Clayground Ceramic Studio
Feel like playing in the analog world? Clayground brings the co-working concept to ceramics.
What is it: A co-working space for ceramicists of all levels.
Why you’ll love it: Take the coworking concept — flexible access, a supportive community, thoughtful design, and the provisions necessary to thrive — then apply it to the practice of ceramics, and you arrive at Clayground.
What you need to know: Whether as a hobbyist just getting started or a professional looking for the space to create, Clayground has put in the investment — in space, tools, and community — to support ceramicists. A cozy space, memberships are on application and provide 24/7 access not only to the studio space but also to all aspects of production including wheels, tools, and glazes. During “normal times,” check out the workshop schedule and studio sales.
How to bring this into your life: Ready to play in the analog world? Purchase one of their clay kits to do at home, with all the tools and materials you need to get your hands muddy.
Why we think it's different: If you need it and can’t find it, build it. Clayground was founded by architect Jonas Klock and user researcher and service designer Caitlin Delphine, after she moved from Stockholm to Berlin and couldn’t find the kind of community space she needed in which to make her ceramics. She found that others shared that need too, with Clayground soon having an active membership (which you can also shop on the site).
As we’re increasingly looking for ways to bring creativity into our lives, to make with our hands, to produce something material, places like Clayground stake out vital space for exactly that. It’s been designed to make creativity happen within a community of support and takes the intimidation factor out of claiming to be a creative person.
We also love how ceramics as a practice can feel like a return to form, a much-needed antidote perhaps to the functionality that dominates our modern lives. Making visible something through clay is something that we can grasp onto as life starts to feel more and more about the intangible.
In their own words: “Clayground is a ceramics co-working studio for ceramics memberships and ceramics workshops. Our thoughtfully designed space in a quiet corner of Friedrichshain, Berlin brings together a collaborative community, with clay creatives of all levels helping each other. We believe in having time and space to focus on your craft, without navigating around drop-in hours.”
To find out more: Website / Instagram
Rawberry
A plant-based juice bar and cafe helping you feel good.
What is it: A vegetarian juice bar and café just off Winchester High Street
Why you’ll love it: Massive pink letters on the window announce its ‘Feel Good’ factor and once you step inside the bright café space (if allowed at the time of visiting) you’ll instantly get how different this place is.
What you need to know: What you eat affects how you feel – that’s the idea behind a menu of juices with names like ‘Belly Buddy’ and ‘Super Skin’ and Smoothies that include ‘Green is the New Black’. Caffeinated options go the Beetroot and Turmeric Latte route and there’s even a Superfood Hot Chocolate.
While there: Check out The Study Hub downstairs, 6 tables reserved for serious work, and getting out of the house when that option is available to us again.
What they offer beyond the cafe: Weekly juice deliveries – bringing bottled sunshine to you over grey days – and for those times when all the supermarket delivery slots are booked, opt for one of the essentials provisions and raw boxes. Also, see retail treats – like Soakin’s line of bath salts for when this world of ours is getting too much.
Why we think it matters: If you are of the post milk generation, believe that independents are crucial to healthy communities – this is a family run business - and sustainable sourcing goes hand in hand with your daily coffee – they serve River Coffee Roasters which makes sure the people who produce the beans benefit too – then places like Rawberry have a role on our High Streets. Our everyday choices like where we pick up our daily cup have impacts beyond just making us feel good (or awake), helping our communities, food producers, and even the animals taken out of the food system.
In their own words: ‘At Rawberry, we know it can be difficult to find alternatives on Winchester’s High Street; Whether it's vegetarian, vegan, gluten or dairy-free. Options are sparse. This is why for the last three years, from our beginnings as a humble market stall, we have been working on the alternative.’
To find out more: Website / Instagram / Twitter
Everything is Schitt
Escapism is not the answer for so many reasons…except for when it is totally the answer, because everything is shit and sometimes you just need to feel better. This is not often the way forward, and hardly ever what we’d recommend, but sometimes a show comes along with the potential to make us feel so good, that we’re pretty sure it would be recommended by our therapists (or at the very least, our astrologists). In this case, Schitt’s Creek is that show.
Picture this: Your country is under lockdown in the midst of a global pandemic. It’s an election year and the people whose voices need to be heard most are being actively suppressed. The leader of the free world has never actually lived in the real world (or paid federal taxes in this world) nor does he have any grasp for what it means to be an active member of this world, yet he’s somehow become the voice of the “average American man”. *shudder*
Now imagine that storms are ravaging half the country while the other half literally burns to the ground. Imagine being stuck at home, realizing that you aren’t qualified to assist with 3rd-grade math. Imagine that you are one of the 2.65 million women forced out of the workforce as you return to 1950s America while your partner continues to “support you”. (#blessed) Or worse, you are out of work completely, on your own as you search for a job or any level of assistance, and there is no funding available to help you through. Imagine that you, like our country, are a flaming mess of tears and fire and rage, a vibe that is echoed throughout your life and home…but you still have to find a suitable corner to display to literally every person you’d want to hide your home from. Imagine thinking you were on mute.
*deep breath*
Now imagine giving up and watching TV all day.
Ok, ok, ok, we know - escapism is not the answer (and hardly ever what we’d recommend) but sometimes the world feels so shitty and a show comes along with the potential to make us feel so good that we’re pretty sure it would be recommended by our therapists (or at the very least, our astrologists). In this case, that show is: Schitt’s Creek.
If you still remain unconvinced as to why Schitt’s Creek is the best show on television and why you should watch every episode in rapid succession as soon as possible, please enjoy this rundown of relevant quotes and responses to our current woes.
This was all of us (circa mid April):
Then again in slightly later mid-April:
Our children every day of distance learning:
Getting back on Tinder in the midst of a pandemic when you know you really shouldn’t, like:
Trump to his supporters:
Biden explaining to Trump how he is going to win the presidency:
Our friends when we suggest they wear their masks when we hang out:
Casually trying to interact with our friends/co-workers on a crowded zoom session:
When the internet suggests we be more productive with our newfound “free” time:
Our friends after we’ve depression-ghosted them for months then finally text them back:
Us, spending money we do not have on skincare products we don’t need:
The world right now:
Us, feigning hope for the future:
Miyoko's Creamery
Miyoko’s Creamer is making “doing good” feel very easy for the rest of us.
