We’ve been a fan of Oregon’s KEEN and their penchant for coming up with eye-catching, functional designs for outdoor types. (I love my left/right socks). I recall seeing their UNEEK line of open-air footwear hit the scene, but it wasn’t until I inspected the latest UNEEKs up close did I get a little mEsMeRiZeD by the tapestried system of interlocking cords that attach the sole to the upper, creating a sturdy, ornamental web around your foot.
KEEN threw a party last week on Orchard Street in NYC to showcase the UNEEK 02 line, which they feel perfects the build of the 01s with even more thought on how the cords (flat and rounded) work with the natural shape of the foot. I’d knee-jerkedly put them on a list of “things to wear instead of flip-flops”
On display, they had the prototype collection of what would become the UNEEK, including the OG pin & thread over last:
I got to chat with members of the Keen team, and they assured me these would probably be good for river-tubing. It takes a stroke of confidence to uniquely call your thing U-Neek. I’d say that KEEN delivered with what are essentially little engineering masterpieces. I’d consider trying them out on the beach, probably while bumping some Eek-A-Mouse, and maybe a little Chronixx.
Kind regards,
Chris