Travel

OOAK Knits | The Motor City Vest

The Motor City Vest

Detroit Michigan in February is a very cold place.
Very cold.
I'm actually fairly certain I've never been as cold in my life as I was in Detroit in February.
And I've been to Chicago in December.
And Iceland.
Despite being miserably cold for the majority of this trip, I loved Detroit in a way that I can't quite explain.
Maybe it was the fact that, like Richmond, they also have a Belle Isle.
Maybe it was because I was Urbexing some of the coolest places I've ever seen with my best friend.
Or maybe it was simply because I was somewhere I'd never been, having some of the most unbelievable (read: borderline reckless) adventures. Because that's often all it takes for me to fall in love with a place.
(Ask me about driving 10 hours home in one of the worst ever snow storms sometime...)

Regardless, Detroit will always have a special place in my heart.

The grey shades of that snow covered, windswept city, inspired this textured patchwork vest.
It will definitely help keep you warm anytime, anywhere. 
Even Detroit in February.

Yarn origin:  Reykjavík Iceland, Richmond VA, Boston MA.... and a lot of other unknown places

A photo posted by Leney (@agirlnamedleney) on


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 //

Travel Essentials

A good leather bag

Lots of little pouches and purses to organize bits and pieces that are brought along as well as bits and pieces newly found

A scarf - this one is my usual go to but I've also fallen in love with this cotton one I found in Barcelona over the summer

A book to provoke new thoughts

A bit of simple jewelry- because it can often make me feel pretty and put together even if I haven't showered in a few days on the road and have been wearing the same shirt for more days than I want to recollect

The Adventure Hat

A sweet smelling fragrance

Music- whether that's in the form of CD's, a home made mix tape, an iPod or Spotify on your phone

A travel journal- never go on a trip without one. You never know what you'll find that warrants documenting

OOAK Knits | The Montmartre Sweater 

The Montmartre Sweater

Inspired by the fashion forward city of Paris. A study in color brought forth this muted hazelnut tone that reminds me of a weekend spent walking underneath the eiffel tower, drinking wine at street side cafes, eating tasty pastries, shooting film, people watching on the train and lazing around a tiny apartment with balcony windows flung wide open to let out the sounds of Tracy Chapman and Billie Holiday cd's...

Yarn origin: Richmond, Va

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


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 //

I Dream My Painting

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

A Study In Color | Paris

Christening our three day Parisian life with Tracy Chapman and Billie Holiday
Out of this world night scenes
All neutrals
Au natural
Foi gras
Paris

 Via Instagram

A Study In Color | Switzerland

Forever catching trains

Endless good food

A boy named Sven

Cully Classic Music Festival

Paddle boarding

A place a daughter of a sailor feels right at home

Blue

 Via Instagram

A Study In Color | Spain

Spain

With it's peaches and cream and sandy tones

"Sangriasangriamojitosangria"

Friendly strangers in the metro to help reorient our turned around selves

New Castle Boys bound for Valencia

Two hour train station waits

Waiting and waiting and waiting

Hot sticky summer nights

 Via Instagram

A Study In Color | Ireland

A girl named Siorsia

Being serendaded by Irish men singing John Denver's Take Me Home Country Road

A homeland for so many that I could see myself calling home

Oh Molly Malone

Everything's savage

Green

 Via Instagram

The Urbexing Diaries | Abandoned Airstream

During this roadtrip I came across an abandoned Airstream trailer. 
(I actually posted some iPhone snaps of this on tumblr already but I'm just now getting around to sharing the digital shots I took)
Over the past few years, off and on, I've gone through various fascinations and dreams about owning an airstream of my own. I mean with people like this and this living their dreamy airstreamed lives, how could I not?

So anyway.
Came across this beauty, snapped a few photos of her, went on my marry way but couldn't stop thinking about her. So I went back again the next day and ended up tracking down the owner, whose name was Freddy, to see if there was any way he'd be interested in selling his airstream. You know, just out of curiosity.  
Freddy was quite a character and though he was, sadly, not interested in selling her, he did have a few stories about her he didn't mind sharing.
He told me he didn't really have any plans for her other than to drag her out to the road so people could see her from it as they drove by. But he told me he'd gotten her for $500 at a junkyard and that she was from '51 or so and how he'd once let a guy gut her and start fixing her up when all of her insides (along with a half moon bed and other "goodies" as he put it) burnt up in a barn fire. Ever since then she's just been sitting, unloved, and acquiring dents from when his horses lean up against her.
He said he'd been offered money for her on several occasions but he just wasn't willing to part with her.
I understood. 

I named her Stevie. 
Because she had a gypsy soul about her.
Here's to furthering and chasing after my airstream dream.

Don't know what urbexing is? 
Check out an explanation in this post here as well as other posts in The Urbexing Diaries.


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