger cultural and traditional ties to this ancient dyeing process. I was inspired immediately and ever since I have learned skills from him, it continues to inspire me daily and urges me to go deeper. There is a lot of knowledge with this craft, and switching my designs and artistry towards sustainability has become the focal point in what I’m sharing.

2. What is indigo dye exactly?

Indigo dye is actually a plant pigment. It is extracted from the Indigo Plant leaf and requires certain chemical reactions with other agents to create the beautiful blue hues you see. There are hundreds of different species of Indigo plants, all unique to their respective region, and each region has a specific way of extracting the pigment. Firstly, you will have a blue pigment that won’t bind straight away to fabric until you introduce other agents to help it become useful for dyeing. Once these agents are introduced (there are many ways to create an Indigo vat) then you have a green solution that is created by these al-chemical reactions, and so one must wonder, “How do you go from a green solution to a finished blue fabric?" Oxygen. Once the fabric is removed from the dye vats, and oxygen is introduced, the solution on the fabric begins to turn from green to blue before your eyes, and once oxidized fully, the fabric then turns into a gorgeous hue of blue. This is why they say the ‘alchemy’ of Indigo because it truly is magic.

3. Why is it so rare?

Indigo dye was once rare many generations ago, and as it became more well known and traded around the world, it was readily available, even now in present day it is somewhat easy to obtain. There are hundreds of species of the Indigo plant. However, the color BLUE is rare in nature and one that is considered a precious color because not many plants produce a type of blue the way Indigo does. Woad was once used, but it swiftly became secondary to the ‘Queen Plant’ Indigo. 

4. How is the indigo medicinal?

Indigo has natural anti-microbial properties in it, which makes it very useful for any natural fiber clothing close to the skin, to sensitive areas of the body, for babies, for workwear such as denim. It was also used as somewhat of a ‘tincture’ or a tea with certain cultures around the world. Because it has such a deep and rich history, there is quite a lot of information on the specifics of how it’s been used for other than it’s dye. I am endlessly interested to learn about its other various uses, and through my journey on this indigo road, I am beginning to find the knowledge of these traditions. I am always inspired and fascinated by humanity's relationship to the plant kingdom. Also, when we look at Indigo blue or dye with it, it is said to promote peace and intuition - for me, this is one of the most important medicinal properties it offers us.

5. Why aren’t more people using indigo dye?

Many people do use indigo dye, but because the process requires a lot of time, work, and patience, many have moved towards synthetic dyeing which is a lot quicker, producing results that are not as natural as an organic indigo dye vat. Patience is key and is so rewarding with the natural indigo dyeing process, and because we do live in a world that encourages a fast-paced way of living, our global fashion industry reflects that with synthetic or processed clothing. Many indigo traditions have been lost because of the synthetic indigo industry. Not only is the process of synthetic dyeing harsh for the environment (there are numerous chemicals used), but the results of the dye on fabric are not as lustrous as an organic dye vat, and the indigo tends to bleed or fade. That is one way of telling it is synthetic, it will not be colorfast. Indigo dyed through a natural process, done correctly, is completely colorfast and actually will ‘outlast’ the fabric - meaning the fabric can disintegrate first and the color will have actually stayed! I hope through sharing this artisan skill I can inspire and encourage people to consider switching towards sustainable textiles - it is just simply better for our planet, keeps cultures and traditions alive and intact, and empowers people to create their own pathway on how they want to leave their footprint while walking on this earth. 

6. What is your creative process?

An idea comes to mind, the first in situ of inspiration. Then it’s intention setting for guidance on creating what wants to come through. Then music. LOTS of great music. A clear space to move around in, generally a private space, outdoors, with access to sunshine and water. And then I let it FLOW. Create as I go, maintain the vision of what I would like it to look like, and many times I completely just allow it to be whatever it wants to be. That’s the beauty of design - it is not always planned and what emerges will always be a work of art. Art in motion. Everyday. Every moment.

7. Do you have a mantra or meditation process while you’re dyeing?

BREATHE. Go slow. Patience…. always. I am always reminding myself of this. 

8. Who are you inspired by?

Definitely by Aboubakar, first and foremost. Culture keepers. Frida Kahlo, and mostly any strong woman. Several of my fellow artist & musician friends. Also environmental heroes/heroines and activists - anyone that stands for the protection of our planet. The list is too long to name them all, I just deeply appreciate what people do to keep this planet alive and thriving, and I feel very passionate about this subject. I think I will always be an environmental activist in my heart, but more importantly, a CARETAKER for the Earth, in whatever form that comes out. Artwork and words are my expression for now. 

9. What are some of your rituals when you’re in your groove while dyeing?

Being with nature, breathing, listening, staying present. That’s the indigo groove for me! The whole act of Indigo dyeing is a ritual, every part matters, every part is a sacred piece for the story.

10. Is it difficult to source the indigo?

Indigo can be found through various sources from anywhere in the world. There are so many options, one easy way is to source the pigment. The leaves may be a bit more challenging to source as I know certain places can take a while to receive the leaves, but preferably you would be growing your own plants! 

11. Whats next for you Victoria? 

It’s been a big year. I feel like I have been flowing in this blue river quite serendipitously and very blessed along the way. The community keeps expanding and as I grow, I begin to connect with so many other wonderful people around the world. I will be traveling through the West Coast, north to Canada, over to the East Coast, and Hawaii to share this wonderful Indigo immersion. I also have an artist residency coming up in Oaxaca Mexico in August, and I am very excited to be learning from the master dyers there!

12. Tell us more about your artist residency in Oaxaca.

Yes - such a gift! I will be in Oaxaca for a month learning hands-on instruction from master dyers about their traditional Mesoamerican way of indigo dyeing, cochineal dyeing, and pericon dyeing (Mexican Marigold) as well as other natural dyes. I also feel so blessed to be learning from a family of traditional Zapotec weavers on their dye practices and woven art. It will be a colorful, immersive, comprehensive and incredible journey. It’s been a dream of mine to travel to Oaxaca for awhile now, and arriving in this way feels quite incredible and important for this time. We are at an interesting turning point in our history, and I truly believe that learning ancestral knowledge and sharing it with communities is a strong way to bring positive change by expanding social awareness, bringing sustainability through the arts, and bridging cultural gaps for a better understanding to shape our future. 

Attend one of Victoria's Indigo Dyeing and Shibori techniques workshops.

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Victoria's art and indigo dyeing reflect the cultural and natural landscape of the places she lives and travels.  After studying Fashion Design at the Art Institute of California,  she was introduced to the ancient Indigo Plant and its natural dyeing technique. Each piece echoes our connection to Mother Earth and the importance of sustainability. Follow Victoria on Instagram, Facebook, and find her writings at The SeaChange Collective.  Email her at vmlarnach@gmail.com.

Sean Stone: The Nonconformist

Recently, HoC had the distinct pleasure of receiving some deep insights from a man of many blessings, Sean Stone. Son of famous film director, Oliver Stone, Sean is an actor/director, producer, cinematographer, screenwriter, in his own right. And yet, if you can imagine,  there is much more to this man than his many accolades! An outside of the box thinker, with his own opinions and his own show, not conforming to any one perspective but embracing many points of view that others might shy away from, Sean lives consciously and with heart and purpose. Having experienced a Kundalini Awakening he offers responses to our questions about his life's purpose, his spiritual practices, and what brings him bliss. We are thrilled to present you with the opportunity to learn more about this enlightened thinker! 

video to follow...

