(Video link HERE.) Bio 50 has applied open-source thinking to electronic appliances we use in our homes everyday. They’ve prototyped of a system built upon standard components that offers the user the ability to assemble, customize, repair, and repurpose existing products. Check out their clever fan, hand mixer, and a balloon-encased lamp all configured from the same elements.
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When we looked closely at images of the invalid Matisse sitting in bed or in a chair making his beautiful paper cutouts, we realized that he used an adjustable bed table similar to one we’ve had for years. We came across ours while trolling Ebay for mid-century furniture nearly 20 years ago. Billed as a Danish…
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We were struck by Seth Godin’s recent post about the two lists we seem to carry with us at all times, which become apparent during a crisis or moment of doubt: one is the positives, the other, the negatives we perceive in our lives. His point: we have a choice in which we choose and…
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via Hedviggen
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Reading the illustrated walls of the hospital waiting room a couple of weeks ago, we learned this compelling little fact about Werner Forssmann, one of the pioneers of heart catheterization. He had the idea that you could thread a healing device through an artery and into the heart. Then he tried it on himself. At Improvised Life,…
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I’m crazy about how mirrors can animate a room and bring it to life. Particularly oversize, leaning mirrors. I thought these were beauties. … You don’t need to do anything — no hanging or rigging; just set them where the look best or reflect the best view. An oversize picture frame can easily be fitted…
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(Video link here.) In 2005, Mark Johnson was walking in Santa Monica, California, when he heard Roger Ridley singing “Stand By Me” with stunning soul and conviction. Mark asked, “With a voice like yours, why are you singing on the streets?” Roger replied, “Man I’m in the Joy business, I come out to be with…
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(Video link HERE.) State-of-the art eating in Ethiopia. Made by hand, eaten by hand. When I was there, I don’t think I saw a cooking utensil that wasn’t either wood or clay, a rough panga for chopping beef, and a cheap plastic cup here and there for pouring. No need for Sur la Table, Williams-Sonoma or a…
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We’re crazy for this Josef Albers postage stamp, circa 1980. Great visuals, inspiring message. Hmmm. Wonder if the postal service would be interested in making our inspiring SIGNS and REMINDERS into stamps…sending them around the world…
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After our recent plea ‘er “invitation” to support Improvised Life by subscribing to Friends with Benefits, several subscribers wrote to ask: How would I increase the amount of my Friends With Benefits contribution? Is there a place on the site I can log in to change the amount? Hmmm. We hadn’t thought of that and consulted with…
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We are continually amazed at the mighty improvisational and creative brilliance-in-the-realm-of-hair-dos we see around town daily. But these hair hats may take the cake. We don’t know HOW this Caucasian guy got his bone-straight hair to stay put (or why?… the mysteries of the artist’s impulse). Dig this African American version. The bill can be…
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We recently stumbled on designer Olivier Dollé‘s very compelling room partition. Or that’s what we thought it was until we started wondering why he add the two horizontal pieces at the top and realized… they were LEGS! It’s a table, turned on its side. Eureka!
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This morning we ready this haiku by Buson: Coming back— so many pathways through the spring grass. Only nine words, it has been resonating all day
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(Video link here.) Some brilliant soul at the New York Times had the inspired idea to see what second graders would make of a meal at Daniel, one of New York City’s fanciest, seriously haute-cuisine, restaurants. Six kids from P.S. 295 in Brooklyn were treated to a seven-course, $220 Tasting Menu. Their reactions are captured in this…
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We’ve written quite a bit about Max Lamb in the past because of his unique ability to combine art and simple practical design. An integral component of his art is showing people HOW he made it. At MaxLamb.org you can see illuminating how-to’s on just about all his pieces. His latest work is his Marmorial series of…
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The invitation to a baby shower asked guests to include a note divulging our most sage piece of advice for successful child wrangling. Two words make an equally effective mantra spoken anytime and anywhere—with significant others, friends, co-workers, and all the others with whom you co-exist. Here they are.
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In cities across America, pigeons are widely viewed as “garbage birds”. They feed on whatever is around, drink from sidewalk puddles, and seem to fly only a few feet at a time. We’ve heard them called “the rats of the bird world”. Since we moved across the way from an expansive park, our view of…
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Remodelista recently featured the clever redesign of a 430-square foot-apartment in a century-old row house in Antwerp, the work of Belgian architecture firm Komaan! —translation, “Come on!” It’s full of good ideas, including clever layout that creates a fluid space with lots of storage, and interesting use of plywood, but our favorite is the floors: sheets of…
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When we’re a little blue, or wondering where we’re heading, we find it helpful to look beyond our own small life and get a bigger picture. And the best way we know to do that is to look at either nature, or art, or both. The person we know that combines these two transformative forces…
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Susan Dworski sent us an email recently with images of a dish from Green Kitchen Stories: Shakshuuka with Hummus and Sweet Potato Chips, and this note: We eat Shakashuka for Sunday night supper at leasst twice a month. Or more. My recipe is very similar to this one, but their hummus sounds great. And the chips.…
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