Doing Good From Home with Miyoko’s Creamery
What is it: Founded by celebrity chef Miyoko Shinner, Miyoko’s is a California-based vegan cheese company whose mission is to shift the dairy industry from animal to plant-based. They call this the Evolution of Dairy and it is all very exciting!
Why you’ll love it: More than being one of the most delicious dairy replacement items we’ve ever had (and, truly, we’ve tried it all) we love Miyokos because it stands for something. While their mission is partially to help you make an out-of-this-world mac n cheese that will blow the minds of your very non-vegan friends, it is, equally, to shift our world completely, by inspiring more people to go vegan. (They even run a farm animal sanctuary!)
What you need to know: If the world stopped consuming meat and dairy, global farmland use would be reduced by over 75 percent. That’s the equivalent of the United States, China, the European Union, and Australia combined reverting their farmland back to a natural environment. Buying an electric car, lowering your thermostat, and taking quick showers all pale in comparison to simply eating less meat and dairy. The way we produce, consume, and waste food is unsustainable. Every person has the power to effect change just by their daily food choices. (Source: The Guardian)
What they offer: Literally: Vegan cheeses, butter and spreads made by skilled cheesemakers, using traditional cheesemaking cultures and processes resulting in a line of products so good that we actually can’t even understand how it is possible. (It also makes all the dishes we bring to Thanksgiving instant hits with our otherwise skeptical families). Figuratively: hope for a sustainable world that does not depend on the exploitation of animals.
Why we think it’s different: If you were vegan over a decade ago, you might remember the floppy American-cheese-esque slices that once sat on the outskirts of the produce section, near the tofu. They were, putting it lightly, a travesty. (Though we thank them for a stepping stone in the dairy-free evolution.) Miyokos is different because its products are aged and processed in a way that mimics the dairy industry processes. In short: we’re able to make mac and cheese and lasagna and brown butter sauce without feeling like we’ve sacrificed anything in regard to flavor or texture. More than that, we feel GOOD about ourselves when we make this switch. This. . .is a game-changer.
In their own words: “Our mission is: Phenomenally Vegan. What do we mean by that? It’s the new gold standard for the future of food that emphasizes artistry, integrity, ethics and conviviality. It's the credo that drives everything we do from the creation of our products to inspiring others to try this phenomenal lifestyle. Phenomenally Vegan is how we change the world. Together.”
Why we love them: In addition to their wonderful products, lovely founder, and ambitious mission, we love Miyokos because of their dedication, honesty, and adherence to their values. In 2015, Miyoko founded Rancho Compassion, a farmed-animal sanctuary based in west Marin County. Here, over 70 (otherwise slaughter-bound) animals have the chance to live out their days in peace and comfort. Visitors are encouraged to come and interact with the animals, receive education into humane living and maybe even cuddle a cow. (All offerings are virtual for now, but the sanctuary is still very much in operation!) We love Miyokos because they’ve found a way to take their passion for all living beings and put it into products that are actually capable of freeing those same beings. They make “doing good” feel very easy for the rest of us.
The Vagina Museum
The world’s first museum is more than a display of gynecological anatomy. It’s dedicated to a serious discussion of women’s health, feminism, and sexuality.
What is it: The world’s first bricks-and-mortar museum dedicated to what have often been the unmentionable parts of a woman’s body.
What you need to know: Now in its starter space in Camden Market, The Vagina Museum has serious ambitions — the hope is for a permanent larger space in the next couple of years — and serious credentials — founded by science communicator Florence Schechter with sex tech entrepreneurs and gynecologists alongside global health specialists on hand to advise. Get over the titillation/gawping/shock factor (of which there is very little – this is not the vibe) and you are down to vital questions around gender and sexuality, feminism and equality, health and reproductive rights. With exhibits like Muff Busters and Periods that go straight to the taboos, The Vagina Museum takes on what we think we know about women’s bodies and what we actually need to know.
Why you’ll love it: A lot is going on down there and as women, we know there are impacts that go beyond biology (hopefully some of our menfolk know that too now). The mission statement in itself has us excited from raising awareness of gynecological health through to ‘challenging heteronormative and cisnormative behaviour.’
Why we think it’s different: Come on, it’s a museum about women’s bits, about vulvas and vaginas, and the other parts that gynecologists rather than the museum-going public are more acquainted with (though let's face it half of us have them so there’s a contradiction there).
Women’s bodies have been horrifically and frustratingly relegated. Men’s bodies have been used as the standard for modern medicine, women take medicines constructed with the male anatomy in mind, women’s pain is often minimized, we even have longer waiting times in A&E, students are only now learning about menopause along with sex education in schools, and serious mental health symptoms are often put down to gender-biased ideas of hysteria, anxiety, and emotional spirals. Also, there has been a 500% increase in vagioplasty between 2002 and 2012, period poverty still affects thousands of women and girls worldwide, and 200 million women and girls globally have undergone female genital mutilation. We could sadly go on and on.
But for now, let’s add to that list: that many of us who identify as women can point to moments when our own experience of our bodies and minds weren’t taken seriously and understood in ways that could have helped us see a way through and got us the help we needed.
Get beyond saying Vagina, and you get to some of the starkest issues facing women today.
How to bring this into your life: Severely impacted during the spring lockdown, The Vagina Museum has just completed a successful crowdfunding project to reopen in October. To continue their work and continuing operations, you can support them through the online store. Their FAQ’s also has one of the best guides as to the difference between vulvas and vaginas that we’ve read for a while (maybe even ever) if you need an anatomy refresher.
In their own words: “The aim of the Vagina Museum is to destigmatise the vagina, vulva and gynaecological anatomy. Through destigmatisation comes empowerment for all people with vulvas. …. feminism has fought very hard to have women viewed as something other than objects, as people and not just sex objects or baby vessels. Objectification of women is wrong. But for many people, their vagina is a part of their identity and directly affects their lives. It is one part of a greater whole that makes the person. By shutting down discussions about vaginas, it makes it difficult to address issues that are directly related to them like FGM and sexual violence. That must end and the first step is by acknowledging that vaginas exist and they deserve respect.”