1. How did you discover your life’s purpose?

I think that's an evolving concept, but if I achieve my purpose, then it will be a vision that took shape in my late teenage years. Through a lucid waking dream of a past life, I recalled that I am here to help raise the consciousness on the planet through various visual media.

2. What is the driving force?

The higher power we call God, or the Good. There is an opposing polarity that sculpts our emotions for the purposes of experience and understanding through sorrow.

3. Who is the one person you’re most inspired by?

My past and future self.

4. What study or experience has had the most profound effect on your understanding of yourself and reality?

I'd say experiencing the supernatural realm directly, which inspired my film Greystone Park, as well as my sorcerer character in Paranormal Activity Security Squad.

5. What is your spiritual practice?

A basis of daily morning meditation and prayer to ground myself. Being present is the most important practice.

6. What does an ideal day look like for you?

Being in a mode of creation, whether that involves writing, stimulating conversation, enjoying delicious and healthy food & drink, giving myself enough time for play and exercise, watching movies that entertain and illuminate, or spending time with good company.

7. What moves you through fear and brings you bliss?

Trusting that a higher power has designed all of this for me.

8. Favorite quote?

One of many favorite quotes: "One must have chaos in oneself to be able to give birth to a dancing star." - Nietzsche

9. What is your top supplement or superfood in your holistic cabinet?

The Super Elixir from WelleCo.

10. Favorite book of all time?

I'd have to say my favorite story is Les Miserables.

Favorite meal?

Indian and Sushi.

What political state is America really in with the movement around Bernie Sanders and the madness of Donald Trump?

It's a circus. One doesn't vote at the circus.

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You can find Sean on his alternative news show Buzzsaw - visit the YouTube channel and website.  Follow him on Instagram and Facebook.

Plant Based Artist: Greg Arnold

Chef Greg Arnold puts his artistic skills into every one of his dishes to make a masterpiece. Consistency makes us swoon over his culinary techniques.  The man known to open the hottest plant based restaurants in Southern California including, Sage, Matthew Kinney's Plant Food and Wine, and most recently, the Santa Barbara gem Mesa Verde. Clearly he is keeping up with the momentum. With his new line of activated herbs and spices created in partnership with Scott Linde and Nitsa Citrine (of Sun Potion), we now take a piece of the creation home with us and create our own culinary flare. We sat down with Chef Arnold to find out more about the past, present, and future.

1. What led you to become a chef?

I grew up drawing and painting and spent most of my life making albums and touring as a guitarist...so I’ve always been an artist...so to speak. To me, my food tastes and looks exactly as my music sounds...a sort of ethereal synesthesia. I just really loved the creation of dishes, and somewhere along the line I began to love cooking more than I loved making records... I was introduced to the cuisine of Ferran Adria and Jose Andres when they were pioneering what we now know to be modern Mediterranean cuisine. I always found kitchen work to be meditative... the chaos and the pressure somehow slows my mind down, and I can function much better in the eye of that storm.

2. What inspired you to focus on plant-based cuisine?

When I began cooking plant-based food in little vegan restaurants in LA, it was still a pretty underground, sort of punk rock thing to do. Vegan food was still a haven for weirdos! For myself, I wasn’t  really eating meat and had since childhood been into the ethics of groups like CRASS and Rudimentary Peni...who were advocating for animal rights, anti-war, etc…Now, I am completely obsessed with plants. I understand the inner workings and strengths and weaknesses of all these plants on a molecular level...I understand how they will react and function to so many different cooking techniques...the reactions and the unlocking of the flavors are an endless exploration that I get to dive into and record on a daily basis.

3. What are your favorite ingredients to cook with?

Fresh spring produce is by far my favorite! The super green vibrance of spring vegetables is just amazing...and the balance between grilling them or scorching them with big fire and the contrast of all the raw fresh greens and delicate herbs is something I am currently obsessed with.

4. Favorite spices?

I just starting creating my own spice and Umami blends called Tournefortia, with Sun Potion tonic herbs mixed in. My favorite spices mostly come from the middle east: Za’atar, Saffron, Aleppo, Sumac...they are all so earthy and intoxicating. I also love the succinct simplicity of Japanese spice. As a chef I have been experimenting with dehydrating and grinding vegetables into their own spice powders...for example, seasoning a fresh cucumber in its own powder adds an especially deep level of cucumberness. Tournefortia embodies all of those concepts mixed with the superfoods...a very modern spice for a very modern kitchen.

5. Your plates are so beautiful. What inspires your artistic touch to the plating?

It all goes back to my love for the abstract expressionists...Cy Twombly is my man! Also, Anselm Kiefer, Robert Rauschenberg, and Franz Kline. I am very inspired by Japanese photographers, like Daido Moriyama and Araki...and of course the loose experimentation and exploration of Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead…I’m also very into 20th century avant garde composition like Iannis Xenakis, Steve Reich, Morton Subotnick, and the kind of mechanical, synthesized precision of Tangerine Dream and Autechre. I could listen to Tangerine Dream forever.

6. What inspires your food?

EVERYTHING inspires my food! My day, my life, the vegetables, the weather, the feeling in the air that day...I have, over the years, really built my own culinary vocabulary... I am not so inspired by other people’s food, but more by whatever it is that I’m thinking and feeling on that day. It’s a rather solitary process for me...more of a reflection.

7. What is your ultimate vision?

My vision in the kitchen is still the same every day...to bring delicious, modern, organic food to our guests. There is a whole massive wave of modern culture and thinking that happens before I present the dishes on a table at dinnertime...sustainability, locality, organics, farms, farmers...as a chef, I feel like an alchemist, transforming all that passion and energy into something tangible...something that can be delicious and beautiful, and bring someone so much pleasure. 

8. What rituals keep you in a creative state?

My whole life is a ritual. From waking up everyday and making the bed and drinking my cups of Genmai Cha tea. Going to the gym, sitting zazen, taking saunas...When I get into the kitchen, I set everything up in the same way, in the same place, at the same time, everyday...I’m like a borderline OCD guy.

9. What is your favorite restaurant?

I’m not sure I have one favorite restaurant...I have my spot for ramen, I have my spot for tacos, I have my spot for tea, etc… but I will say that my guilty pleasure spot is Gjelina in Venice...FOR SURE!

10. When you’re not in the kitchen, where would we find you?

IN BED!!!

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Photo Credit: Julia Corbett

Shop for Chef Greg's next level spice and Umami blends at Tournefortia.com. Follow him on Instagram at Ofair and Tournefortia.

Zenbunni Chocolate Changing the Earth

In Southern California there lives a family who makes pure magic. A special kind of real life Wonkaesque chocolate-filled operation being served out of a rabbit hole...actually, make that two rabbit holes, with their newly opened shop in the Fairmont Miramar Hotel & Bungalows in Santa Monica. Zen, Bunni, and their daughter Alchemy along with a collective of independent biodynamic farmers come together to create one of a kind products that nourish you from within while giving back to the Earth. A team dedicated to sourcing from the best, their business breathes consciously, all the while producing high quality natural confectionaries that look and feel supreme. The crystal infused walls and ground create another layer of energy and Earth. One bite of their raw cacao chocolate will lead your tastebuds on a journey as your mind realizes you have finally tasted chocolate the way Mother Nature intended.

