Looking out at the park across the way, the wild rain and wind made the Christmas tree in the distance appear to sparkle with a kind of fiery iridescence…It reminded us of the unexpected magic that appears daily, even in difficult times, and what we need to experience it.
Read MoreEasy Covid-Era Thanksgiving Recipes, Table Settings, Strategies, Toasts…
My super easy turkey-roasting method is one of the many tried-and-true recipes larding Improvised Life’s vast archive, from cocktails to desserts. You’ll find an array of recipe ideas, strategies for making grand make-shift tables and settings, even toasts, poems and blessings… Not to mention these Thanksgiving favorites.
Read MoreImprovised Life’s Not Shopping Holiday Gift Guide
Years ago, having burned out from years of overdrive in holiday giving, I devised a strategy for pleasurable, stress-free giving that avoids combing through “holiday gift guides” for cool things nobody needs.
Read MoreImprovised Life’s Thoughtful Un-Gift Guide
Here’s our list of things we think are worth giving for the way they expand minds/hearts/creativity, or are just downright useful…
Read MoreGifts for Eaters and Cooks via Sally and The Splendid Table
Wondering what to give cooks and eaters on your list over the holidays? Check out my interview with Melissa Clark on the great Splendid Table, airing around the country this week. To read more about the swell time-tested finds — both bought and made yourself —, follow these links.
Read MoreRules of ReGifting + Gifts They Won’t Want to ReGift
(Video link here.) So, er, yes, well, er, we DO have a regifting drawer as well as a gift drawer of stuff we’ve bought because we think it’s universally great. Truth be told, the stuff in the regifting drawer tends to languish, we suspect because it can take a while before we find someone for whom…
Read MoreWe’ll See You In a New Year
Even during the holidays, big unexpected LIFE keeps happening. We’ll be taking a couple of weeks off to ride some big changes into the New Year. We’ll see you for sure on January 6, if not before. In the meantime, we’re sending huge gratitude to you for being part of Improvised Life, and warm wishes…
Read MoreDIY Gift or Hors d’Oeuvre: Tapas Bar Roasted Almonds
Here’s a favorite homemade food that I can give as gifts AND serve to guests who come by for cocktails or dinner, or a bash. It evokes the sublime combo I first had in Spain many years ago: chilled bone-dry Manzanilla sherry with roasted Marcona almonds. I devised a “parallel” almond that has many of the same qualities for little work or cost.
Read Morehappy holidays from ‘the improvised life’
(Listen to music* while you watch the gif.) We’re wishing you a WONDROUS holiday, and hoping you’ll get to do some serious, lazy-dog hanging out between Christmas and New Years’. We’ll be posting intermittently, while we work on a new idea (we’ll be listening to WKCR’s weeklong Bach festival, streamable here.) We’ll be back full-tilt…
Read Morekraft paper table “cloths” and place settings
Inspired by designer Pamela Hovland‘s hand-drawn place settings, we’ve just ordered a 48″ x 200′ roll of kraft paper ($26!) for the holidays. Pamela unrolls a long swath of paper to act as a tablecloth, then draws each persons place setting, with their name, right on it (taking care of seating arrangements in one fell swoop).…
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