To find out more: Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter
If you’ve visited The Vagina Museum or you know of other places that look at a healthy connection between women’s minds and bodies let us know about it. Things change all the time and we want to make sure we’re bringing you the most up to date information and the latest places.
Soul Circus Festival
Too soon to think about what your well-being looks like next summer? Not according to this Cotswold based glitterball of a holistic festival.
What is it: A summer festival that puts wellness at the center but keeps the fun going, set in the beautiful Cotswold countryside.
Why you’ll love it: If Downward Facing Dog in the company of hundreds and an openness to all things wellness is your thing, then this is the Summer weekender for you. Who needs wellies and stumbling drunk into tents when you can have tipis full of meditation, breathwork sessions from GOOP superheroes, and yoga to Beyonce (as in played not present). Don’t worry there’s still cocktails to be had, comedy for life-affirming belly-laughs, and serious dancing in the evening (Goldie and Norman Jay MBE have attended previous years).
What you need to know: Is it too early to think about summer festivals and spending long summer days outside (as we start to huddle indoors in 12 layers)? Seems not. Tickets are already on sale for 2021. Who knows where the world will be by then but this year Soul Circus managed to pull off a COVID secure festival with 46,000 attendees spread over 59 days of programs in Cheltenham’s Montpellier Gardens.
What they offer – from here and there: When our worlds closed down earlier this year, Soul Circus brought its festival to our homes with their on-demand platform. Still going strong you can recreate some of the magic in your living rooms, with videos that offer the same range of classes and events, with yoga, dance, pilates, HIIT, cooking classes, DJ sets, and coaching sessions. There are even Gong baths online.
Why we think it's different: This is one festival that gets that wellness isn’t just white lycra and the splits against beautiful sunsets. The 2020 event had a community mental health clinic in one of its tents to meet new needs after months of pandemic induced stresses. We are all struggling in our own ways and there are like a thousand ways (not an exact number) to respond to those needs. Soul Circus isn’t about how stretchy your body is, but about finding a way that works for you to recalibrate your life. Then you can take whatever it is you have discovered with you when you return to your everyday world.
In their own words: “Because at the end of the day, we’re here to expand your curiosities, provide you a safe place to explore your unknowns, and sprinkle just a bit of glitter into your every day.”
To find out more: Website / Instagram / Facebook
If you’ve visited the Soul Circus Festival or you love other wellness-based festivals let us know about it. Things change all the time and we want to make sure we’re bringing you the most up to date information and the latest places to go to find that mind/body connection.
Remedies at Apothe-cary
A modern-day apothecary to help with modern-day ailments deep in the Somerset countryside.
What is it: A modern take on the apothecary, this tiny independent in the Somerset town of Castle Cary feels like a cabinet of curiosities for wellbeing.
Why you’ll love it: For serious roaming and rabbit-hole potential. Densely packed with remedies for modern life, with useful signs to help you navigate and owner Nell to lead you to what you need.
What you need to know: We now know that it's complicated, what we buy. Even as we think we’re making good choices, sometimes we inadvertently support the thing we don’t want to. A cruelty-free product owned by a non-cruelty free abiding parent company, a reduced waste product that is part of a complex production chain, a supplement that has lost all its goodness by the time it makes it back to your kitchen.
Here they’ve done all the work for you of tracing a product and making sure it's all the things you hope it will be: like wildcrafted, organic, vegan, cruelty-free, and sustainably sourced. Remedies at Apothe-cary makes it easier to find the most holistic version of whatever snacks or skincare, supplements or scents, you need to restore some equilibrium in your life.
What they offer (online and off): We love The Dispensary – weighing out therapeutic teas or naturally mined salts. There’s something of the child in us about seeing those glass jars opened for our grown-up treats. The store is currently building up its online shop so check back for developments.
Why we think it matters: We’ve all been goopified to some extent. We know by now that what you put in your body, affects not just how you look but how you feel. A packet of Karma Bites might do more for you than a pack of Cheetos, a bath in Epsom salts more restorative than one in Mr. Matey (though got to love those bubbles). Everything is connected, and having a holistic understanding of the impacts of what we consume helps us feel better within those bodies and minds of ours.
In their own words: “Our interest in health and wellness embraces the traditional and medicinal role of plants, herbs, and earth minerals, including ancient Ayurvedic principles - as well as the evolving science of nutritional medicine. We have researched to find the acclaimed, from award-winning organic and food-grade health supplements to decoctions, balms, essential oils, and flower essences.”
To find out more: Website / Instagram / Facebook
If you’ve visited Remedies at Apothe-cary or you know other modern wellness places let us know about it. Things change all the time and we want to make sure we’re bringing you the most up to date information and the latest places to go to help.
Brigade Bar + Kitchen
At Brigade Bar + Kitchen, food is bringing brighter futures to London’s homeless.
“The first thing that cooking does, and professional cooking, is that it gives you structure. And that’s exactly what people need when they have a highly complex situation where they have lost everything. Probably structure is the one thing that they are desperate for.”
What is it: On London’s South Bank, heaving with history in a converted brick fire station similarly heaving with history (built after the Great Fire, it’s one of the capital’s oldest), Brigade Bar + Kitchen is not just a lovely place to escape for a meal, but a vital place for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness to escape their situation.
What you need to know: Founded by Simon Boyle, Beyond Food of which this restaurant is the public-facing part, offers cooking apprenticeships, opportunities, and support for people who have been displaced. The figures of those helped are a testament that it is having an impact: 3,500 people have been through Breakthrough Kitchen, 1,200 through Freshlife, and 825 have graduated from Get Stuck In, with 133 people now employed full time
Why you’ll love it: Beyond Brigade is built on generosity. And we’re not saying that lightly. Even during the bleakest days of the pandemic, Boyle didn’t stop making good things happen through food. During the lockdown, and as his own restaurant closed, Boyle and his team kept working with other restaurants to bring meals to those in need and to redistribute food to hospitals, food banks, and direly impacted communities. Boyle set up the Beyond Food support line, offering mental health resources for people in the hospitality sector — from chefs to pot washers to servers — experiencing financial hardship, loneliness, and lost motivation. As the hospitality industry still struggles from the impacts of COVID 19, Hospitality Made Again is helping it survive.