1. Would it be in humanity's best interest to forgo eating processed chocolate in exchange for raw cacao? If so, why is cacao so much better overall?
 
Yes, it would definitely benefit humanity and where we humans reside (this amazing planet!). The word "processed" already implies "excessive", and excess translates to inefficient. It equates to more time, more money, more energy, and sounds like moving in the opposite direction of "natural", "simple", and "pure". These words sound right. They feel better just to say, and resonate with our natural selves. It's an interesting thing to think that something that has been made perfectly since the beginning of time (think thousands and thousands of years ago) could be made better by some weird egoic technology that man came up with in the last few decades. 

We are in a state of crisis because of excess. The two main things "processed food" has done are make us unhealthy and cause a disconnect from the cycle of life (all living things), including food. Once you "process" something, you've begun to denature it and strip away its magical genetic composition of wonderful minerals, vitamins, and vital nutrients. People are then, unfortunately, "tricked" into thinking (or unthinking) they are eating something that's going to nurture them while it does the reverse. So yes, forgo eating processed chocolate or any food that's processed, if possible. If you slip up, well, we're all human....don't judge yourself when doing it, and just move on.

Our cacao goes through very little "process". We aren't running it through huge machines at super high speeds and heating it for long periods of time to make it taste "exactly the same" every time, which is what the larger companies try to do. You may notice that most chocolate desserts and drinks taste the exact same at restaurants and bakeries; the truth is that they are making what the established "flavor profile" of chocolate in the world is. We're not going that way. We slowly and simply stone-grind our cacao, temper it at low temperatures, and make it into our microcosmic bars. Cacao is a medicinal food, packed with so many nutrients and bioactive compounds, and so much more that they are literally still discovering every year. So we keep it simple, pure, and clean while you get much more of those amazing vital nutrients than your typical "processed" chocolate bar would provide. Plus, you helped mother nature by not buying something that polluted her, stripped her of resources, and was most likely not made consciously. 

2. How did you decide to make biodynamic cacao your main offering?

When we discovered the astonishing origins of cacao, its sacredness and power brought to light a new perspective on what we thought was just a sweet treat we were addicted to. We had no idea that this food we loved so much (but never felt good after eating) could be good for you and guilt-free. When we figured out how to make it in a holistic manner, it just seemed like the direction to go in. We made it just for ourselves, originally, but all our friends kept pestering us to sell it. When we finally did, it was very well received. That was 8 years ago...and we've been learning and evolving ever since, which led us to Biodynamic Farming. 

The method, and devotion to the earth, blew us away. We noticed that it was relatively nonexistent in chocolate, so it made sense that we were the ones to steward at this level. This led to sourcing not only biodynamic cacao, but biodynamic jaggery (a primitive, mineral rich ayurvedic sugar), as well our spices, nuts, and oils from all over the world. Many of our fans have said that they "feel" our chocolate--typically it is other senses that perceive food, but to "feel" it is something special. Our intention has always been pure: to heal the earth and each other. This, in conjunction with our ingredients being grown in such a revered manner, synergizes to create this magical offering. 

3. What is your favorite part of the biodynamic process? Do you two ever personally get your hands into the ground during the process?
 
We love the entire process and the fact that it's "such" a process. While very difficult and time-consuming, it's done so that the earth reaps the benefit and that the person eating gets to experience what food is supposed to taste and feel like. We are firm believers of major and subtle energy being a factor, which this method of farming acknowledges and puts it into practice. We want to share this method of farming and other "beyond organic" styles to the masses so we can make real change now. We feel that we can reach many more people by crafting the business, marketing, and production side of our brand rather than actually spending time farming at this point in our lives. We truly would like to do it the other way around, but if that were the case our chocolate company wouldn't exist! In the near future we hope to have our hands in nutrient-rich living soil most of the time, but for now, we want to empower the few biodynamic farmers in the world and get them more land!

4. Can you tell us more detail about your two "rabbit holes" and why you chose Venice and Santa Monica as your two locations? Congratulations on the new grand opening of your second shop, by the way!
 
Thank you!!! We've had a ZenBunni Gallery/Shop since 2007, but it wasn't just chocolate. It was filled with our art, antiques, and amazing jewelry. Only in this last iteration of retail did we decide to just do chocolate. We had an opportunity to rent a tiny, tiny space on Abbot Kinney in Venice 2 years ago and thought it would be a perfect "rabbit hole". It was so small we felt that we could pull off a wild idea of literally making it look like a rabbit hole. So we brought truckloads of clay-rich mud from our property in Topanga Canyon, then mixed it with sand, straw, and actual chocolate to create a "chocolate cobb" shop. It has become quite an attraction and has the sweetest little vibe. 

We just literally opened up our second location inside the iconic Fairmont Hotel on Ocean Ave. in Santa Monica last month, and it's a more refined version of a "rabbit hole". We still used clay infused with chocolate, but did more of a "Wonkadelic California" cabin ode with reclaimed redwood to match the hotel. We love the idea of being in hotels and would love to branch out more into this world. We get to meet people from all walks of the Earth and they get to experience our expression of California craftsmanship. The outreach graces so far with a hotel. Since most people don't know what biodynamic farming or stone-ground healthy chocolate is, we feel blessed to share that with them. 

5. What does the future hold for ZenBunni?

Hopefully lots and lots and lots of land being preserved. Also, helping as many people as possible to find their natural self again. If people could truly get that, then they wouldn't unconsciously spend their money on food and things that hurt the earth and themselves. If we can continue to wake people up with chocolate then the future is looking very bright and healthy!!!

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Visit the ZenBunni website to learn more, shop, and find their products.

Talia Migliaccio - Consciousness Through Creation

Talia Migliaccio is a rebel, fueled by a passion for pushing boundaries in pursuit of a new world, where creation is king...or, better yet, queen. Though her roots lie in Denver, Colorado, she seeks nature in her travels, working to facilitate harmony between the earth and humanity. Versed in many artistic mediums, her unique practice of tattoo poking speaks for itself as she uses ink to draw together body and spirit. At 21, this old soul knows herself, and it shows.

1. What inspires your art and creations?

The heart of my inspiration was birthed from a place of mystery - an exploration of the void - a deep love for all taboo. I am continually inspired by the world surrounding us, both seen and unseen - the macrocosm and microcosm - the as above and so below. I am constantly taking note of patterns throughout my daily experiences - listening to everything around me as though it is my direct dialogue with universal forces - from license plates to lyrics. I am fascinated with the interconnectivity of every motion - every step - the layout and design of our home planet. My fuel is truly rooted in a place of shifting consciousness through creation - in a playful manner - to show that it is possible to live differently - to think differently - that the dream is so real and so alive. But then this all breaks down into smaller patterns, for example, what inspires my tattoo practice vs. what inspires my video work, my sculptures, my photos, etc. I do believe that no matter the medium or lineage of inspiration it all continues to inform itself in a neural network-like fashion.

