I Dream My Painting

in ,

I dream my painting and I paint my dream. || Vincent van Gogh

People you can dream big with.
The big-city dreamers.
Those are the kind of people I love.
The ones I get most excited about doing life with.
This girl's one of them, for the record.

Have conversations about how important it is to visualize where you're going.
Believe it's possible to get there.
Set goals to get there.
Believe those are attainable.
But also learn to be content and happy with the present, where you're at now.
It's a fine line, something that requires balance.
But that too is possible.
You just have to dream your painting.
//
Shot at Greecologies in New York City

OOAK Knits | The Waterfront Crop Top

in

The Waterfront Crop Top
 

Waterfront: the land or the part of a town next to the water of an ocean, lake, etc.

This piece is inspired by the varying tones and colors found on the coast of many water bound places. 

The places I find myself most often.

Because anywhere on the water is a place I call home...

Yarn origin: New York City, Maine, Richmond Va, Reykjavík Iceland, Hampton Va, and somewhere on the coast of Maine

A photo posted by Leney (@agirlnamedleney) on

If you'd like to invest in this piece and be the owner of it's unique story you can do so by heading to the shop listing for it below

Shop Now

You can also see other OOAK Knits and there stories here.

Why one-of-a-kind?

These pieces are inspired by...
the places i’ve been,
the people i’ve met,
the words i’ve read,
the images i’ve created.

All of which are unique, to themselves, their own, one-of-a-kind. 
Much like you are.

I believe that your clothing, what you wear, says a lot about you.
It adds to your story, your make-up, who you are as an individual.

And so, shouldn’t those pieces in and of themselves hold a story all their own?
I think so.
That’s why my knitwear is one-of-a-kind. 
Each design is a piece of art.
Each piece tells a story. 
Of a person. A place. An experience. An idea.
When you own one of these pieces you are the only one to own it.
Aside from me, the creator, you hold it’s story. 
You are now the caretaker of it’s story. 
And it, in turn, becomes a part of yours.
The Stories The Things We Own Tell.
I think they're terribly important, though often overlooked. 
I find that the things we invest in are the things we cherish and value most. Which in turn speaks to what kind of individual we are. What we put stock in. Who we want to be.

You can also read more about why here.

// Photos by Meagan Abell //

Roam Sweet Roam

Many of you have heard me talk about some of my favorite RVA makers, Jody and Karl of Blackbird Tees, quite a few times here on the blog. 
Well, they have some awesome new designs out and it's a theme and sentiment after my own heart....
Roam Sweet Roam.
As not only fellow makers, but fellow travelers (and taco lovers), these two are somewhat kindred spirits of mine. I'm so thankful to not only have the opportunity to work with such genuine souls like theirs, but to also call them dear friends.  
I mean it's not just anyone you can wander around abandoned airstreams with and make up fake rapper names with and jam out to the likes of Rick Astley... 
(thanks grandma)

Okay okay, what are you waiting for?
Go see the new stuff for yourself. 
And I'm not just sayin that cause I'm their model. ;)

Photos by Meagan Abell, as always.
xo

Engagement | Jessie + Drew

in

But I love your feet
only because they walked
upon the earth and upon
the wind and upon the waters, 
until they found me. || Pablo Neruda

The drive to the Rappahannock River is a drive I love taking and I always welcome any excuse to take it. Especially on a beautiful mid October day that allows for rolled down windows during the scenic drive.
Jessie and Drew will be getting married in the same place and on the same day these were taken, next October.
Such a sweet little detail in their love story.
A love story I can't wait to continue documenting.

OOAK Knits | The Mandalay Vest

in

The Mandalay Vest
 

Inspired by a beautiful house somewhere on the coast in Maine. 

A place of peace and comfort. 

A place that feels like home. 

Yarn origin: Richmond, VA

A photo posted by Leney (@agirlnamedleney) on

This vest is one of my absolute favorite pieces from the first run of one-of-a-kind knits.
I'm having a hard time parting with it to be honest. I love it's geometric design, inspired by the layered siding of that lovely little house in Maine. It's a statement piece that would go with pretty much anything you wanted to pair it with.

While the majority of my knitting is done at home, occasionally a project will wander out with me on various adventures, to and from different places here and there.
One of the noteworthy places this vest went was to the movie theatre to watch Arcade Fire's documentary: The Reflektor Tapes.
Arcade Fire is one of my favorite bands. In fact their song, Keep The Car Running, is pretty much my anthem and mirrors one of the ideas and sentiments behind my OOAK knitwear being inspired by my travels.
Pieces made on the road.
Telling of the things I see and experience. 
Always being ready for anything.
Wherever adventure awaits.
Keep the car running.

