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Sometimes the best collaborations don’t begin with a boardroom pitch – they begin with an Instagram submission and a well-timed email.
A few years ago, Kyle Snarr and his wife traveled to Iceland, where he photographed a lighthouse on the western coast. When we put out an open call for lighthouse images, he submitted it. The photo was accepted, and Kyle began corresponding with a member of the AWA Team about the submission. That’s when he noticed my name – cc’d on one of the email threads. He recognized me as AWA’s co-founder and saw an opening.
Wally and Amanda (and Dexter!) with Kyle at an Accidentally Wes Anderson Adventures book signing
Öndverðarnes Lighthouse 📍 Oceanside, Iceland 📸 Kyle Snarr
The pitch was simple: His company, Cantonment, makes kerchiefs. Cantonment was founded by three childhood friends who grew up in Upstate New York, all of whom had been in the same Scout troop as kids. The Goldilocks-sized kerchiefs – bigger than a handkerchief, smaller than a bandana – were designed as everyday carry objects that could clean a watch dial, wipe down a camera lens, or be tied around your neck. But here’s the line that caught my attention: “Whenever I tie a kerchief around my neck, no matter where I am or what I’m doing, I’m automatically on an adventure.”
The conversation expanded quickly. I was already trying to reimagine the merchandise we create for the AWA Community, and Kyle’s entrepreneurial mindset, kind demeanor, and general belief in what AWA was and our mission as a whole drew me in. Together, we built a concept and the brief became simple: What travel items are we missing? What objects not only carry a sense of nostalgia, feel good in your hand, and happen to be the exact thing you want to pull out of your rucksack when you’re on the road or heading to your next adventure?
That became the foundation for our strategy – and eventually, the Cantonment × AWA kerchief set.
The collaboration resulted in two designs. One features a pattern built from our icon set – the symbols that have become visual shorthand for the entire AWA project – a wink to those Community members in the know, and an invitation to those who aren’t yet. The other is Cantonment’s first-ever full-color kerchief, reproducing the lighthouse from the cover of Accidentally Wes Anderson: Adventures. (Not the Iceland lighthouse that started it all, but a fitting tribute to where the relationship led.)
Kyle photographed the kerchiefs in California during a dive trip, styled them in a sort of Where’s Waldo? fashion, and the result is a collaboration that feels… real. Not corporate co-branding, but two people, two organizations who share a vocabulary – travel, gear, storytelling, a certain appetite for the unlikely – deciding to make something together. The scrappiness of figuring it out as you go, with the quality and polish you’d expect from the big players.
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Because here’s the thing about a kerchief: it’s an object that doesn’t do much on paper, but changes everything in practice. Tie one around your neck and suddenly you’re not just running errands – you’re going somewhere. Even if it’s just to your grandparents’ house.
If you’ve ever wanted to carry a piece of the AWA universe with you – or just feel like you’re on an adventure while doing absolutely nothing adventurous – this might be your moment. The AWA × Cantonment Kerchief Set is available now in our shop and at Cantonment (and while you’re over there check out the other special items they’ve crafted!)
Adventure awaits!
