Lifestyle

I’m a white hipster in his late twenties with a strong political opinion suffering from depression. You know, the antichrist. I’ve spent a good deal of my life finding ways to deal with my depression.

The holidays are coming. You just spent a fortune on that special cream that is meant to reduce stretch marks but did you ever...

Forrest Gump may have been on to something when he compared life to chocolates. You really never know what you’re gonna get in a box of chocolates, do you? The truth behind chocolate is more bitter than sweet. The Ivory Coast produces 40% of the world's chocolate, and it just so happens to also be notorious for this little thing called child slavery. Children, both local and from other third world countries, are sold to farms in this area where they are physically abused while working in risky and inhumane conditions. Some children are sold into the trade by parents who are tricked into believing their children will have better lives at the farm. Others are trafficked, stolen from their families, lured by the promise of…chocolate. In these farms they are forced to work 60 hour weeks with little or no food (depending on their performance on the field). These children lose their fundamental human rights when they enter these farms and “modern” society turns a blind eye to the atrocities. Every time we buy a box of chocolate that is not fair trade stamped, we (often unknowingly) endorse child slavery.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor in Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World "Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books,...

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor in Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Emily and Robbie Wilson pay homage to the...

  Repurposing wealth for the preservation of natures most incredible gifts. An environmental habitat shared in perpetuity and the opportunity to connect with nature. The Point...

In a times of great tumult, we are reminded of the calls for peace echoed by 1960's activists: War Is Not Healthy For Children and Other Living Things AMP founders with two Congressional Representatives, from left: Gloria Vanderbilt, Lenore Breslauer, Felica Bernstein, Joanne Woodward and Barbara Avedon By Nancy Chuda, Co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World and Co-Fouder and Editor in Chief LuxEco Living On March 19, 2011, my mother, Lenore Breslauer would have been 88 years of age. She passed on the eve President Bush declared war on Iraq, March 20, 2003. US military invasion of Iraq, "Operation Iraqi Freedom" was a coalition forces cooperative. Approximately forty other governments, participated by providing troops, equipment, services, security, and special forces, with 248,000 soldiers from the United States, 45,000 British soldiers, 2,000 Australian soldiers and 194 Polish soldiers. Additionally, 70,000 Kurdish military troops joined forces.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and  co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Artist Mary Nohr Courtesy of LuxEcoLiving "She's got your back...

by Zhenya Gershman, Artist and Art Historian, co-Founder of Project AWE You are in an art museum.  Suddenly you feel that someone is staring at...

By: Annie Huang, LuxEco Living Marketing Assistant People bike for many reasons such as exercising, commuting from one place to another, or simply just touring around...

By Amanda Nisenson, LuxEco Advocate “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” This Robert Frost quote has stayed with me from the first day I heard it in eighth grade English class. It has continued to serve as a metaphor throughout my evolving journey as an artist. My road less traveled is calling me in new directions. I need to keep the faith and know the opportunities will come in order for me to reach my goal. It is the relationship and connection with the audience that drives my performance, inspiring hope through music and bringing joy through song. “Operatunity” is about transformation through music. Our journeys, no matter how difficult, must be accepted as life is accepted. I am grateful for my “gifts”, and for the chance to help others find joy in the moment.

By: Linsley Oaks, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant I lived in Canada as an American citizen for five years.  I spent four years outside of Montreal...

By Rachel Lincoln Sarnoff, www.EcoStiletto.com and LuxEco Advocate Everyone knows that air travel is bad, bad, bad for the environment. But according to IATA, the...

By Lorri Ballance Laird, Luxeco Advocate The holidays are over, and for many people in many parts of the U.S., winter has set in with a vengeance. One way to beat the winter blahs might be to try adding some houseplants to your indoor landscape. According to a plantsforlife.org report, not only can plants help boost your mood, reduce stress, and speed recovery from illness, they can also help improve indoor air quality.

By Nancy and James Chuda founder of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World New York City 57th and 6th Avenue, The Quin Hotel         When...

By: Janelle Sorensen, courtesy of Healthy Child Healthy World Looking for a pediatrician is no easy task, especially if your concerns and parenting methods aren’t exactly the same as mainstream America. My husband and I scoured the city for a full year before finding the right one for our daughters. But, it totally paid off. We found an amazingly supportive and brilliant pediatrician whose philosophy was to tell us everything she knew and then let us choose what to do. She had only one provision; if she ever thought the results of a treatment were sub-par, then she would intervene with an alternate recommendation. That never happened and I was always overwhelmed with how much she knew. She could rattle off statistics about best practices in the EU, pertinent studies regarding alternative remedies, and recent outbreaks that could put my children at risk. She was a dream come true. But, alas, we moved. Now we are on the hunt again.

