Happy Campers x North Trip

A few months before starting at Flipboard, I stumbled onto what soon became one of my very favorite user-curated magazines called Happy Campers. It's an awesome collection of VW camper van stories and adventure mobile articles that really just nail it for me. 

The day I started at Flipboard, I was asked to share a couple of magazine that I love to read—so naturally I mentioned Happy Campers. Little did I know that it's co-authored by fellow Flipboarder and designer Ashleigh Maule-Ffinch and her hubby Thibault Mauras-Cartier. 

I've since somehow weaseled my way into becoming a contributor as well, but my finds are nowhere near as good as theirs and Thibault came through with a winner today. Check out the fantastic video above. I'm going on a couple

Norway Longboarding

So yeah, everything about this Ishtar X Tussilago video makes you feel completely lazy and super uncool—everything except the hipster Amish kid. I think I got the jump on him at least.

Benji Wagner vs. TEDxPortland

The man behind Poler Outdoor Stuff—one of my fave brands at the moment—recently dropped a potent and poignant TEDxPortland Talk. Give this one a serious listen! He does a fantastic job of breaking down how technology can either paralyze us in our tracks or become a vehicle to incite us into outdoor action. 

I love, love, love it. And let's face it, that beard is rawesome.

Strato Style

I stumbled onto a slew of images from this Japanese retailer called Strato. I seriously can't get enough of their aesthetic. I love the simplicity of this classic urban-meets-outdoor vibe. It's a look that's defined by a based of real staples enhanced by one or two pieces of uniqueness that pushes the boundaries just a little. Love it.

And some lovely looks for the ladies too...

Morning Moodboard

Just a Dude on Pinterest

So I've been on Pinterest for a few years now and I coincidentally reached some milestones this week... eight thousand pins and three thousand followers! What the what?!? Thank you for all the support. I'll do my best to keep the good stuff coming. 

Here's a quick rundown of the most repinned, greatest hits that I've discovered and pinned to my boards over the last little bit. It's so interesting to see which pins got some traction out here. Lemme know what you think! 

Danner = Awesome + Authentic

Man, Danner is a brand that just gets it and does it right. I was super stoked to be wearing their boots today when I saw a piece of branded content like this. Their commitment to replicating the magic of a classic product and then capturing that process just inspires me.

The reissue of their Mountain Light Cascade for Reese Witherspoon in her upcoming flick Wild is dead-on cool. Here's to wishing other brands had just as much get-it factor as Danner does. Thanks for the heads Upto12.

PS: Also watch for the #SockAndSandals appearance!

More Socks, More Sandals

Teva continues to crank out some great branded content around the thing haters love to hate on... #SocksAndSandals. And according to their lead stylist, Kira Sheppard, this combo isn't just for the granola types anymore. She makes a definite point to drop the term "urban" more that once.

Autumn Moodboard

I've been toying with the idea of curating more specific little moodboards lately and was inspired to create one that feels a little autumn-themed. So here are a few images I've recently sprinkled through my Pinterest and Tumblr feeds... all brought together in one place. Just click the image to enlarge. Hopefully you dig!

Socks + Sandals = Fun Fashion

A few months ago, I got ambitious one day and whipped out a solid combo of Teva Originals and some rag wool socks. Despite it not being nearly as egregious as oh say white tube socks and Birkenstocks, it nevertheless has had an extremely polarizing effect on both friends and family. Some have mocked me endlessly for perpetrating such an appalling fashion faux pas. While others have full-on told me that they're also going the way of the Teva.

I decided to trace back the route that led me to believe that the sandal and the sock can live together in fashion harmony. As far as I can tell, this current look got its start when retro Oregon- and Colorado-based campvibes brands like Poler and Topo started making gear about two years ago, specifically bags with that classic early ‘90s motif.

I noticed that not long after these brands started doing their thing, the styles I wore in high school began making their way back into my closet. It’s this combo of denim/chambray, hiking boots and fleece/rag wool sweaters, with random pops of color mixed in. 

I started a Pinboard called campvibes not long after that, dedicated to this look and stumbled on a Tumblr curated by a Japanese blogger called Miatagod. It was packed full of these amazingly colorful, East-meets-West images of camping-inspired clothes including sandals with socks. I love scrolling through this cleverly curated collection cuz all of the sudden, it made fashion feel fun.

At just about this same, Teva reintroduced their line of Originals with colors and patterns that’d feel right at home along side this fun look and feel I’ve been geeking out on. Here’s a peek at their lookbook vid that rounds out this vibe.