2. At what age did you begin doing tattoo work?

I began tattooing in March of 2013, which would have made me 18.

3. In what ways do you connect your art with your consciousness?

My creative output is a direct reflection of my consciousness, and perhaps I can even say that in some ways it is a direct reflection of the collective consciousness. 

4. Would you like to expand more on your "Flood Book" and what that is and means to you?

Ah... that term came from a post of writing about my sketchbook practice. I chose to call it a flood book because I felt it better encompassed the energy these books symbolize for me. Since 2007 or so I have very consistently kept a sketchbook, or flood book, rather - I do my best to make daily entries, but sometimes within the flux of life that gets thrown off. They are a place that I truly feel able to flood my mind onto paper - nothing to hold me back or to guide me in any one direction. They hold drawings - paintings - writing - a true release and exploration of imagination.

5. I saw on your website that you use many different mediums of art for expression. What are all of the forms you use?

I have gotten my hands into just about any and every medium that has been available to me. Drawing, painting, ceramic, beading, metalwork, video, photo, and tattoo are all ones I have pretty thoroughly explored. Tattoo and drawing are what I am most fluent in recently. I have a longing to dive back into exploring form and the creation of spaces through multidisciplinary processes, though.

6. How long have you been doing pottery work?

Ceramic has been coming in and out of my life since 2006 or so. I began by taking wheel throwing classes at a studio in Denver, which was shortly followed by my 6-year attendance at Denver School of the Arts. In those 6 years, I worked with it on and off - it has always felt like one of the most instinctually and natural mediums of use to me. Last year I reentered my relationship with it in an entirely new way and am very eager to continue that facet of work. 

7. What do you do to stay grounded?

Hmm, staying grounded… that term can have so many translations and meanings. I listen to a lot of hip-hop and dance to a lot of hip-hop, and I had a realization recently that it is hugely grounding for me - I also find it very motivating, and it ignites a lot of movement in my heart, mind, and body. Spending time alone and in silence is also deeply important for me - it allows me to listen and access my dialogue with the realms of imagination. 

8. What are some of your favorite products, and why?

So glad you asked this! I’m very passionate about conscious consumerism and holistic products. My rule of thumb in terms of what goes in and on my body is that I first and foremost read the ingredients, which is one of the most informative practices that I have picked up. In terms of self-care and beauty products, if they contain something that I wouldn’t feel comfortable eating, something synthetic, or something chemical-related, consider me uninterested. I also lean towards only using products that are handmade in small batches or by small companies, and even better if they are made by someone I know! This is from the standpoint of living out morals - if my mission is to work on shifting how we live on this planet to a more harmonious negotiation, then I feel it is simply ethical to live out this mission through every single choice I make. The toothpaste I use has been one of my greatest everyday life improvements - I swear by it as though it is a daily religious experience - it’s made by a small company based in Washington called "Uncle Harry’s", and is clay based - it’s very affordable and has amazing simple ingredients. Everything I have used from Uncle Harry’s company has been amazing - I definitely highly recommend them! In terms of body moisturizing, I am all for oils - a few that I have been using most recently and absolutely love are La Tierra Sagrada’s jojoba oil, rose body balm by Il Curator, Living Libation’s breast massage oil, and Medicine Mama’s Bee Magic. I have also been working a lot with rosemary, rose, and vetiver essential oils. 

9. What are your favorite food choices and why?

My morals with food are very similar to my product morals - read the ingredients - look into where it is coming from - who my money is supporting - was the growing and harvesting of it humane or ethical in regards to a harmonious life on this planet. I aim to get my food from farmers markets, small locally-owned natural food stores, and co-ops, as opposed to large corporate operations. I am working on growing more of my own food, also, now that I have space and availability too! I would love to reach a point where I am eating food primarily grown by myself or my surrounding community. In terms of foods I love - I am always a sucker for strawberries, especially since a good ethical organic strawberry is so hard to come by these days - or at least, it was until I moved to the LA area. Avocados, spinach, sunflower seed butter, homemade ferments, arugula, sourdough, root vegetables, and local raw honey are all some of my deep loves in the food world, and although black pepper is more in the spice realm I cannot deny my love for it. 

10. What’s next for Talia in 2016? Any new projects we should be looking for?

Well Talia just moved to Topanga in February - so that in itself feels like a massive project. Somehow in the heavenly alignments, my partner, Harrison, and I were able to move onto our friends property - we have a sweet little piece of land, a one bedroom house, and a studio, including a well-lit loft. Between coming off of 6 months of travel, setting up home, working with the land, and tattooing I have had my work cut out for me. So I’m sure as the dust begins to settle new projects will arise - for now I have a handful of small collaborations that are in process, one of which being teaming up with my dear friend Baelyn, who holds beautiful and deep tea ceremonies - we have very recently started to offer individualized tea & tattoo ceremonies for transformation and are planning to expand and extend that in some directions that I’m very excited about. Having a studio is also a huge opening for me, as I have not really had a studio for the last 3 years - I am going to dive back in to exploring imagination through ways in which I used to work, and through many different mediums.

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Learn more about Talia by visiting her website TaliaMigliaccio.com, and connect with her on her Instagram and Facebook page. 

Dr. Sarah Larsen - Medical Intuitive

A Doctor and third generation palm reader, Sarah Larsen fuses Eastern and Western medicine as a medical intuitive. Using her deeply rooted ancestral psychic training, she has spent most of her life studying love and how to apply it practically towards healing. She and her husband Greg also share their passion for the miraculous as co-hosts of their weekly podcast called Miracle Makers and transformational world tours to sacred sites.

1.What daily practices do you highlight for people seeking health and wholeness?

We are creatures of habit and I love sharing the practices and behaviors that generate health and wholeness! These highly-sought states of being both can be found in simple practices that I teach and do! 

In fact, it could be summed up in the Sanskrit proverb, "For breath is life and if you breathe well you will live long on earth." 

I have 6 main practices that create great breath, health, and wholeness:

Before Sunrise: 

1. The Vedas state that one hour and thirty-six minutes prior to sunrise is the most powerful time for intentions, prayers, and meditation. This means daily, as we wake, we have the opportunity to synchronize all of these and our breath with the earth's cycles! Wake up, breathe, and create with the sunrise!

2. I oil pull, and this allows my entire body to be cleansed! Oil pulling was practiced daily in India and simply requires moving oil between our teeth! The full practice as studied and written about can be found here.

Before Lunchtime:

3. Feel hungry!  I practice eating only when I feel hunger and limit my body from ever feeling full.  It is the number one thing that you can do to extend your life! A little growth hormone gets created every time you feel hunger! Growth hormones repair your cells, raise your metabolism, and create the conditions for your major organs to repair themselves!

4. Before lunch drink 6 to 8 large glasses of water filled with fresh cut lemon or cucumbers! Many of us have heard the saying, "Where there is water there is life," and the same is true for our bodies!  By filling our bodies with 48 ounces of fresh water before lunch, we will have flushed our system and created new living life in our body!

5. Before lunch, also set up a time to sweat daily! With this much water in our system it is easy to walk or stretch into a sweat! Sweating and heating up the body with light movement keeps disease and cancers out of our system! 