Image: Artist's Model Mark Snyder and Artist Zhenya Gershman,  Franklin Londin 3-d Photography On Friday May 15th, a historic event took place at the Los...

Olio & Limone is now my favorite Italian restaurant in the world.... and what a pleasure not to experience the burden of airplane pasta and worse, long lines for US Customs.... when all you have to do is find West Victoria Street in Santa Barbara and indulge.

Michael Bernard Beckwith, Founder of the Agape International Spiritual Center, has galvanized a community of thousands of followers in his trans-denominational movement. Beckwith's ability to...

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor in Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Two architectural visionaries, James Chuda and David Noble...

Steve Jobs might find a way to cut to the core of a major human rights issue impacting the health of children who get their daily dose of vitamins from eating apples. You can write to him sjobs@apple.com and let him know he's got to get on this issue ASAP.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Here's a LuxEcoLiving4U time saver. It's called Hay Handle.           Time...

By Christopher Gavigan, CEO and Executive Director of Healthy Child Healthy World and LuxEco Advocate Interview Conducted By Nancy Chuda, Founder of LuxEco Living and...

by Linsley Oaks, LuxEco Editorial Assistant EcoEmotions are very high right now.  There are a lot of fingers pointing across our headlines about the oil spill. ...

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Reporting from Casa Madrona in Sausalito California A Restaurant Review           ...

By Lorri Laird, Editorial Assistant Every day in the United States, millions of store transactions take place, and cashiers and clerks hand over receipts to their customers. What these clerks and cashiers may not know is that they may be exposing themselves and their customers to the dangerous toxin BPA (Bisphenol A) which has been linked to reproductive and behavioral abnormalities as well as certain cancers. While many consumers have become enlightened to the dangers of BPA in certain types of plastics, many may not be aware that some cash register receipts are coated with the substance.

By: Leslie Harris, Interior Designer, Leslie Harris Interior Design and LuxEco Advocate With as much time as we spend in our homes these days, we want to create a home that is a retreat, that is what we speak to, but we want our retreat to be safe so this is definitely going to be an option. Certainly they don’t have to take it all the way to major extremes, but they can do little things that will make a huge difference in their health, their design and in the environment.

By: Molly Rovero, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Designers and scientists have been working on different approaches to transportation issues as they become a greater concern with the ever-growing population. China has begun to address their own issues of overcrowding and transportation with their new concept busses that will drive above cars. Imagine driving through a tunnel that is moving above you!

By Alanna Brown, a LuxEco Living Advocate, creator of Brown House Online, and author of Moonpennies   We all love the feel of a new paperback...

By Bethany Colson, Managing Editor of LuxEcoLiving.com After months of rally efforts, raising donations and even conducting neighborhood bake sales, the Hollywood sign has finally...

By Grace Robertson, LuxEco Advocate Keeping Austin Weird With…South Congress Trailers! Austin is a great place to live because of its’ fun people, great music, and uniqueness. Its’ motto is Keep Austin Weird, which is a perfect name for this individualistic place. In my opinion, walking in downtown Austin is a whole different experience from walking in any other city.

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Hollywood has a new act, even better than Avatar-inspired CGI and 3D—it is a movement to create cleaner, greener production. On August 11, The Producers Guild of America launched an extensive listing of U.S.-based products and services that are eco-friendly. At www.greenproductionguide.com filmmakers and the like will find green vendors in an array of production departments, ranging from craft-services, to set design, to hair and make-up.

Washington's Fiscal Policy This Year Takes Aim At the EPA By Slashing a Great Deal of Support By Derin Richardson, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant President Obama signed,...

"Ol Jogi is one of the most beautiful places on earth. It provides the ultimate outdoor experience in an exclusive setting that was once a private family home. Today, it is unsurpassed in terms of comfort, culinary excellence, luxury, privacy and education. It is a place unlike any other in the world.......breathtaking beyond words."

by Mary Elizabeth Williams-Villano, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant A future gift, recycled in a thrift store, made from recycled materials. Now that's a LuxEco Resplendent Repurposing triple header! by Mary Elizabeth Williams-Villano, LuxEcoLiving Editorial Assistant