How to bring this into your life: If you are someone in the hospitality sector who has been furloughed or are out of work check out Made Again, which offers a 100% free program for positively approaching this situation.
Also Invisible Chips. Yep, these exist: 0% fat, 100% charity (read a three pounds fifty donation to help Hospitality Action). Or you can directly support the work of the Beyond Food Foundation by buying new cookbook Feast with Purpose that includes recipes from 140 chefs.
Why we think it matters: Work is so integral to our sense of self. It gives us something to focus on, it allows us to be part of something bigger, it offers financial and life stability. For the homeless community that Boyle works with it also offers a different life and a different future. Through programs that support over 100 people each year, Beyond Food takes on some of the social issues that keep people homeless including health problems, substance abuse, housing shortages and benefit dependency, and some of the personal ones such as low self-esteem, a sense of hopelessness, and lack of purpose, to create the infrastructure for different lives.
In their own words: “Our solution is based around simple, good food. Cooking it and serving it. At Beyond Food, we aim to inspire people to begin the process of developing skills and attitudes that can become the foundation for their work and life for the future. We bring freshly cooked food into the lives of vulnerable people, as it plays a crucial role in helping them stand on their own two feet. It helps them live healthier lives. Learning the basics of cooking, equips them with building blocks to create lives full of purpose. Good food, kitchen skills and harnessing a sense of vitality, lays the groundwork towards helping them contribute and belong in society.”
To find out more: Website / Instagram / Facebook / Twitter
If you’ve visited Brigade Bar + Kitchen or you know other restaurants with purpose let us know about it. Things change all the time and we want to make sure we’re bringing you the most up to date information and the latest places to go to help.
Chapter 510 and the Department of Make Believe
Need permission to dream? The Department of Make Believe gives you, and kids in Oakland, exactly that.
“I am rooted here
because this city reminds me of who I want to be
is the only place that accepts me for me
provides my tension as well as my release
lets me be all of my selves.”
What is it: A writing, bookmaking, and publishing center for Oakland’s youth fronted by a rather fantastic magical bureaucracy.
Why you’ll love it: Words matter. They give us pathways, allow for hope, shape the sense of our lives, and of ourselves. Through writing, bookmaking, and publishing workshops and camps, Chapter 510 brings words to those aged 6 to 18 living in Oakland. Here poetry is used to imagine better futures, storytelling to explore Black Joy, and songwriting to address racial injustice and the impacts of the pandemic.
Why we think it matters: By providing access to creativity, Chapter 510 also teaches confidence, joy, and courage. Through authoring essays and stories and magazines, Chapter 510 creates eager learners and leaders, future change-makers and creatives. By establishing a learning center led by teaching artists, volunteers, and educators, Chapter 510 makes a safe and supportive space for the youth in their community. It’s a place that invites all people to make-believe, whether shopping their magical products or attending one of the programs.
In their own words: “Chapter 510 is a Made in Oakland literacy project focused on developing creative and expository writing skills for students. Founded by parents, educators, writers, and youth-serving organizations, Chapter 510 shares a vision for Oakland as a place where we make our children and their perspectives visible; where teachers are honored and supported; and where we expand our community’s belief in its own possibilities.”
Something to do: If you live locally, volunteer to teach, tutor, or mentor. Or volunteer your design skills, your time, your other abilities (they are very open about who they need to support their mission - if you can help and want to help, you can apply to volunteer here). Even as classes go online during the pandemic, there are opportunities to help continue the work of Chapter 510 remotely.
How to bring this into your life wherever you are: You can now dream virtually from home with capsules of dehydrated courage and liquid procrastination.
To find out more: Website // Facebook // Twitter // Instagram
If you’ve visited Chapter 510 and the Department of Make Believe let us know about it. Things change all the time and we want to make sure we’re bringing you the most up to date information.
Therapy for Black Girls
From providing access to therapists who understand the experiences of Black Women to offering products and publications that destigmatize common mental health issues, Therapy for Black Girls is an online space dedicated to encouraging the mental wellness of Black women and girls.
“ Stigma is probably a primary reason why lots of people of color struggle with seeking help for mental health concerns. Historically, it’s not something that has been done in our community. Lots of us were raised to feel like what goes on in this house, stays in this house. ”
Go here: For therapy specifically and mental wellness more generally that takes on the unique life experiences and social contexts of Black women and girls.
What you need to know: From providing access to therapists who understand the experiences of Black Women to offering products and publications that destigmatize common mental health issues, Therapy for Black Girls is an online space dedicated to encouraging the mental wellness of Black women and girls. It was founded in 2014 as a blog by licensed psychologist (and Oprah Magazine resident) Dr. Joy Harden Bradford after watching the positive energy created in the TV show Black Girls Rock and wanting to apply that same uplifting feeling to Black women’s experience of therapy. With the addition of a directory of Black therapists and a popular podcast in 2017, Therapy for Black Girls has since been recognized by Solange Knowles as the place for Black women to prioritize their own mental health.
Why it matters so much now: Therapy for Black Girls aims to contend with the stigma and mistrust around the practice that has been felt within the Black community. Similarly, therapy has traditionally neglected the specific realities of Black women and girls or reinforced their oppression. The mental wellness sector has similarly failed to contend with issues of collective trauma, systemic racism, and social inequalities of Black Americans. At a moment that Black Lives Matter is advocating for justice and equality, the one profession that needs to take this on is the one that speaks to healing, transformation, and wellbeing, that of therapy.
How to bring this into your life: In addition to their online directory of ‘culturally competent therapists’ that now has over 800 listings (some of whom offer virtual therapy sessions), Therapy for Black Girls also offers an entire online community for Black women called The Yellow Couch Collective: a space for Black women to support one another, connect, learn and thrive (with off-line events that have included a Netflix watch party for Michelle Obama’s Becoming).
In their own words: “So often the stigma surrounding mental health issues and therapy prevents Black women from taking the step of seeing a therapist. This space was developed to present mental health topics in a way that feels more accessible and relevant.”
One piece of advice, something to inspire, to do: Listen to the popular weekly mental health podcast (with one million downloads in its first year!), Therapy for Black Girls, hosted by Dr. Joy.
