In 1966, sculptor Alexander Calder and his wife Louisa published this full-page ad in the New York Times. Bold and hopeful, it is a fierce statement that resonates as much today as it did then. Every New Year’s Day, we remember that ad, finding it about the most perfect wish for the New Year.
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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.
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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.
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Every week, Suleika Jaouad, creator of The Isolation Journal newsletter “for people seeking to transform life’s interruptions into creative grist”, gives a prompt for readers to think or write about. This surprising prompt about love hit home.
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Improvised Life has published A LOT of recipes in its long life, many geared to the holidays. We’re figuring that for many people, this year’s holidays are still going to be improvised and untraditional. Here are a few ideas for whatever form your fete takes. There are lots of ways to celebrate.
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Looking back at our post about the prints legendary artist Sister Corita Kent made around the theme of “the moment” in 1977, we thought “What wonderful greeting cards they would make”, now and all year.
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Every December in a village in northern Argentina, Jorge Gervasi and his son transform their modest family home into an elaborate display of blinking lights. This sweet, slightly Fellini-esque short film captures the hard work, missteps and dreams that go into it their remarkable Christmas monument.
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Spotted on the instagram of designer Pamela Hovland, who masterminded Improvised Life’s first iteration ten years ago: her holiday wreath in an imaginative, uniquely festive application…
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Wine writer Anthony Giglio was the first to really consider what wines to drink with the junk food so many secretly love. So we compiled a list of “the best of” his solid pairings, and the illuminating thinking behind them.
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Thinking about the Fourth of July, we came across this magical description of fireworks from The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien…
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We’d never thought what a Valentine heart could mean beyond a general feeling and expression of romantic love until we read these words by the great Anne Herbert…
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We’re thinking a dandy little heart made of folded money would make a nice valentine for just about anyone…more inclusive than the usual romantic stuff like flowers and chocolate…
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Late with my holiday preparations, I’m just wrapping my head around making food gifts as well as the few gifts I buy. Here’s are favorites that you still have time to order.
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Biologist David George Haskell’s explanation of what the primal scent from Christmas trees actually does to us will amplify your experience of this lovely free gift of the holidays.
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“I haven’t done a thing to get ready for the holidays” is an echo I’ve heared from many people I know. No matter. There’s always ways to festive things up at the last minute, with whatever is on hand.
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Floating in the internet on an ancient, dormant site called yowow, we found the perfect blessing by the late Anne Herbert…
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Over the years, we’ve published a trove of useful info for navigating Thanksgiving, from recipes and tabletop to less tangible concerns. Here’s how to access it.
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For Halloween, we’re loving pumpkins transformed by Yayoi Kusama’s unique vision. She made them wondrous in ways no one had ever imagined and changed the way we see them forever.
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Being short on time and living space, I’ve honed my holiday decorations to be spare but potent, using tried-and-true materials — some found — in different ways each year.
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One of the simplest, hottest tips for holiday entertaining can be done with what you’ve got on hand and will cut down on busy work and stress.
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