The Big Picture recently ran an extraordinary, and surprising, collection of photos around the theme of walls: They keep things out or enclose them within. They’re symbols of power, and a means of control. They’re canvases for art, backdrops for street theater, and placards for political messages. They’re just waiting for when nobody’s looking to…
Read Moresolar-powered moon lanterns for summer nights
Installing hardwired, outdoor lighting can be a big, expensive, all-too-often unaesthetic hassle, forcing you to put lights where you really don’t want them, and use commercially produced fixtures that are less than enchanting. One elegant, inexpensive solution is solar lanterns. My favorites are Allsop‘s faux Japanese shoji solar lanterns available in a rainbow of lightweight polyester that mimics silk.…
Read Moresurrounded by love
Found recently, a powerful reminder: We are surrounded by so MUCH: possibility. We just have to look. Related posts: sister corita kent’s enduring rules for making + her art the collected wisdom of louis c.k. ‘proceed from gratitude’: personal lists and principles chuck close’s ‘note to self’ (eight perfect rules for living) steve jobs: one simple…
Read Moreil reader julie houston’s brooklyn renovation
We are always thrilled to hear (and see) how ‘improvised life’ resonates in our readers lives. Sometimes it’s a “shift” of mindset, sometimes it’s a daring diy. In Julie Houston’s case, it was a major renonovation of the back parlor of her Brooklyn brownstone, transformed into kitchen/dining area. When children and pets leave — as…
Read Morethe question to ask when you make a mistake
This cartoon was the subject of the New Yorker’s great cartoon caption contest, where readers are invited to submit their caption for the cartoonists drawing. Our favorite caption (that didn’t win) was: Mistakes were made. We make so many mistakes daily that it was heartening to see this image of Noah’s miscalculation. Although we don’t…
Read Morerichard woods’ fab colorful wood-pattern floors
When we stumbled on images of artist/designer Richard Woods‘ show D.I.Y at the Alan Cristea Gallery in London, we literally gasped. LOOK at those floors!. They turn out to be Woods’ trademark vibrantly-coloured and exaggerated wood-grain motif. …deceptively simple in form, these bold images are produced using traditional block-printing techniques and installed as parquetry (inlaying wood in geometric patterns)……
Read Moremuhammad ali: ‘the rent we pay for our room on earth’
Designer Laura Handler of Interesting Found Objects spotted this scrawled sign in the window of a Manhattan dry cleaner. The owners identified something they have that would be useful to someone looking for work: a clean set of clothes. They also stated their simple philosophy. Beautiful. Generous. It reminded us reminded us of Mohammed Ali’s…
Read MoreHow to: Crispy Kale Chips (Slow + Fast Methods)
My local market sells a 2.5 ounce box of mediocre kale chips, seasoned with weird stuff like cashews and brewer’s yeast, for $7. Why don’t I just try making my own? I thought, remembering how well my pilot-light-warmed oven dried out paper-thin cross-sections of pear and apple until they became like crispy botanical drawings. So…
Read Moreweekend fun: parcour and inner peace
(Video link here.) Long-time ‘improvised life’ reader Sahana sent this hour-long documentary about Parcour (also known as free-running) with this note: “leaping and turning obstacles into stepping stones – …almost like dancing . a philosophy of movement .” There’s LOTS of beautiful parcour as well as illuminating glimpses into the inside of the practice that is very…
Read Moreimprovised stacked stone benches and a secret circle
Landscape Designer Pat Brodie recently sent us pictures of her very cool stacked stone bench inspired by a passing vision: I was at the stone yard with my client looking at stones for her garden when we saw stones randomly stacked on a pallet and I noticed that it was suggestive of a sofa. We…
Read Morealt-flowers: carrot bouquet for summer entertaining
We stumbled on this fab carrot bouquet in photographer Tessa Traeger’s still life portfolio. We’ve made vegetable “flower” bouquets before but not with quite so much panache. As we wander the farmer’s market, we’re seeing carrots in a new light. Related posts: holiday tabletop decor from the farmer’s market Flowers + Vegetables = Charming Arrangements…
Read Moreeveryday improv: how to carry an umbrella
We steer clear of old-fashioned umbrellas with a curved handle because we can’t stand carrying one more thing in our hands; we opt for a big pop-out folding Totes Golf Size umbrella. THEN we saw this elegant man strolling in lower Manhattan the other day, his big classic umbrella hooked on his back between vest and…
Read Morecool concrete table with a built-in vase
At Remodelista house tour recently, we spotted this this wonderful detail in the Paris home/studio of architect Nicolas Soulier and artist Cécile Daladier: A table made of a custom molded slab of concrete on steel tubing base, with a charming Ikebana-inspired vase inset for Cécile’s flowers. Ingenious, unexpected and charming.
Read Morelaziness and handwritten recipes in the digital age
Rainy days always slow me down and tuck me in, seducing me to perform unnecessary housekeeping chores unimaginable in bright sun. When my ancient, duct-taped, binder of recipes tumbled off the top of the fridge in a splat of disorganization, I remanded it to the top of the clothes dryer. Now, a few drops of…
Read Morethe unexpected beauty of tin can vessels (labels off!)
This image from Elle Decoration reminded us of the wonderful design of the ubiquitous tin can once it’s label is torn off. They really do make great vessels. Tin cans must be in the wind. Yesterday, we came across these zinc chic-ed up can vessels for sale at Anthropolgie.
Read Morethe origins of ‘random kindness and senseless acts of beauty’
Three years ago, we posted about Anne Herbert, the mysterious writer of Peace and Love and Noticing the Details, a blog that presented haiku-like shifts of view of the the most ordinary things. Herbert is also known for having come up with the brilliant, radical philosophy: ‘Practice Random Kindness & Senseless Acts of Beauty‘, which eventually…
Read Morewhy the fermob tertio table is worth every penny
A few weeks ago, we wrote about our bistro table hunt, and our dilemma whether to go with the name brand Fermob or a cheap knock-off. While we weighed the pros and cons of each as well as our reader’s thoughtful comments, we periodically surfed the net to see what other possibilities or info we…
Read MoreParaplegic Woman Duct Tape Surfing on a Friend’s Back
To give his quadriplegic friend, Pascale Honore, the experience of surfing, Ty Swan, rigged a simple Kmart backpack (with leg holes cut out) to be a harness with which he could carry Pascale. Then he strapped her onto his back with duct tape. The video, pure gumption, valor and generosity, had us in tears. Said Swan:…
Read Moreplay is the highest form of research (a. einstein)
BACK!! Thank you for bearing with ‘improvised life’ while I took time off to… sleep late nap wander cook sit on the terrace and LOOK
Read Morewe’re taking a mini sabbatical
(Video link here.) One of the things Designer Stefan Sagmeister is known for is the seemingly radical act of taking a year long sabbatical every seven years to refresh his creative self and explore projects freely. He has much to say about sabbaticals. Our favorite bit: How important do you think a sabbatical is for…
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