If you'd like to invest in this piece and be the owner of it's unique story you can do so by heading to the shop listing for it below

shop now

I'm going to be releasing new one-of-a-kind knits on a regular basis so this is only the start!
I just have to say again for the hundredth time how excited I am about this new aspect of my business and I can't wait to grow more as an artist and a story teller through this process.
Thank you all for your kind words and support on the unveiling thus far. It means the world to me.
xo

Why one-of-a-kind?

These pieces are inspired by...
the places i’ve been,
the people i’ve met,
the words i’ve read,
the images i’ve created.

All of which are unique, to themselves, their own, one-of-a-kind. 
Much like you are.

I believe that your clothing, what you wear, says a lot about you.
It adds to your story, your make-up, who you are as an individual.

And so, shouldn’t those pieces in and of themselves hold a story all their own?
I think so.
That’s why my knitwear is one-of-a-kind. 
Each design is a piece of art.
Each piece tells a story. 
Of a person. A place. An experience. An idea.
When you own one of these pieces you are the only one to own it.
Aside from me, the creator, you hold it’s story. 
You are now the caretaker of it’s story. 
And it, in turn, becomes a part of yours.
The Stories The Things We Own Tell.
I think they're terribly important, though often overlooked. 
I find that the things we invest in are the things we cherish and value most. Which in turn speaks to what kind of individual we are. What we put stock in. Who we want to be.

You can also read more about why here.

// Photos by Meagan Abell //
 

My Hustle

in

this is my hustle.
this is how i work and move and progress.
this is how i make the motion of going forward. of growing. of changing. of being somewhere different than i presently was a moment ago.
this is my going-through-motions. 
this is my taking-action.
this is my ambition.

Lifestyle | The Wright Sisters

in

The Secret Garden was what Mary called it when she was thinking of it. She liked the name, and she liked still more the feeling that when its beautiful old walls shut her in no one knew where she was. It seemed almost like being shut out of the world in some fairy place. The few books she had read and liked had been fairy-story books, and she had read of secret gardens in some of the stories. Sometimes people went to sleep in them for a hundred years, which she had thought must be rather stupid. She had no intention of going to sleep, and, in fact, she was becoming wider awake every day which passed. || Frances Hodgson Burnett, The Secret Garden

There's something irreplaceable and unchangeable about the bond of sisters.
The unconditional love and you-knew-me-when. The shared experiences from the very-most-possible-beginning of things. That built in best friend you'll never be without. 

Spending the afternoon with these two woodland fairies was the best possible reminder of why I love doing what I do. For it's this kind of photography, lifestyle photography, the capturing things just-so and as-they-happen, that's my favorite.
And I think this session with these two beautiful souls is going to be a favorite of mine for quite sometime. 

The Classics Collection | A Knit Lookbook

in

Excited to announce part 1 of 2 in regards to the new direction I'm going with my knitwear! 

In the past I've made seasonal lines or collections of knitwear.
My most recent ones for example were: Gypsy Soul and On The Road.
While I contemplated making new lines for this year, something just wasn't clicking for me every time I set to working on it. 
I realized that every time I phased out a line of knitwear, there were always key pieces that were popular and still frequently asked for even after taking them down from the shop. 
I realized too that I had my own favorite designs that I myself loved most and chose first when heading out the door, even though I was continually making new knits for myself. 
And so it dawned on me that what I needed to do was just give the people (and myself for that matter) what they wanted.
The cozy accessories that go with everything.
The designs you invest in.
The pieces that become your favorite, well loved, and worn over and over.
The knits you always reach for over all the others time and time again.
The Classics.

And so I present to you, eight timeless pieces carefully selected from my past knitwear collections.
Each simple and minimal in their design, yet versatile in that they're able to be knit in one of 5 neutral colors so as to readily go with anything you own.

If this concept and collection had a sound, as my visual work so often does for me, it would be the hesitant stop-start bubbling of coffee brewing on a Monday morning, chilly waves lapping at a driftwood strewn shore, shrouds shifting against a tall mast on a docked boat, a momentary torrential rainstorm in the middle of a summer-almost-fall day, the low rumbling familiarity of a voice belonging to someone you love, and if it had a mix tape it would sound something like this.

The Classics Collection | A Knit Lookbook