At Sunset:

6.  Gratitude is a great attitude! The origins of this word have to do with "good will"! When we have the energy of good will in our lives, then there isn't anything we can't be, do, or have! The ancient teachings have the optimal time for feeling grateful at around sunset. I recommend sitting and watching the sunset for the day!  Actively create a practice to fill our hearts with gratitude for the moments that filled our day and our hearts! What you think about comes about! Let our hearts feel the daily practice of receiving and thanking for all we took in this day!

Gratitude has been linked to health benefits and an overall sense of wellness!

2.Do you see the integration of Eastern and Western medicine becoming more mainstream? Do you anticipate that this will be an essential component in the coming years?

The integration of Eastern and Western Medicine has been occurring since the Beatles shared their love for India with the rest of the world! In one way or another, the teachings of the two global hemispheres are essential to each other. The East is seeking the research and technology found here, especially with emergency medicine! The West is seeking out the peace and wholeness medicine practiced in the East! Whole herbs, nutrition, and full-body practices are recommended by most mainstream doctors, too! Most medical centers have a component of both now! Yoga, meditation, and nutrition are household words based on the integration of the two systems. We are also validating more and more of the Eastern practices with Western measuring devices. For example, the benefits of meditation are seen in a CT scan immediately! 

3. You have a deep connection with Egypt...Who is the real Isis and what do we have to learn from this goddess/culture?

Egypt is the home to humanity and to some of the greatest mysteries on Earth! We can trace all of those living at this time back to this region! I love sharing the land of the Great Pyramids of Giza, the timeless Nile, and mystery school teachings that holds the keys to everlasting peace, harmony, and service to humanity. There are many archetypes of humanity represented there. The archetype of the goddess Isis represents the true Divine Mother that helps humanity remember who they are! She is known for taking the scattered pieces of man, gathering what was lost, and then creating potential from remembering its wholeness! Her teachings are etched in the hieroglyphs! Essential oils, herbal remedies, and healing processes we still use today are found in the hieroglyphs! The surgical tray we use today is etched with precision into the walls of the temple. You have got to see it to believe it!

There are videos for you from prior retreats to Egypt on my website, found here.

4. Can you tell us about your role as a medical intuitive?

As a medical Intuitive I have the ability to listen deeply to what each cell, organ, and system in your body is communicating. My first teachers were my grandmothers! They were the most educated women and healers in the township that my grandfathers governed. Growing up, I did not know that everyone didn't see, hear, or feel what I did about other people's bodies until I was enrolled in medical school in India. I knew that all discomfort and disease have a spiritual, emotional, and mental component before they become physical symptoms of the body! I could "feel, hear, and see" the spirit, emotions, and thoughts occurring in others! I have been so blessed to have learned, taught, and served in so many regions of the world and with many different types of healing modalities. I am grateful for all of the education as a medical doctor that allows me to use my intuitive gifts to serve those that come to me. I believe my life is to be of service, and helping you experience your body at this level heals it to its inherent wholeness! I believe your health, happiness, and wholeness serve to bring about everlasting peace!

5. What special wisdom do you have for us this year in 2016?

2016 is a year of miracles! We are going to witness medical miracles, miracles for humanity, and direct connection to the spirit being measured by science! 

I launched a new show on UBN network called Miracle Makers. This truly is a gift from my heart to yours!

I know the miracle of being connected to something greater than ourselves and I am so grateful to share this wisdom with our community!  My husband, Greg Larsen, and I host incredible experts from around the world and share how the miraculous happens! Our goal is to help you know and embody your soul's purpose!

We would love for you to have all your hearts desires!

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To gain more of Dr. Sarah Larsen's wisdom visit her website, facebook, twitter, and YouTube channel.  Listen to her live shows on UBN Radio here, as well as her show Miracle Makers. 

Health Freedom with Sayer Ji

As a widely-recognized researcher, author, and lecturer, Sayer Ji is an innovator and pioneer in nutrition, natural products, and health and wellness. He founded the world’s most widely recognized and referenced natural health resource of its kind, greenmedinfo.com, in 2008 in order to provide the world an open forum to access evidence-based resource supporting natural and integrative modalities. Today he is one of the most sought after public speakers for the health and wellness community in this country.

1. Tell us a little bit about what led you to start GreenMedInfo.

I’ve always been passionate about health freedom and the ethos of free and open access to information, which is required both for informed consent and a healthy relationship between government and the people. As Thomas Jefferson once said, “information is the currency of democracy.” GreenMedInfo was created to help fill a void in the natural health space, as there was a distinct lack of awareness that a massive database of published, peer-reviewed literature exists to support ancient and natural healing systems, the world over; my desire was to fill it with an open access database, completely derived from the National Library of Medicine bibliographic index MEDLINE, which now contains over 23,000 abstracts on the subject. One of my core missions with greenmedinfo.com was also to popularize and disseminate the information widely, and with about 1,000,000 unique visitors on average each month over the past two years, we are starting to bring that goal to fruition.

2. Can you share with us 5 herbs and foods that promote longevity?

There are wide ranges of foods that promote longevity. In fact, our database contains over a hundred, but my favorites are some of the most simple and overlooked. For instance, vitamin C-rich foods have the unique ability to regenerate steroid hormones in the body, including estrogen, progesterone and testosterone, prolonging and increasing their biological activity as well as preventing their degradation into what are potentially carcinogenic-transient hormone metabolites. This is performed by its role as an electron donor. You can learn the details in my article, “Sunshine Vitamin Regenerates and Detoxifies Your Hormones.” Additionally, pomegranate is really one of the most astounding longevity-promoting foods in existence. For instance, it has been shown to replace the function of the mammalian ovary, and it actually contains estrogen and testosterone bioidentical to human steroid hormones. And can you believe it is actually classified as the fruiting ovary of the pomegranate bush, and it looks almost exactly like a human ovary. You can read more about it in, “Amazing Fact: Pomegranate Can Serve As A Back-Up Ovary.” I could go on and on about the many dietary interventions that have been proven to decelerate aging, but one that speaks to many middle-aged people who have noticed aging skin is the power of both aloe and pine bark in reversing visible signs such as wrinkles. Better yet, for those who occasionally smoke, or, worse, regularly smoke, simply stopping will result in turning back the appearance of biological aging 13 years in only 9 months! You can read more about this in my article, 3 Evidence-Based Ways To Reverse Skin Aging.

3. What does a typical day for you look like?

I wake, make my organic coffee, check my email for my two or three dozen MEDLINE abstracts sent automatically by keyword, and do my daily newsletter, which is the primary way that people stay abreast of what we are doing at greenmedinfo.com. It’s free, and you can sign up in one step here. After about an hour, I either work out or do power yoga, and then visit the local health food store for a smoothie. I then usually work some more, which consists of reading, writing, and working through what is the endless set of responsibilities that a large presence in social media requires today.

