Since I’ve had a laptop a few years I’ve tried a variety of methods to keep cool. Here is what I have learned. I didn’t like anything that had batteries or was plastic because it is a pain to recharge batteries.

1. Using a chopping block works pretty well. You can buy them fairly cheaply in a variety of places. The cheaper ones under $10 tend to crack from the extreme heat. I bought a bamboo one at BBB for about $15 that never cracked.
2. No amount of blanket or fabric insulates from the heat. I thought that the air between the spaces of fabric would insulate but it doesn’t work.
3. I tried glass and other materials like stone but they did not work well. The glass was a pyrex container and it got very hot all over. You couldn’t sit with that on your legs. Stone conducted heat equally well and was uncomfortable to work with.
4. I tried a mobile desk sort of like a TV dinner tray and that works pretty well. I can sit in various chairs and work from it. It is my second favorite way to work. I got it used so it looks like something you might get from Ikea.
5. What I am using now is a large chopping block. It is like a shelf and sits between the cushions of my chair. It doesn’t sit on my lap at all, and although large has been the most comfortable for my arms and hands to rest on the computer.