To find out more: Website / Instagram / Twitter / Facebook
If you’ve experienced Therapy for Black Girls or have other resources directed at the mental health of people of colour that you would recommend tell us about them at hello@ifloststarthere.com so we may bring these into our guide.
Potts Coffee
Liverpool’s Potts Coffee gives a plant-based lifestyle a modern outlook and brings compassion to a neighborhood cafe.
What is it? A 100% plant-based coffee shop
Why you’ll love it: With a modern design, this is not your hippy hangout but a cozy entry into the world of veganism (through pancakes and lattes!)
What you need to know: A café that cares: about animals, about the environment, about the neighborhood. Potts Café makes sure to weave ideas of ethical sourcing, sustainability, and community into their coffee business. But these are not just of-the-moment trends but translate into real-world solutions — fairtrade beans, compostable takeaway containers, reclaimed furniture, and products from local producers, farmers, and makers.
Why we think it matters: Plant-based lifestyles are shown to reduce the environmental impact of animal-based food systems. Consuming more vegan meals and snacks has real-world impacts, by minimizing water and land use, creating less pollution, slowing down deforestation and even saving lives by promoting human health. Plus, it feels good to support a business that is dedicated to doing good in the world. (Eating here is basically selfless self-care. Just saying.)
In their own words: “One lazy Sunday morning our founders, Jonny & Danielle had a dilemma - they wanted great coffee and a great vegan brunch. Being coffee enthusiasts and brunch lovers - they wanted somewhere that they could get both. From there, their mission was to create an entirely vegan coffee haven in Liverpool city centre - fulfilling the needs of brunch lovers in the city, whilst striving to make the world more compassionate (& delicious).”
How to bring this into your life: This one needs a visit if you are in the area, particularly for their vegan brunch which started it all. From home, you can shop their merchandise (our eyes are on the Be Kind Tote bag.) Or start your own plant practice by replacing cow milk with oat in your morning coffee.
To find out more: Website / Instagram / Facebook / Twitter
If you’ve visited Potts Coffee and have something to add here, or if there’s another plant-based community cafe that you love, let us know by emailing us at hello@ifloststarthere.com.
Luminary Bakery
A bakery with a purpose, Luminary offers second chances and hope along with those cinnamon buns.
“When you enter that door you will experience love, kindnesses and respect. You will never be the same. If you are broke they will glue all your pieces back in a way that won’t be broken again. Luminary will give hope. They will give you strength.”
What is it: Cinnamon Swirls. Carrot Cake. Vegan choc chip cookies. Lattes from New Ground. And behind it all an award-winning social enterprise offering socially and economically disadvantaged women a better future.
What you need to know: A bakery with an impact, and some serious fangirls. Founded by Alice Williams as a baking course in 2014 in a Bethnal Green Church for the women in her community severely impacted by poverty and violence, Luminary Bakery has now grown to two London café bakeries (in Stoke Newington and Camden) and an endorsement from Meghan Markle in her guest editorship of Vogue. Over the intervening years, and still very much today, Luminary’s courses, support programs, work experience, community infrastructure, and employment have provided both a safe space and a second chance to women in London who are in situations of “multiple disadvantages”, such as gender-based violence (domestic abuse, prostitution, sexual exploitation, human trafficking and honor-based violence) and experiences of homelessness, mental health issues, substance abuse and the criminal justice system.
What they offer (online and off): If you live locally, make it your go-to café. Further away, support their work through donations to campaigns such as #shareherfare — reallocating the money you may be saving not commuting towards the cost of travel for their trainees. Or buy one of their cute aprons, tote bags and the Rising Hope cookbook which includes recipes and inspirational stories from the courses. A favourite idea is to order Letterbox Brownies delivered to a friend’s door (only UK for now). Or if you want to get even more involved, offer your skills to become a mentor or volunteer.
Why we think it’s special: The things that build our days, the tiny rituals like ordering a coffee, can build the lives of others. That’s from who gets to be employed as baristas and bakers, to sourcing ethically, to being a vital contributor to a local community. Luminary works on all those levels going beyond the café/bakery model to transforming the lives of the people in the neighborhoods that it serves. Our daily rituals can make a difference in our communities – that daily coffee, even those special occasion orders (wedding cake anyone) – can benefit others in ways that Williams has already imagined for you.
In founder Alice Williams’ words: “Meeting women experiencing extreme poverty, disadvantage, and violence was the inspiration for starting Luminary. Too often, violence and trauma isolate us from community, when that is the very thing we need most. Every woman has shown immense courage to survive her circumstances alone, but it is only when others embrace her that she can really start to fulfill her potential. Luminary is more than a bakery; it is a community and a sign of hope for so many.”
One piece of advice to do where you are: Ok we have two: One is general: Think about how you can ‘foster a culture of second chances’ in your own world. And two, much more specific: seek out their densely packed Resource Packs on Self-Care or Safety Planning for when home doesn’t feel safe or dealing with the impacts of the pandemic as a mum.
To find out more: Website / Instagram / Facebook / Twitter
If you’ve visited Luminary Bakery, or you have other businesses with a purpose that you’d recommend, tell us about it at hello@ifloststarthere.com.
Swimming to a Place of Calm
Simon Hodgson writes about what wild swimming, pebbly stones notwithstanding, does for his sense of wellbeing.
We’re walking through the woods alongside the River Dart. Four Hodgsons. Two grandparents. My sister and her family. Ten of us on a holiday week in Devon. It’s hot, even in the shade where we pick our way beneath the white willows, and tempers are quietly rising.
After a week of seaside postcards, fish and chips, and running to the railway bridge to watch the trains, we’ve had a fun day on Dartmoor (despite minor GPS shenanigans). Now we’re picking our way alongside the River Dart as it streams south past Buckfastleigh, Totnes and Stoke Gabriel towards the Channel.
This part of the day’s excursion—wild swimming in the Dart—is for me and I’m getting anxious. Is the water high enough? Will there be hundreds of people? Will we ever find the right spot? We’re following a friend’s map, scrawled on a Co-op receipt (ginger beer, Scotch eggs, malt loaf) and the directions look dangerously ambiguous. Grandparents’ sugar levels are as finite as fossil fuel; one false step and it’s “Bugger this, let’s go home for ice-cream.”
