If we had to sum up the past few months with a single image, it would be this one. We’ve been roping a wild horse — life — and trying our best to go with it as we launched our Friends with Benefits subscription service and Improvised Life’s Store, saw a dear friend through a major health…
Read MoreWe recently received another inspiring fabric fix from Virginia del Giudice, photographer and co-owner of La Percalina, a fine vintage clothing shop in Buenos Aires.
Read MoreWe stumbled on this lovely side table at the ever-illuminating Aqqindex. “Paint and parchment side table” was the only info. We instantly envisioned plywood, one of our favorite materials for its possibility and accessibility. You could make a table like this with three rectangles and two flat sides cut with whimsical swirls.
Read MoreWe’ve come to love the word YES, and post it often as a reminder to embrace the opportunities that come along, and go with them. But we realize that there is a very important other side to YES, and that is being able to say NO.
Read More(Vido link HERE.) Portraits in Creativity is a series of short-form videos by renown creative director Gael Towey about the bravery and processes of artists and artisans. Who could better start off the series than the great, wise, observant Maira Kalman? Kalman’s drawing and writing gets to the essence of “not knowing what is going on” and celebrates…
Read MoreWe love designer Zita Merényi’s Provo-CUT collection of seared-and-soldered neoprene garments. Forgoing traditional draping and stitching, these pieces are instead constructed panel-by-panel, pleated together, and heat-joined into dimensional, puffy, future-ish jackets and cloaks punctuated by thick, raw seams and unlikely openings. The gist: synthetic fabics melt, so heat, not thread can be used to join the seams.
Read MoreHaving long been enamored of building blocks both miniature and life-sized for their cool modularity and open invitation to improvise, I find this jumbo building kit from LEGO is the perfect thing for adults to play/plan/build with. Whether to envision a real-life project in small scale or simply get out of your own head for a minute, these…
Read MoreThis past week, after we accompanied a dear friend through a dire emergency in the hospital, we witnessed the many ways that friends and strangers “lent a hand” with what seemed like an overwhelming amount to handle. Neighbors put groceries in our fridge, friends brought dinner to the hospital, some, like Maria Robledo, sent us images that…
Read More(Video link HERE.) In this marvel of a Sesame Street video, an elegant pig sings about the exquisite joy of a its existence, most particularly mud. We don’t know when we’ve seen anyone revel in the sensuous, divine moment as this pig counting its blessings. Counting and FEELING blessings is practice to emulate… What if we remembered to take full…
Read MoreRecently, our friend Jane Lear wrote us to say “This great tip stuck in my head, and I finally had a chance to reference it in this week’s food advice column for TakePart about ways to use less water.” The tip that stuck in her head —YAY! we LOVE that— was wine and spirits writer Anthony…
Read MoreRecently, Sally showed me Gordon Marino’s NY Times article, “A Life Beyond ‘Do What You Love”. The gist: the oft-repeated 21st century American mantra of following your true passions — instead of dull but reliable career paths — is misguided. There’s a hint of naïve entitlement to making “Do What You Love” the be-all-end-all answer to the workday blues, just…
Read MoreOn Wednesday, Maria Robledo sent us this image of a quote by writer and civil rights activist Maya Angelou. The following day, we learned that Angelou had passed away. The women had a WAY with words and with living. So we’ve selected a few as tribute.
Read MoreAfter we stumbled on this image of former world heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali talking to an obviously distraught, suicidal man, we had to know the story behind it. Was it for real? We found this remarkable 1981 clip of Walter Cronkite reporting the story on CBS News:
Read MoreWe learned to LOVE constraints because they’ve usually led to our most creative explorations, as well as ordinary but useful solutions. We found some fine advice about constraints at 37 Signals’ free pdf, Getting Real.
Read More(Video link here.) Our friend David Saltman is, among other things, a magician. Over the years, we’ve learned from him that magic requires PRACTICE. When you see a great illusion, it is the result of hundredes of hours of practice, thought, innovation. This lovely illusion, found at his blog The Houdini File is an example of practice…
Read MorePassing by a park one day, we found a ready-made sculpture with a curiously-modern feel. Found art and inspiration comes frequently when you cultivate the practice of seeing. Here’s a trove of examples.
Read MoreThirteen-year-old Ashol Pan is one of the first females to learn eagle-hunting, a tradition among Kazakh eagle hunters that was the province of boys and men. We think the image at the joyful Pan is incredibly heartening, a perfect example of “Why not?”
Read MoreArtist Hanna Eshel’s inspiring Noho New York loft is full of windows, light, and her elemental sculptures. What a vibe and look, from the patched floor to the 70’s style tracklights, plinths with artworks, ongoing projects, plants, sculptural plywood stools, white everywhere, even the simple elevated loft bed, which here manages not to be a cliche.
Read MoreThis video called Crazy furniture reminded us that EXPLODING an idea — dismantling it and reconfiguring it in various ways — can really help to refresh the creative process. And it’s an especially good practice for re-envisioning a space.
Read MoreImages from Sochi’s Paralympics obliterate the usual meanings of “disabled” and send a big message about defying the limiting view, whatever it is.
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