It certainly doesn’t feel to me like this is just a fad. I see a longer term trend that continues to blend comfort and style, as do others. It’s a trend that infuses fun into fashion and celebrates a form that falls out of function.

When the image of me sporting my Teva Originals plus socks was originally posted, it got its fair share of both flack and fandom. One fan in particular was the social media team @Smartwool. They also instantly recognized the long term trend at play here and decided they were in.

Our own Mr. @kyality stepping up his shoe game with a @teva wool sock combo. What do you think folks? #tevaoriginals pic.twitter.com/CoYZkMTNJF

— Struck (@struck) April 4, 2014

@struck @kyality @teva Think you need to step up your #sock game if you're going to blast your toes. That's just me though.

— Smartwool (@Smartwool) April 4, 2014

@smartwool Hook a brother up! CC: @struck @teva

— Kyle Snarr (@kyality) April 5, 2014

@kyality @struck @Teva direct me your email and we can connect, aka, hook it up.

— Smartwool (@Smartwool) April 5, 2014

Then this happened...

@kyality @teva Now we got the sock game where it needs to be. #socks #fanlove
— Smartwool (@Smartwool) May 1, 2014

MINI Countryman ALL4 Camp

Okay, I think I could really see Mrs. Kyailty and I rolling in this step up one day. Imagine an epic roadtrip to as many of the National Parks as we could hit.

Urban Aesthetic Meets Adventuremobile

Stumbled on this cool little vid last night simply called "Backpacker."It's got some nice driving shots and good tunes. What I love about the featured Subaru Forester is its cool blend of urban aesthetic and serious #adventuremobile #campvibes. Give it a gander!

Family Campvibes

I recently asked my parents to track down some pics of my childhood bicycles for an upcoming post and got some other cool photos along for the ride. These are some great images of my parents and grandpa rocking some world-class campvibes. And no, these aren't Instagrams.

I'm pretty sure my ma and pa are straight-up tying their brand-new, matching Schwins to my ma's Beetle. You can also spot my gpa's Mustang in the back there.

Love this pic of my gpa at Silver Lake up Big Cotton Wood Canyon. That leather jacket is flawless.

Apparently, this is a snap of my pa impersonating that classic Bigfoot shot.



This photo is stamped August 1971. Hipper than hip.

Marvelous Moonrise

There's nothing worse than when a Wes Anderson movie comes out and I haven't made it to the theater just yet. I'm constantly dodging any mention or online review right up until the moment I see it, which is an art in and of itself. Luckily, I managed to catch Moonrise Kingdom last night in a zero-spoiler condition.

Wes has always had a knack for discovering young actors who can deliver his lines just the way he wants. But in Moonrise Kingdom, he manages to take this skill to new heights in the form of his superb leads: Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward. Gilman perfectly plays that doesn't-know-he's-hip geek named Sam capturing the heart of Hayward's character Suzy whose irresistible Margot-Tenenbaum-meets-Lana-del-Rey vibe nearly steals the show.

Everything you love about a Wes Anderson film is present—record players, hand-drawn book covers, long super-symmetrical camera angles, richly vintage sets and of course, Bill Murray—with three exceptions. Futura, his signature font is replaced with beautiful, scritpy, custom typeface by Jessica Hische. The token Wilson brother is more or less replaced by Ed Norton. And the score, typically penned by Mark Mothersbaugh of Devo fame, has also been reduced without a major misstep.

Moonrise's music is a fantastic combination of true-to-the-era orchestral arrangements by Benjamin Britten mixed with new Wes-Anderson-esque tracks composed by Alexandre Desplat and supplemented with a healthy dose of Hank Williams. I highly recommend staying through all of the end credits, not only are they wonderfully animated, the instrumental awesomeness narrated by Jared Gilman is a flawless final touch.

Bottom line, Moonrise Kingdom nails that very analog, very Norman Rockwell look and feel that's chockfull of #campvibes. It's the type of story that makes you wish you'd snuck away with the gal that ran the nature tent at your Boy Scout camp in upstate NY, rather than attempt yet another boondoggle keychain.

Single Speed Campvibes

I've been searching high and low for examples of inspiring, single speed bikes built more for the trail than the road. I was recently lucky to stumble upon this beautiful, custom example designed by Ezra Caldwell for Fast Boy Cycles.

Loving the simple lines, beefy tires and techy disc brakes.

It's raw finish pushes it into that retro-rustic territory that's just so hot right now.The radical custom wooden grips totally seal the deal.

The Muir Project

Talk about some great content creation, well done JMT. Can't wait for spring!