Yet there it is. A little clearing, a flat patch of grass, and a slow southward curve of the river with a shallow gravelly spot to enter the water. In moments, I’m in and then I remember the hypnotic, hydraulic draw of wild swimming.
Swimming in a river is a challenge, a rite of summer. That first moment on the toes, the creep of cold on the calves, then the heartstopping tingle on your chest. Even though it only lasts a few breaths, that sudden clenched exhilaration never disappears. What follows is calm—all the fears and questions and anxieties slip away—and I’m totally present, aware only of the sense of place, the scent of the woods, the light stippling the river, the trill and trickle of running water.
It’s not all roses, wild swimming. The stones are often jagged beneath your feet. There’s rarely a changing room to hand. There’s muck on the surface and weeds in the shallows. The cold is sometimes less hypnotic than hypothermic. But the reason I return to rivers like the Dart is the feeling of immersion. It’s not far from the way music can transport us. Wild swimming demands your attention, it impacts all your senses at once, it’s like music for your skin.
Normal People (but much hotter)
We’re still obsessed with Normal People and now we think we’ve figured out why.
We, collectively, as humans on the earth, are obsessed with Normal People.
(If you haven’t seen it yet, that’s ok…you, too, will be obsessed the second your eyes fall upon the main characters. Also, you should definitely stop reading because this article is filled with spoilers.)
I’ve been thinking a lot about why this series has struck such a chord with so many people…why Paul Mescal’s name was the most googled term one week this spring? Why there are multiple Instagram pages devoted solely to #MariannesBangs? How we may not exactly be “chain people” but seem to have an undying lust for Connell’s, all the same.
It would be easy to pin this obsession on the sex scenes (because…oh. my. god.) but my feeling is, this isn’t *quite* it.
After my 6th hour perusing the “MariannesBangs” hashtag, I knew I couldn’t rest until I figured it out (and/or I cut my own bangs.) So I hid my scissors and did what any rational person would do: I started making a list of my favorite scenes in the hope that the answer to why this show has gripped us all so tightly would finally be revealed.
For time purposes I stuck to the Top 5, but just know, this list could be much MUCH longer.
Marianne Telling Connell She Likes Him
Such innocence to this admission. Makes you wonder why we all struggle to be honest. The display of vulnerability is so refreshing. It’s what we want to see for our kids…ourselves.
First Sex Scene
Sex with consent that is actually…sexy. Again, this is something to strive for, youth of America. (Ok, and every man from every generation, ever.) Watch, learn, develop a repertoire of super hot questions to be sure your partner is on board with everything you’re doing, repeat.
The Bike Riding Through Italy
First of all, if I rode a bike in a mid-length dress it would likely be the last thing I did. Are Europeans immune to death via chain tangle? Anyway, logistics aside, if someone doesn’t casually eat some gelato with me in a quaint and empty town square soon I will probably die.
Connell’s Panic Attack / Therapy
Jokes and sex aside, this show is amazing for its very real depictions of people in the world, normalizing how difficult it can be simply to exist in a body that is overcome with emotion and anxiety. For so many of us, accepting and understanding out mental health issues was a process complicated by the pop-culture portrayals of “people who suffer”. This show so expertly weaves this condition in with the complex and beautiful character of Connell.
Marianne Encouraging Connell to Go To New York
It’s the most cliche thing in the world, and all of us have heard it: “If you love something, let it go.” But fuck, guys, have you ever tried it??? So often we fail to recognize the love (and selflessness) you must possess in order to let someone go. While some may argue it was not the most “romantic” outcome, I think it really might have been.
We love these characters not only because they could be us, but because we recognize ourselves in their mistakes, in the complexity of their relationships, in the moments when they finally abandon their defenses and succumb to something greater. They are all of our wants and needs and insecurities and triumphs wrapped into one. With Normal People, we see that things are hardly ever black and white, that motivations and intentions are difficult to discern when hidden behind the veil of our own lived experiences and biases. We love Normal People not because they’re “normal” just like us, but because we’re all kind of extraordinary, just like them.
Spirit Rock
As the ground shifts beneath our feet, we’re looking more for solace and self-compassion. Enter Marin’s Spirit Rock.
“When one thought ends, right before the next thought begins, there is a tiny gap called ‘now.’ Over time we learn to expand that gap.”
What is it: An open-to-the-public insight meditation center inspired by Buddhist teachings tucked away in West Marin, California.
Go here if: you’re curious about meditation, seeking to practice loving kindness, or looking to connect to something as yet undefined.
Why you’ll love it: There’s nothing intimidating here just warmth and openness to meeting you wherever you are. If like us a 10-minute meditation once a year is all you can manage, you’ll feel ok walking through these doors. You can take the programs at your own pace, from morning sessions through to month-long silent retreats.
What you need to know: Monday Nights with Jack Kornfield (co-founder of Spirit Rock) and friends is a great non-committal way to get to know the place and the practice. Join one of Kristin Neff’s sessions on self-compassion.
How to bring this into your life where you are: During stay-at-home times, Spirit Rock operates its programs online and on a donation basis, so you don’t need to be in the San Francisco area to benefit from its teachings.
In their own words: “People come to Spirit Rock for many reasons, but they all amount to essentially the same thing — wanting a more easeful relationship with life. The spaciousness and stillness of Spirit Rock and the caring teachers, staff, and volunteers, create a supportive environment for turning inward and letting go of the struggles that get in the way of experiencing the freedom and joy that are inherent in every moment of life.”
To find out more: Website / Instagram / Facebook / Twitter
If you’ve visited Spirit Rock, or if you have another Meditation Center that you’d recommend, tell us about it on social media or by emailing hello@ifloststarthere.com
Austin
Finding the spiritual amongst the abstract in Austin.
“ I hope visitors will experience Austin as a place of calm and light.
Go there and rest your eyes, rest your mind. ”
Search this out: If art for you can be a sanctuary.
What is it: American artist Ellsworth Kelly’s only building. Permanently installed at Texas’ Blanton Museum, Austin is the culmination of Kelly’s seven-decade long career. This immersive artwork is a modern interpretation of a traditional Christian Chapel; all the elements we’d anticipate are there but rendered in a secular, modernist way — like awe-inspiring stained-glass windows, Stations-of-the-Cross marble geometric panels, and a central redwood curved totem, all installed in a monumental 2,715 square foot stone structure. Not your grandmother’s church — at least not ours.