4. What are some of your go-to herbs/supplements that are in your holistic medicine cabinet?

My favorites are turmeric, pycnogenol, beta glucan, vitamin C (from a food source), chlorophyll, and the reduced form of coenzyme q10 known as ubiquinol. Oh, and of course arnica, for bumps or bruises. : )

5. If you could eat any meal right now, what would you indulge in?

I love steamed greens, brown rice, salmon—really basic foods, and of course all organic. : )

6. What do you do when you want to stay grounded?

I find yoga practice to be extremely grounding for me. Power yoga tends to really enables me to relax and be present. If I travel, I always try to get a yoga class in as soon as possible, and I find it significantly reduces jet lag (which, it has been said, is really your energetic body still partially located in the place you left, perhaps thousands of miles away!). I also am a big fan of the technologies provided by kundalini yoga and energy medicine. I think we are entering an age where we are all starting to acknowledge that, as C. S. Lewis is believed to have said, “You do not have a soul.  You are a soul.  You have a body.” That means our intention, our vibration, our choices largely determine our biological destiny from the top down, and this is actually consistent with some of the physiochemical and molecular explanations of how our body works, coming out of the field of epigenetics.

Sayer Ji is the founder of greenmedinfo.com, on the Board of Governors for the National Health Federation and Fearless Parent, Steering Committee Member of the Global GMO Free Coalition (GGFC), and a reviewer at the International Journal of Human Nutrition and Functional Medicine.

You can also connect with Sayer on Facebook and Twitter.

Getting Real with Brandon Gilbert

The herbal expert who adoringly forgoes taking himself too seriously, Brandon Gilbert embodies an East meets West attitude all his own. Led by a voracious curiosity to share balance with the world through Traditional Chinese Medicine, he expresses his passion most comprehensively through Hyperion Herbs. His online platform and academy offer a wellspring of information (via podcasts, YouTube videos and newsletters) and products, creating a bridge into the ancient wisdom surrounding Chinese Tonic Herbs. With his refreshingly deep awareness and well-developed outlook on health, we look forward to all Brandon is destined to create in the future. 

Where did your spiritual journey begin?

Hmmm, this is a tough one to answer as I don't really believe in myself as an independent solid thing nor do I put weight in the idea that there’s a difference between regular experience and spiritual experience, etc. Taking a shit in the morning is on par with an out of body experience, feeling my dan tien rotate, or taking out the trash, etc. Honestly, sometimes taking a proper shit is more rewarding than any spiritual experience ever could be! Haha, especially when traveling!

Have I offended or discredited myself yet? :)

I began studying Taoism and Zen when I was about 14-15, something about it really just felt natural and right to me. Yet it wasn't until my early 20’s after many years of poor health, deep depression, and lots of anger that I began to wake up. This pain motivated to one day ask, “Maybe I can do something different?” This then led to the realization that “Wow, I'm really a negative, angry asshole that pushes everyone away.” Super deep right? Haha!

From there my obsessive nature really started to kick in and I became focused on health and returning to a more natural state. Fast forward to the present and I'm even more obsessed and spend the majority of my time studying, learning, and practicing Taoism, Nei gong, Chi gong, Ba Gua Chang, GuQin, etc. In all honesty, the deeper I go, the more I learn, the less I really care for other things and the more things naturally fall away without my conscious effort. Perhaps a cave is in my future some day :) 

What is your most practical Traditional Chinese Medicine Advice for the House of Citrine community?

There’s an old Chinese saying which is that “pure water has no fish.” 

My top advice would be to begin working our way out of the mechanistic, salvational, and puritanical way of seeing ourselves and the world that we’ve all been sold as reality. This is a huge conversation in and of itself and I've done countless hours of video on the subject, but for the sake of brevity, let's understand that this is probably where a great deal of our fear, anxiety, and stress comes from. This might sound far out, but it’s a fairly simple process to understand and I’ll break it down in the following way:

At some point in our early development, we have a broadly traumatic experience which causes us to lose our sense of ease, flow, and naturalness which is then replaced with predominate fixation towards anger, fear, worry, sadness, or excitation. Whichever one we lean towards most and the degree to which we do would be largely based on our constitution and the nature of the experience, among a myriad of other factors. From there we basically distort the free flow of chi in our systems and instead prefer certain things over others, thus creating imbalance, or in other words, what we might call the Acquired self. 

The funny thing is that we tend to really believe in the validity, solidity, and independence of this acquired self and as such develop our entire sense of existence around these ideas. Thus we’re actually in love with and addicted to the very cause of our imbalance and lack of ease, hence the judgment, defensiveness and coercion that we commonly understand as normal human behavior. If we examine many of the health, personal development, spiritual practices prevalent in our world today we can see that upon deeper inspections the majority of them are just variations upon the same theme and contain a great deal of self-hatred, coercion, and the salvational thinking which I alluded to previously. 

Some people may read what I'm saying here and immediately default to a sense of morbidity and seriousness, but in my opinion, it can actually be quite funny and entertaining. Really what I'm getting at is the belief that live is really serious and there’s all of this evil that we have to battle against.

Really I think it would be more productive to being focusing on what it means to be a HUMAN and what is human normal. In short, to be human is to be vulnerable, to be alive is to change and flow, and normal health is actually our natural state.

What advice do you have for conscious entrepreneurs?

Do as little as possible. Think as little as possible. Instead observe, find and follow the current. Be of service to yourself and others by being honest with yourself first. From there solve problems, improve, and evolve.

Can you explain why herbs are an essential dietary supplement?

In a very simple and practical way I think herbs are essential because they contain unique information and intelligence that is not found in our modern standardized feed, i.e. diet. 

This in combination with the fact that we all lead largely unnatural lives far removed from the rhythms and cycles of nature means that our systems can get a bit confused.

So other words certain herbs can be really supportive in helping to re-educate our bodies back to a more natural rhythm and cycle, ie. health.

 What is your favorite herb/recipe?

My favorite herb of all time is Reishi Mushroom and I honestly feel closer to this plant than I do to most of the people I’ve encountered in this particular lifetime. 

Reishi can be a profound guide and alley for certain people, which is probably why it’s been called the herb of spiritual potency and why the Chinese for Reishi, Ling Zhi, translates roughly to Spirit Herb. 

For more information about Brandon, check out his website HyperionAcademy.com, HyperionHerbs.com,  and Instagram.

Shiva Rose

We had the pleasure to join Shiva Rose in her beautiful home and talk to her about her consciously chic lifestyle. In her off-white creamy dress, her long dark effortless loose curls, and her upbeat relaxed personality enchanted us.

The Iranian-American beauty has a cozy gracious warmth to her.  She warmly greeted us with a rooibos tea with coconut milk and honey from her backyard. Yes, she’s a beekeeper. Shiva breathes spirituality, from her modern rustic home surrounded with Kundalini vibes, to the plethora of roses from her garden enriched in all corners and topped by whimsical crystals that decorate her earthy habitat.

A woman who has a profound relationship with the earth, a soul deep connection to her Kundalini practice, a hands-on mother, an activist, and working on her line of skincare - What can’t Shiva do? 

What got you into health and wellness?

I always was super conscious of the environment and what I put into my body. As a child I felt at times like an alien because, I would become so distraught over seeing trees cut or the natural world destroyed. Later when I had severe life threatening auto-immune issues, I realized that I had to take my health, into my own control. I began to eat 100% organically, and live close to mama earth. These things led me to becoming healthy in spirit, body and mind. 

What is "The Local Rose"?

