bedroom Archives - Improvised Life

Sleeping like Donald Judd in Low-to-the Floor Beds, with Details and Plans

At the Judd Foundation, we stumbled upon this wonderful bedroom with a very Judd-esque low bed. It reminded us of the austere low platforms he made for his Spring Street Loft. We took a closer look at how he made them.

Simple Ways to Create Private Space with Fabric Room Dividers and ‘Slung Cloths’

The quest for a calming, private space can feel like an impossible dream, particularly for those who share tight living quarters. Here are some ideas…

Annals of Bad Design: Glass Walled Bathroom in a Bedroom

Were we not in the real world, this glass enclosed bathroom might seem lovely and airy. But its ‘reality sandwiches’ are daunting.

Line Drawings and Tattoos on Walls or Floor (Cocteau, Matisse, Keras)

This charming line drawing Madrid artist Angela Leon drew on her wall made me think of Matisse, Jean Cocteau AND Mira Keras’ monochrome tattoo designs.

Laura Handler’s Computer Printed Headboard

In Houzz’s extensive article about our friend Laura Handler’s Harlem renovation, our favorite idea among MANY is Laura’s solution to the problem of “headboard”.

This Cool Art Shelf Headboard Is Really a Plywood Box in Disguise

We’ve been collecting examples of shelf headboards that double as picture/object displays to inspire the one we are designing in our head. Looking closely we realize they are really only a plywood box…

Great Ideas from a Ridiculously Minimalist Apartment

The Times T Magazine featured ANOTHER perfectly minimalist apartment with no sign of a human being in it. Still, we culled some good ideas from Danish designer Oliver Gustav’s very gray Copenhagen apartment.

A Narrow Ledge Becomes a Picture Rail + Headboard

At Casa Helsinki, we spotted the ledge around the perimeter of a bedroom. It makes a natural display for pictures or other small objects and a terrific headboard. DIYable.

Tailored, Adjustable Bed Skirt from Ready-Made Curtains

After we transformed a linen sheet into a bedskirt, we stumbled on Eileen Fisher’s clever bedskirt made of three adjustable panels of fabric. You just tuck each panel beneath the mattress at the foot and sides of the bed to adjust it to any length you like. We started mulling how to make our own. Then we had a brainstorm.

Hammocks for Healing, Indoors or Out

When a friend told me about research showing that gentle rocking can help heal nervous system, emotional and cognitive imbalances, I decided to install a hammock in my NYC space and test rocking out on myself.
I dove headlong into hammock investigations. Here’s what you need to know to hang a hammock inside or out.

Tried-and-True: Cool, Crisp Percale Sheets

Some time ago, we went on a hunt for great sheets. The sheets we love feel cool and crisp when you climb into bed. Combed or jacquard cotton won’t do it, neither does linen nor most of the million thread-count sheets we’ve tried. The only way we’ve found to guarantee ‘cool and crisp’ is with Supina cotton percale bedding from Garnet Hill. We wait for their 25% off sale, which is NOW…

Charming, Inviting, Comforting Draped Textiles

We must have spent an hour slowing looking at our friend Christopher Baker‘s beautiful online portfolios. We found ourselves culling images with a single theme: natural textiles used in original absolutely doable ways, no uptight styling here. Just a fine trove of ideas.

That Plain Ikea Bed is a Canvas You Can Paint

We love this hack on the most vin ordinaire of Ikea beds by stylist Meta Coleman in her home in Provo, Utah: paint it PLAID. It made us realize that the plain white Ikea Malm Bedframe is really a nice blank palette with many possibilities…

A Family Home Full of Heart and Good Ideas

“Something boldly improvisational and cheery going on in this house in Australia” wrote Susan Dworski in an email as she described the home Ruth Bruten, writer of Gourmet Girlfriend blog, shares with her husband and five boys. It is delightfully REAL and colorful, and packed with ideas. Here are Susan’s favorites, and ours:

Copper Pipe Room Divider, Towel Rack, Furniture

Warsaw firm Mamastudio enlisted Polish architect Mateusz Baumiller to design the Autor Rooms in its new hotel to showcase furniture and artwork by Polish designers. The favorite big idea we got out of it: thick copper pipe to create rooms within rooms, like the sleep area at top. It’s a lovely way to define a big space, and…

Pink Inspiration, Erotic and Otherwise

At the ever-inspiring Aqqindex the other day, I came across this sublime pink sleeping nook in Tunisia and thought WANT! I know the influence of pink because of the pink wall in my bedroom: in the three years I’ve slept there, I’ve not grown tired of the hopeful, serene-yet-jazzy vibe it sends me. Then I found…

Vibration Fixes: Levitation Suits + Air Mattress Shock Absorbers

Over the past year, I’ve written about the many improvised solutions I’ve created to try to NOT feel the mechanical vibration that shakes me awake every morning. I even looked into making a rig like this “Levitation Suit”, a designer’s attempt at a 3D hotel bed. In lieu of being able to be weightless or levitate, my newest vibration-damping fix came via some readers who had the same problem.

Transforming Wall Bed-Bookshelf-Storage Unit

Last May I posted the life-size prototype I made out of FoamCore to help me design a complex combination of berth-style (sideways) wall bed, storage and bookshelves for my space in Harlem. I had been struggling with the design problem for some time: how to make the massive volume of the wall-bed blend into the structure, so you…

Does Your Apartment Vibrate? Fixes that Help Tame Vibration

Here’s a summary of all the fixes I’ve found to dampen irritating, sleep-depriving vibrations coming from machinery and other mechanicals.

Painted Canvas Headboard…(+ pillow + chairs)…

Though it’s not exactly a headBOARD, we love this painted canvas hung on the wall at the head of a low bed. And we are inspired by the canvas Cy Twombly tacked right onto the walls of his Rome villa, ready for painting. 63-inch by 6-yards rolls of primed artist’s canvas can be found on Amazon…

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