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Ah, Friday the 13th! Good things happen on Friday the 13th.

I wanted to share the concept behind the Thirteen Journeys Collection. Every week, I've been sharing with you stories of incredible people but I want to go a bit deeper into the concept behind it all.

As you probably know if you follow us, our brand concept is all about this "Ultimate Self." Sometimes, I think it can be taken as this idealistic image, some perfect version of yourself that is always out of reach... but that's not quite what we are getting at. The idea is that we are always in pursuit of something better. We believe in being self-aware and using that awareness to grow. I think that since we are always striving for our Ultimate Self, that means that we're sort of already there. If we are on this journey to be ever-evolving and ever-better, wouldn't that mean (in theory) that we are always sitting in a temporary state of Ultimate Self before we reach something even better?

I love hearing people's stories... hearing where the came from, what they've done to be who they are now. What's interesting (and a sad truth) is that the cracks along the way are what mold our stories; the hardships and struggles are what give us experience and understanding of ourselves and of life and that's where we grow. Cracked... not broken.

Instead of putting on this front of perfection, I wanted to embrace the whole story... good and bad. Today, so many people live behind these social media facades of what they want their perfect life to look like but in reality, we've all got shit. We all do. And hey, that shit is a huge part of who we are. How we handle it, how we learn from it, how we move on from it and how we apply it.

The Thirteen Journeys Collection concept started with this idea I had many months ago that I've sorta just been sitting on:

Introspection vs. Observation. That is the awareness of your thoughts, feelings and mental state vs. a more objective and physical awareness. (it's a mind-body thing!!) Basically, understanding who you are inside but also being able to really see yourself from the outside.

For the campaign project, this meant exploring these stories... I wanted it to be an opportunity to share on a deeper level so we could talk about the mental things and the physical instead of a fluffy summary focused on before and after.

For the collection, this inspired me to think about reflection. Reflection can mean one of two things:

1. the throwing back by a body or surface of light, heat, or sound without absorbing it.
2. serious thought or consideration.

Both definitions are on point with the concept but for design, I wanted to focus on the physical definition. 

MOOD

MOSAIC Crop Racerback and Tee:

Brainwave: reflection >mirrors > glass > shattered > cracked > mosaic

The MOSAIC design is just that... a simplified visual of pieces being put together into a design. What I think is so special about the concept of creating mosaics is that bits and pieces that have been cracked apart are then being put back together into an arrangement that is then art. In this case, it's our rhino!

We obviously have a thing for gold... but in this case, it really works with the concept because we were able to use reflective prints!

Read: our journeys are kind of like mosaics. 

TRIAD Tanks and Tees:

The TRIAD design is more focused on the three ELEMENTS of your Ultimate Self: strength, power, and stability. On the front, it's simply the words "Ultimate Self" which you'll see have been painted on (because let's be real, it's not a perfect, clean line to your best self). I used a triangle to symbolize the three ELEMENTS (hence the name "TRIAD" -- three!). The triangle also ties into the design of the MOSAIC.

Down the spine, read "strength power stability" because it's kind of the backbone of this whole thing.

And gold, because duh.

Til next time,

Paige

A couple months back I met with a customer-turned-friend, Morit, over coffee (obviously, gotta stay caffeinated). We were going back and forth about our stories... where we came from, what our goals are, what we are doing now, etc... Morit suggested I share my journey. I've never been opposed to sharing my story because it's what makes me who I am and it's why the brand is what it is but since I started the company, I never wanted things to be all about me. That's not what WE are about. 

Morit + I, onset with Jocelyn Bold Photography, @jocelynboldphotography

I was out walking to teach my Flywheel class on the Upper West Side and the idea struck me. I always have my best ideas when I'm walking to class; maybe it's because my mind is allowed to wander and be free, I don't know. So, this idea, Thirteen Journeys, arrived and I immediately texted Morit, "I KNOW HOW I WANT TO SHARE MY STORY!"

The whole concept was to gather 12 other people to share their journeys with me... for a total of 13 stories, duh! Immediately, ideas of who to ask were flooding my mind and when I'm inspired, I act pretty quickly. I started reaching out to friends and met some new friends along the way.

My badass friend, Shirl + I post-shoot

We speak about our concept and our purpose a lot and this was our chance to make our concept more relatable. Of course, I love our concept but this is our WHY. Why do we talk so much about the mind and body, strength, power and stability, ultimate self? This was our opportunity to dig deeper, connect with you on a more relatable platform. We all have a story; I think everyone's story is significant and can speak to or inspire others in some way or another.

The more I pour myself into this brand and my work outside of Thirteen, the more I'm realizing that all I want to do is help people. This is my chance to make the brand more than just cool tees; I want it to be a brand that somehow can make you FEEL something... empowered, strong, able, excited when you put a shirt on. It's more than getting dressed. It's getting your lifestyle set up for success. 

Thirteen Fit Apparel is about a lifestyle. Sure, the "fit" in our name would make you think maybe we are only a fitness brand but we are much more than that. These stories aren't just about lifting weights and getting fit. These stories are about what brought us into fitness, they're about what kept us committed to fitness and self-love, they're about the relentless pursuit of Ultimate Self, they're about the uniqueness of everyone's journey.

Over the next few weeks, I'm going to introduce you to some inspiring AF friends who I couldn't be more grateful for. Not only for their willingness to participate in this adventure but for being authentic and vulnerable. It's not always easy to speak about the past but it sure is empowering.

Of course, we weren't going to launch a whole campaign without new apparel!! We have new shirts coming out **pre-orders are being taken** by shopping the website; stock will be in this month for shipping!

In addition to the stories coming (stay super-tuned for our first story on Justine coming TODAY), I will be sharing the concepts behind our new mini-collection AND because I obsessed with explaining all things conceptual, I'll be sharing the story behind our photoshoot/video inspo.

Til next time,

Paige