The Local Rose is a holistic life style web site that proves you can be green and chic at the same time. I started it due to my desire to help our planet, celebrate artisans and people who are in harmony with nature, and as an answer from a call from the great spirit. 

What is beauty?

One of my favorite prayers is Walking the Beauty Way by the Navajo people. It states 

In beauty I walk 

With beauty before me I walk 

With beauty behind me I walk 

With beauty above me I walk 

With beauty around me I walk 

This i feel is the ultimate beauty to see it reflected around us in little details and gestures. Seeing it in the trees or flowers or sweet people you may encounter throughout your day. 

Beauty is also glowing from within from a peaceful state, food that is alive and using non-toxic products.

What do you do to get "centered"?

I go hiking in the mountains near where I live. I take salt baths with salts I make. I drink Living Tea and practice Kundalini meditation. 

Share a line from your favorite poem: 

I love Poetry! I’m half Persian and half Irish so here are two from each culture…

This paragraph by Persian Poet Forough Farrokhzad:

I will plant my hands in the garden

I will grow I know I know I know

and swallows will lay eggs

in the hollow of my ink-stained hands.

I shall wear

a pair of twin cherries as ear-rings

and I shall put dahlia petals on my finger-nails

By Yeats:

How many loved your moments of glad grace, 

And loved your beauty with love false or true, 

But one man loved the pilgrim soul in you, 

And loved the sorrows of your changing face; 

What inspired your skincare line?

I have been mixing oils and making my own products since I was a teen. During a kundalini mediation I got a message about starting the line. It was a natural progression since I am ruled my the Rose and this is one of the crucial ingredients in the first product I made the Rose Face Serum.

Describe your perfect day?

A perfect day would be to wake up with my daughters, make a delicious breakfast, take a hike, then go on a picnic with some friends in Ojai or Big Sur.

Who has influenced you most in your life?

I grew up reading lots of novels and plays so I would say heroines in both fiction and non-fiction have inspired me. Many artists have also since they seemed to determine their own paths and were vanguards in terms of art, fashion, and philosophy. Women like Frida Kahlo, Georgia O’Keefe, Tina Modotti, Beatrice Wood. 

How has your childhood experience shaped the rest of your life?

My childhood at least the first ten years was in the country side of Iran. This bucolic setting inspired in me a love for nature. Later when we were in the States, my American Grandparents made sure to take us camping every summer into beautiful places like Yosemite. This taught me that these places are sacred and sanctuaries to be protected. Having been exposed to a lot of trauma and challenges as a child has made me appreciate a calm, peaceful life. It also gave me an artists soul, and now that is being translated into the blog and products. 

What is so special about roses?

Roses are the Queen of all Flowers. They have the highest vibrational frequency and can be so healing. They are anti-aging and anti-inflammatory for the skin and also open the heart chakra. They are my allies and I am so honored to carry their name. 

What is your favorite product you've created?

My products are like my children I love them all! Since I make them by hand they truly come from my heart. Lately my Nectar Body Oil is giving me lots of joy. The ylang ylang and cardamom combination makes my soul sing! 

Keep up with Shiva Rose on her Instagram, Twitter, and beautiful website!

Alchemy Arts Center

Alchemy Spa is the premiere healing sanctuary.  From Ayurvedic cuisine to sensory attenuation tanks - there is a doorway to every desire inside Alchemy.

The owner, Emma, was lovely enough to sit down with us for breakfast.  Emma's life is dedicated to her mission of healing at Alchemy Arts Center.

Could you tell us about the history of the center?

Alchemy opened four years ago in March after being inspired by a two-week retreat I experienced in Thailand that changed my life. Everyday I did yoga, ate cleansing foods, and was supported through healing treatments like acupuncture. I felt incredible! My energy was boundless and I felt clear, strong and positive—something I hadn’t felt since I was a child. 

I found myself asking, “Why did I have to go all the way to Thailand to experience this?”  That was question was answered for me shortly after landing back in Santa Barbara where I intuitively decided, “It’s going to be here.” My intention was to create a sacred space for both guests and employees to thrive and heal.

Our priority at Alchemy is to provide people with support and inspiration to lead a more balanced life. Creating Alchemy Wellness Spa has been the most incredible experience, but it’s also been intense. There’ve been many challenges (especially in the beginning), but this is my passion—I had to push through! I feel incredibly blessed to have had the opportunity to have gone through this experience and been so closely involved throughout the journey of manifesting this idea.

Can you tell us about your offerings?

We are all dealing with a lot of stress in this modern, fast-paced world of ours. Whether that stress is from the environment, a divorce, the death of a loved one, an injury, the loss of a job, etc., it’s essential to allow the body to release that stress – along with any other negative emotions. It’s also important to have the consciousness to learn how to take care of one’s self. People need a place where they can go to learn how to do this, to reset themselves so to speak, so they can enjoy life to it’s fullest. Alchemy is that sacred space. 

All year-round we offer organic cold press juice cleanses and a cleansing food program. It’s really important to understand that our organs are our guidance system for this life of ours. Even if we have a super clean diet there are environmental pollutants that store in our bodies. 

Once a month we offer featured cleanses facilitated by our beloved Siddhi. 

Our last cleanse focused on the liver. The participants gathered in the morning and were guided through movements and breath work focusing on cleansing the liver which supports weight loss, healthy sleep, renewed energy, better digestion, relief from depression & balanced hormones. 

There are also food treatment packages designed for liver support; Alchemy’s amazing wraps with macerated herbs soaked in specific oils. 

We also have an incredible float tank full of Epsom salts with a special Memon ® transformer to remove any harmful energetics from the water; Much like a crystal, water stores energy. If we have “unhealthy or bad” information/radiation that enters our cells (us), the water in our cells, naturally transmits this to the cells next to it making reproduction of healthy cells more complicated. This is the natural process of our body’s intelligence. The usual  "purification" process used to treat water is great at removing potentially dangerous chemicals and ionic materials from water. Though these potential dangerous contaminants are removed, the water still remains, with electrical "imprints" of bad things that were in the water, attached to the water molecules before those chemicals were removed, or simply "imprinted" into the electrical characteristics of the water molecules from external sources. The tank is especially amazing after a massage. 

We have a wide array of services and have ways for people of all budgets to interact with us. For example we hold a group acupuncture class every week . They are an amazingly economical way to experience Alchemy at $15 . 

We also offer Aura-Soma, which is a non-intrusive, self-selective soul system. Combining the energies of colour, plants, and crystals, these vibrational tools can support all levels of our being, bringing harmony and balance within the subtle fields promoting wellbeing and a joy for life.

What treatment do you suggest for first timers?

I love the crystal healing facial. Using the healing vibration of crystals, this experience very calming. We use fresh Rose cells and Rose Damascena to rejuvenate and raise the vibrational energy of the skin. Deep lymphatic drainage and acupressure with hot poultices and Rose Quartz, restores a glowing radiance to the skin..Pure Bliss…

Then to complete the Alchemy experience I would recommend our Pearl and Jasmine body renewal with an amethyst wrap. This mineral-rich Himalayan salt crystal treatment, has the immediate effect of restoring energy, mental clarity, wellbeing and strength. This is followed by a gel body wrap to relax and restore the nervous system; stimulating the circulation, regeneration of skin cells and cell growth.