Why you’ll love it: The play of color, form, and light through the three stained glass windows that change through the seasons, the placement of the sun, and the natural environment. It’s a truly time-based work that emphasizes the life-giving qualities of light. Kelly was finely attuned to color: the Tumbling Squares window (itself inspired by Chartres cathedral) and the Starbust windows span through careful gradations of color.
What you need to know: Kelly first conceived of this modern chapel in the 1980s but it took decades to realize the work in Austin and the artist never saw it finished (though he witnessed the beginning of the 18-month construction). Though Kelly himself was not religious, he was fascinated by how spirituality could be conveyed through both art and nature and had a life-long interest in Judeo-Christian forms.
How to bring this into your life from wherever you are: Though the Blanton Museum is closed during stay-at-home orders, you can experience Austin through a live-stream of two of the stained glass windows, and the Happy Hour curated conversation by the team who realized the work as part of their #MuseumFromHome series.
Why we think it matters: Spirituality comes in all shapes and forms. Even abstraction.
In their own words: “Kelly himself was constantly inspired by the natural world and was deeply aware of how perception can transform ordinary things into extraordinary–even spiritual–experiences, if we open ourselves to that possibility.
Content Care Package: Edition 1
As everything shifts, yet again, we’ve pulled together our first Content Care Package full of link love, inspiration, and we hope support.
We’ve pulled together our first Content Care Package full of link love, inspiration, and we hope support. These are all the things that we’ve been turning to over the past week(s). We’re realizing that in all our idiosyncrasies and wonderfully imperfect ways we’re finding different things to help us wherever and however we find ourselves. These are ours; we know you have yours. Let us know which sources of joy, wisdom, and connection you are looking to in your worlds.
Connection & Community:
Stacey Abrams talking to Brittany Packnett Cunningham as part of the Aspen Ideas Festival about the potential for transformation in our current moment.
“The science of friendship gives you permission to hang out with your friends and call it healthy.” Lydia Denworth on her new book, Friendship.
If you are interested in making an actual, physical send-it-in-the-mail care package, here’s how Ann Friedman makes them.
Nature:
The drive-in movie theater takes to the water in Paris this summer.
“Travel is a powerful antidote to the growing distance many feel from the natural world. But I’m just now learning that travel does not have to mean flying to the other side of the planet. A walk around the block will do. It’s not how far we go in miles that counts, but how deeply we allow the world to enter us.” Paying attention to our daily routes.
Many of us are looking to nature as a way of finding our balance right now, a connection many beloved writers have made before.
Mind/Body Connection:
We’re maybe slightly enamored by this voice, Jeff Warren telling us How to Meditate on the Calm app.
Interested in dancing but don’t want to leave your house? Try new Virtual Studio Imaginative Movement by our friend Lauren Duchene (Amanda designed the logo): “My dream was to create a space that inspires children and adults to use their imaginations and gain new strength in a way that is accessible.”
As a true Brit (well, one of us), we’re turning to tea in times of crisis.
Untethering:
Do you count yourself in the 84% of Smartphone users who can’t go a day without their device? If so, check out these resources for rebalancing tech in your life.
If you need five-minutes of untethering, we recommend listening to poetry on The Slowdown (see recent episode Frequently Asked Questions: #7)
Need a Phone Detox?
Purpose:
“Museums must practice empathy and close the gap between themselves and their communities; they must provide space for conversations on the issues that matter to the lives of their audiences, neighbors, and employees. Museums must be sites of advocacy, not just for the artistic and art-historical traditions that they hold so dear, but for basic rights to life, safety, shelter, well-being, and economic and intellectual sustenance. Museums must dismantle regimes of power even when that power emanates from within.” Rethinking our cultural institutions in terms of care and knowledge is vital to how they function in society.
We’re just a little in love with Jameela Jamil’s podcast particularly the episodes with Reese Witherspoon, Scarlet Curtis and Vivek Murphy (also see his new book Together which we’re currently listening to on Audible)
Spirituality & Meaning:
What does your Enneagram number mean?
“Finding answers from above for whatever the hell is going on down here.’ New podcast discovery, Phillip Picardi’s Unholier Than Thou.
Mental wellbeing:
“At some point, you’ve paid your dues. Months without sugar or caffeine or alcohol of cauliflower, months of meditation and books and creams, and you’ve finally suffered enough. You’ve sacrificed with just the right mix of humility and hope. Your value remains.” Amanda’s new piece at Harness Magazine.
Our brains are not cut-out for navigating how best to behave in a pandemic
“I’ve got these conditions—anxiety, depression, addiction—and they almost killed me. But they are also my superpowers. The sensitivity that led me to addiction is the same sensitivity that makes me a really good artist. The anxiety that makes it difficult to exist in a world where so many people are in so much pain—and that makes me a relentless activist. The fire that burned me up for the first half of my life is the exact same fire I’m using now to light up the world.” This quote alone tells you why we’re still in love with Glennon Doyle’s Untamed.
We’re discovering the benefits of teletherapy and they might outlast the pandemic.
Scented candles getting tired and In need of new inspiration for self-care? Chalkboard has some new ideas for you.
If like many of us you have been thinking about your mental and emotional wellbeing, we would be so so thankful if you took our survey! It will take you less than 5 minutes but will be hugely impactful for us!
Awe & Wonder:
How bookstores have stepped up as we’re allowed to step back into them again.
Our new favorite building.
Creativity & Culture
We’ve just discovered “illustration therapy” with Aww Magazine
Journal prompts to unleash your creativity
Hamilton. On Disney+. Nothing more to say on this one.
We’re planning to attend the Literary Death Match at the Hammer this Tuesday night
“You have the Rite”. Marc Bamuthi Joseph’s breathtaking spoken-word performance for TED
Doing Good:
Votes matter now more than ever. Join Fair Fight 2020
If you are not too exhausted with everything, this month is Plastic-Free July.
