When we stumbled on this space designed by Conceptual Artist Daniel Buren we thought, “that’s our perfect writing space“. Why? We were’t even sure, except that we loved that it was spare, yet adorned in a way that sparked our thinking rather than cluttering it. So we looked for more.
Read MorePema Chodron + A Site That Envisions Impermanance
+We spend a good amount of time looking for ways to be more accepting of change that seems to be moving faster and faster, the messy processes of life and our lack of control over them: what Buddhist’s call Impermanence. Pema Chodrun’s new book and this clever site help…
Read MoreTake a Holiday From Being Human
It’s curious that about the same time Thomas Thwaites was figuring out how to be a goat — finding human personhood stressful and narcissistic — Charles Foster was trying his own experiments “becoming” various animals, including a badger, an otter, a fox, a deer and a swift. Both had come to existential crossroads.
Read MoreWhat Matters Now?
Right now you’re probably asking yourself how those geniuses over at Improvised Life keep coming up with great material day after day? We’d like to show you what did NOT make the cut for today (that STILL has meaty grooves)…
Read MoreCrumbles: Cherry or Strawberry-Rhubarb
Years ago, I created a crumble recipe that works for just about any fruit. With its crunchy topping of almonds and brown sugar over warm fruit, it’s a fine stand-in for a tart. In summer, I return year after year to the essential strawberry-rhubarb recipe I first published in A New Way to Cook, swapping in fresh pitted cherries…
Read MoreThe Use-By Date of Inspiring Signs
Photographer/filmmaker Gigi de la Torre sent us this sign with an incisive observation:
Read MoreLED-Illuminated Chairs, Tables, Beds
About the time we spotted Nadia el-Khoury’s chic, underlighted, slipcovered chairs in The New York Times Magazine, we saw this simple bed lit from underneath on poet Ocean Vuong’s tumblr.
Read MoreThe Unpredictable Results of Artistic Explorations
This strangely beautiful photo is of a failed experiment, or perhaps better put, exploration. Paper artist extraordinaire Matthew Sporzynski sent it to us in an email chain revealing the mindset of a pure creative:
Read MoreWork with Hands, not Brands
In conversation, I never call Improvised Life a blog. The Blogging world is an ubiquitous, saturated and aspirational one; most bloggers put their true opinions aside to survive. We are trying to do something different.
Read MoreThe Secret Treasure Within ‘Lab Girl’
We abandoned the autobiographical portion of Hope Jahren’s Lab Girl at page 35 to skip through to the short chapters interspersed within in it. They comprise 50 or so pages of superb writing about the secret life of plants that provide hopeful metaphors for our own very human lives. Here are some favorites.
Read MoreRosemary, Lemon and Pepper Focaccia
There is probably no hors d’oeuvres more universally loved than focaccia: really good chewy pizza dough baked with flavorings that excite the appetite.
Focaccia is easy to make, the possible flavorings infinite. My all-time favorite is this Rosemary, Lemon and Pepper Focaccia I learned from Kevin Taylor when he was chef of Zenith American Grill in Denver years ago.
Read MoreManny Howard’s Rule for Living
Manny Howard is the author the sublime My Empire of Dirt and articles about his Hemingway-esque adventures. On his instagram, we found an essential approach to living.
Read MoreThe Cosmic in a Coffee Cup
Our friend Josh Eisen emailed this image with this message: Was sipping my cappuccino just now, swirled my cup to gather the foam from the sides, looked down and there it was. Yin Yang in a coffee cup.
Read MoreFavorite Kitchen Tool: French-Style Universal Pot Lid
On my first trip to France, I bought a classic French pot lid in a flea market. Ten inches in diameter, it is a tin-lined copper disk with a cast iron handle. Little did I know that it would become one of my most-used kitchen tools. Or that the copper lids would become really expensive. On the hunt to find an alternative, I finally found a new iteration that is affordable and incredibly useful.
Read MoreKandinsky: Wall Paintings + Varieties of Black
In this calming, meditative video, artist Vasily Kandinsky paints directly on a wall in black ink. It is a fine way to start the day (and led us to insights into ‘black’). Kandinsky’s designs for wall paintings inspire new possibilities for our own walls.
Read MoreTattoos As Self Reclamation
As a tattoo artist I witness the myriad reasons and kinds of people who get tattooed. I have tattooed a mourning 64-year-old-man transforming his grief, a Hasidic jew wanting to secretly express himself, a young cancer survivor during his post chemo celebration. Memorials, achievements, jokes and dares, even the most controversial of all — pure aesthetics —…
Read MorePerfect Pearls via Ocean Vuong
We follow poet Ocean Vuong by occasionally visiting his tumblr, Field Notes. We love clicking “random post’ for the kinds of surprises and mind-shifts we find helpful in navigating the world, work, love, being. Here’s a short collection of perfect pearls to take you through the week, each a tiny, potent meditation.
Read MoreThin Lacy Cheese Crisps (You Made Those?!!)
Years ago I learned to make the classic lacy cheese crisps of Friuli Italy called frico, one of those miraculous creations that LOOK really difficult to make, but aren’t. They are the perfect hors d’oeuvre with cocktails, and inspire improvisations; their delectable uses are legion.
Read MoreOpen a Window This Way to Keep Cooler (+ Use AC Less)
We improvise without the benefit of a science background, only our reasoning, deductive brain and willingness to try/fail/learn. Good practices DO slip by us some times because they’re counterintuitive or we just don’t know better…Like this simple way to adjust double-hung windows to make our space cool and use AC less frequently. It works.
Read MoreFlowers Hiding in Plain Sight (The 3-Minute Bouquet)
I was about to chop a bunch of chives from my CSA when I noticed it was full of pink flowers and buds. I stopped dead, realizing I almost missed the little gift hidden in plain sight. Dinner could wait. I culled the flowers from the bunch… …and snipped their ends to make them last longer… …arranging them…
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