What are your favorite spots in SB?

Santa Barbara is a truly incredible place to live.  I’m a swimmer so I love the ocean. But really there’s so much to love here—the sunsets, sunrises, the trails, the trees, the restaurants, the people. The list goes on.

What is essential that you can’t live without?

My essentials are my family, my spiritual practice, friends, Ayurveda, and last but not least adventures.

I was just going to say that.  You seem like an adventurous person.

Humans can get stuck in repetition, so I like doing something that takes me out of that. Like getting up early in the morning and going for a swim in freezing cold water, Sleeping under the stars—something that gets me out of my usual comfort.  

It’s strange that as humans we are often afraid of change, yet we change all the time. At each breath our molecules are transforming. We often look for safety in not changing, even if it’s not supportive to our well-being. I like to ask, “Who would you be if you were really just present living your life right now in this moment?” This is all we have . This moment ! We have to show up the best that we are able to…To Forgive, To be grateful, To Laugh, To share, To Love.

We’re not necessarily taught how to do that.  When you give yourself to the moment, you start to live your life from a different perspective.

What does alchemy mean to you?

Transformation, transformation of one thing into something greater and more refined. Alchemy is a place to come together, share ideas, find connections, release old patterns that no longer serve us and transform ourselves into something better.

Why is self care so important?

I believe it’s vitally important to take care of yourself. In our culture we are taught that it’s selfish to put ourselves first. When in actuality, unless you know how to take care of yourself (love and fully accept yourself), you won’t be able to do that for another.

Tel: 805-899-8811

35 West Haley Street,
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Keep up with Alchemy Arts Center on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and their website!

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Scarlett Begonia

Scarlet Begonia is farm-to-table breakfast, lunch and dinner at its best. Located in the Historic Victoria Building courtyard with hints of Spanish style architecture, Scarlet Begonia’s is everything you want to eat made with only the best ingredients. Every item is meticulously picked and gathered by Chef Avery who personally visits to the farmers market and chooses only the freshest seasonal produce he can find.

We sat down with Owner Crista Fooks and Chef Avery to find out more about this conscious nurturing restaurant.  Organic, local, sustainable - exactly why we had been making this our Santa Barbara staple.  Just know when you are eating here — all the food is made with love and intention.

CHEF AVERY:  I know a bunch of farmers.  I do really simple food.  It’s seasonal and thoughtful.  It’s somewhere in the middle of modern and rustic.  People ask us what kind of food we do, and I like to respond by saying “the food we have around us”.  I forage wild edibles, and we work with a local farm called “Sustained Harvest” that uses aquaponics to grow food.  Today, I’ll be at the farmers market at 3 and we will do an “on the fly” menu which is based off of what I find at the market. 

What inspires your dishes?

CHEF AVERY:  Seasons.  If it’s cold out - we lean towards rich fare.  As we move into spring - it gets really light, really sexy, and very green and colorful. 

What is your favorite meal to cook?

CHEF AVERY:  Breakfast.  Such a small percentage of people actually go out to eat.  They’re there for the food and they need sustenance but it also brings family’s together for birthdays, engagements, parties.  It’s a celebration.  It’s exciting to see all these different types of people wake up real early in the morning and come in to eat breakfast. 

What is an ingredient you can’t live without?

CHEF AVERY: Salt.  Salt is what makes everything better.  When you look back on history, salt is the reason time went on.  It preserved foods.  Without salt - we don’t go on. 

Being a native, what do you love about Santa Barbara?

CHEF AVERY: The seasons, they change so much we can grow things that other people can’t.  It takes 5 minutes to have your feet in the sand and 10 minutes to be in the mountains climbing rocks and picking wild fennel.

Why Santa Barbara?

CRISTA:  You’d think Santa Barbara would be a lot greener as far as the food is concerned, but there aren’t many restaurants like us in Santa Barbara.  I think ‘farm to table” has been bastardized in the industry.  A lot of restaurants may say they are farm to table, but we really embrace local innovative simple cuisine, and we feel a deep obligation to stay true to our word. 

My restaurant strives to offer a high end food experience- at the same time being a neighborhood joint that you can bring your kids and dogs for breakfast lunch and dinner.  Sustainable meat and seafood, gmo free, organic produce and dairy; we work hard to stay fresh…we don’t short cut our customers.

What makes Scarlett Begonia so special?

CRISTA:  We call our food “thoughtful”, because there is so much thought behind every single dish.  When I first made our Lemon Ricotta pancakes - I got a lot of grief …people said “no restaurant makes pancakes like this where you whip the egg whites and you make it light.  It’s never going to work.  You’ll never pull it off.”  Well, we pulled it off.  We’re practiced at it.  The guys in the back can make these pancakes in their sleep.  When I was a kid my mom never a pancake that didn’t have whipped egg whites.  When we first opened she was very firm that we continue doing that, and I’ve kept my promise!  Every dish has a story, every dish is given great care and thought, and every dish must be great, and that is what sets us apart.

It’s amazing that you had this vision and now we are sitting here - experiencing it!

CRISTA: My vision does drive me, and continues to.   People don’t necessarily know what it is, cause I’m a little weird about sharing and it constantly being tweaked and re-arranged in my head. My whole life I’ve always had a very determined mindset of how I want things to be, and I’ve found that if I shared it with people before it is complete— they would tell me it was too hard or try to kabosh it — and so I just keep it a secret and just plow forward. 

What’s your favorite thing on the menu?

CRISTA:  If I only could order one thing for the rest of my life it would be the soft scrambled eggs.  It’s such a good little mix.  We’ve perfected it over the past three years….and I rarely admit to perfecting anything! We roast fingerling potatoes and toss them in whole grain mustard, we softly scrambled eggs with fine herbs and place them on top of the potatoes, then fresh spinach is lightly sauteed and finished with fresh cream, topped with an aged gouda cheese (beemster)  I think it’s such a well balanced dish.

What made you decide to enter the culinary industry?

CRISTA:  I grew up in Valencia, which is a horrible place for food.  It’s all fast food or chain restaurants.  I was raised on fast food!  There was this little bistro that opened up in a strip mall called “The Crocodile Bistro”.  My dad wanted to go check it out — and this was in 1982 or ’83.  This is kind of when food started to happen — when people began to move away from the industrialization of convenience food.  So we went into “Crocodile Bistro” and he was making purees next to your steak, like sweet pea puree — which back then was like crazy, avant-garde.  We took a bite of it and we were like “OH MY GOD IT TASTES JUST LIKE PEAS.  OH MY GOD.”  I will never forget how fancy it felt in there.  My dad started talking to the owner and his name was Jean Pierre, and my dad called him JP.  They became friends and he would invite my dad to come and cook.  My dad could not cook, but he started with JP and practiced at home.  He got super into it and then I got super into it.  That’s when we both really found food.  For my birthday from then on, my grandmother would take me to any restaurant I wanted to go to.  I would spend all year trying to figure out which restaurant I would choose. 

Eventually, someone told me that I should go to culinary school.  I hadn’t considered it before that.  So I went!

Tel: (805) 770-2143

11 W Victoria St #10,
Santa Barbara, CA 93101

Keep up with Scarlett Begonia on Facebook and their website.

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