Etsy Archives - Improvised Life

Protective Face Masks Get Stylish

Now that it has sunk in that mandatory wearing of masks will be with us for some time, masks are moving beyond surgical and bandana-ish into serious style and design. Check THESE out.

Find: Red Steel Bookends (via FIT)

The bright red bookends we saw at FIT’s library totally transform the common bookend into something both graphic and stylish…and practical. We wondered if we could find them.

Tricks + Tools for Instant Clothing Nips + Tucks

The stylish French saleswoman at a NYC Megshop wore a men’s jacket with the back nipped in with a few stitches and the sleeves rolled up. It looked great! It got me thinking about even easier, less permanent ways to give instant form-fitting shape to a shirt, jacket or dress.

Make a Scented Aromatherapy Candle in 30 Seconds

There’s a reason legendary New York City department store Bergdorf Goodman offers 329 different options for candles, diffusers and home scents: they can be very effective in reducing stress and calming a room. But they are EXPENSIVE and you can’t modulate their intensity. Check out our surprising method for making a custom scented candle in just a few seconds…

The Practice of Waiting is Part of Making

Waiting is part of the many steps of creating: a non-action that can very important action. But that ‘non-action’ bit can be difficult to describe, since ‘doing nothing’ can be a time of fermentation and unexpected ideas. So we looked up WAIT. The definitions we found made a little poem:

Confetti Bomb Your Party or Table Top

Although regular confetti often has a slightly cheesy feel, Etsy seller Knot and Bow’s colorful fat tissue paper confetti dots seems like they’d be a festive way to updo a tabletop or party space, for a planned “bombing” beforehand, or a surprise one last minute. Anywhere.

diy bathtub tray/desk from a wood board

Spotted at the PegandAwl Etsy shop (above) and Martha Stewart Living (below) simultaneously: bath tub trays/desks made out of a wood (reclaimed or new) board. Beautiful (and a relief from those wire grid tray) but we worry about the board sliding off the edge of the tub. MSL advises screwing on wood struts below. We’ve got another…

copy or buy: pipe bookshelves and…

The other day we stumbled on some oddly wonderful, sculptural bookshelves made of black pipe. They’re for sale at DirtyBils shop on Etsy for $79, a fine deal, we’d say. But as we looked closely at the pictures (below) we couldn’t help thinking “Why not monkey around with this great idea”, and started searching for…

crispina ffrench’s re-imagined sweaters

Constance Old recently alerted us to Crispina ffrench’s work: “Crispina ffrench is an artist/crafter who makes terrific “improvised’ work. She is author of a recent book called The Sweater Chop Shop: Sewing One-of-a-Kind Creations from Recycled Sweaters which teaches how to cut and felt cast-off sweaters to make them into cool new things: like mufflers,…

a trove for d-i-y brilliance

The other day, I found myself following links to MORE great Japanese masking tape (some printed with numbers, some made of old book pages.) until I found myself at nothingelegant, an Etsy store with ALL SORTS of surprising and useful items for sale, like this set of alphabet and number stamps, along with a handy…