Support All Together Collective’s latest fundraising bundle (which includes our Filled With Feelings Tote Bag). This time 50% of profits will go directly to @play.marin - a local nonprofit already doing the work to increase diversity and inclusion in Marin through play.
If you have ideas for our next Content Care Package going out at the end of July, you can submit them here. Let us know what’s catching your attention and helping you through.
Keeping Up the Momentum
We’ve been thinking a lot about how to sustain momentum after this news cycle has passed, what role we’ll play in a massive fight against systemic racism...a long overdue fight for equality.
Because If Lost, Start Here exists to bring people closer to impactful mental health initiatives and independently-owned spaces, it makes sense that our energy stays here, but this time, with an added focus on the spaces founded by and for the Black community. .
In the world of mental health, with all of the stigma and misconceptions that surround it, the Black community has been particularly impacted. Today, we are taking a moment to highlight some of the spaces and projects that have been founded in response, some of which we’ve featured in the past, some that are totally new to us. From therapy directories and podcasts to yoga studios and books, there is a wealth of resources available from the Black community. Our focus will stretch across the US and the UK so please feel free to share any relevant projects. (We will continue to update this list.)
Approximately 15% percent of the US population identifies as Black. That means AT LEAST 15% of our content should be featuring spaces and initiatives founded by Black individuals. We are pledging to hold ourselves to this standard by ensuring that at least 1 of every 5 features in our guide (20%) is of a Black-owned business.
We are kicking off this initiative by donating to The Loveland Foundation (a therapy fund for Black womxn and girls). We will continue to donate 10% of any proceeds to this foundation moving forward.
BLACK LIVES MATTER
BLACK MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS
Illustration of @uluvmylovefaces by @jcgmisul ✨
This has been a difficult week for so many. If you’re struggling (or simply looking to take care of yourself more deeply) please check out these amazing projects and organizations.
We Will Never Go Back #blacklivesmatter
We are back on Instagram and back working on our guide and fulfilling this dream, but we are never going back to the world as we left it. On May 25th, George Floyd was murdered when a Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee to his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. This act in itself was barbaric and reprehensible, but, almost as frightening, was the fact that so many of us were so shocked…so many of us who believed ourselves to be allies and friends had never truly grasped the severity of systemic racism and all of the brutality that exists within that oppressive system.
We launched If Lost, Start Here almost 2 years ago and committed ourselves, from Day 1 to making this space inclusive, representative and safe. We bought Rachel Cargle’s “Unpacking White Feminism”, we read articles, we consulted friends, we featured some amazing black-owned businesses and spaces. We tried. We are here to tell you that WE HAVE NOT DONE ENOUGH. Not even close. We are also here to tell you that THIS CHANGES NOW. We are not perfect, and never will be, but we are committed, and we will not let the momentum of this movement stop. Not here. If you are a white woman, we hope you’ll join us in our ongoing effort to be forcefully anti-racist.
Here are a few steps we’re taking now:
We are protesting (even when our social anxiety says to stay home)
We are donating to bailfunds (in Minneapolis and Louisville) and @thelovelandfoundation (a therapy fund for black women and girls)
Amanda is reading Ibram X. Kendi’s “How to Be An Anti-Racist” and Mikki Kendall’s “Hood Feminism”. Claire is reading Robin DiAngelo’s “White Fragility” (We are sharing/discussing as we go.)
We are listening to Layla F. Saad’s “Good Ancestor” Podcast
We are having uncomfortable conversations with friends and family (because nothing is as uncomfortable as being persecuted for over 400 years)
We are educating our children, laying the foundation with a real look at American History. (Check out the Oh Freedom! curriculum we’re using here.) We are incorporating stories of powerful and pivotal black men and women throughout history. (The books we purchased this week are from Bay Area bookseller @ashaybythebay)
We are buying from black-owned businesses and paying content creators for their knowledge/time/emotional energy (we should have been doing this consistently much earlier. We are committing to making up for that now.)
We are following lovely people like Kat Vellos who are helping us to navigate our relationships with our black friends.
We are reveling in the joy that is twitter. (We are KPOP fans now.)
We are committing to KEEP UP THE FIGHT by making If Lost a resource that is truly representative of the world we live in.
We are committed to using this platform to highlight black-owned small businesses, particularly community spaces founded by Black womxn. (As always, we will approach from the angle of mental health and community impact.)
We will accept responsibility for the role we’ve played in perpetuating a system that has benefited us.
We will not process our feelings or air our grievances in the comments sections of the black women we admire. We will not expect anyone to educate us.
We will vote.
We will center black voices without our analysis.
We will not wait for more educated people to impart their knowledge. We will seek it out, and we will compensate the creators.
We will sign petitions and send emails and apply unyielding pressure.
We will be active in dismantling a system that has been broken since its inception.
We will make mistakes.
We will keep fighting.
We hope you’ll join us.
Imaginary Places
This week we decided to pull together some of our favorite imaginary places (from TV shows, plays, movies and books.) We found that it was quite fun to imagine where we’d love to spend our time, if reality weren’t a confine.
We’ve spent the last year and a half devoting ourselves to finding the places in the world that help to support us as people.
We’ve defined categories representing our most basic needs for happiness and connection and belonging. We’ve categorized and consolidated, gained traction and lost momentum, burnt out and forged on. Eventually, we found our stride and mapped out our plans. You might be able to imagine, then, our surprise (read: panic) when the world shut down and “going places” was, suddenly, no longer a thing.
Instead of wallowing in self pity or questioning our entire lives, or throwing in the towel, we’ve pivoted, temporarily resetting our path and redefining our focus. (You can head here to see all of our prompts for surviving while Lost At Home or here to check out the tote bags we created to support struggling small businesses.) If we’re being honest though, the thing we miss more than anything is finding the most magical places for people.
So this week, we decided, instead, to pull together some of our favorite imaginary places (from TV shows, plays, movies and books.) We found that it was quite fun to imagine where we’d love to spend our time, if reality weren’t a confine.
We hope this list inspires you! And if it does, we have a challenge for you. Your prompt this week is to dream up your own imaginary place, sketch it out, write a story. Maybe when we come out of this, you could aim to stretch that imagination into the actual, and make that place real.
In the mean time, here’s a look at the places we’re visiting via Netflix binges and late night read-a-thons.
