A closer look

The stories, on the page.

Every Provenance & You book is different. Some begin with a family photograph. Others with a piece of jewelry, a well-traveled suitcase, or something that has sat in the same place for decades.

Below are selected pages from our founder’s own record: her suitcase, and the story behind it.

A Founder’s Story

From the private archive of Kristiann

Recorded in Fort Lauderdale · October 2026

Page 7. Chapter one: The Suitcase. Item: Riboewa suitcase. Given by: Annie, my roommate. Date: 2019 to now. Current home: closet, crammed in a corner. Meaning: a reminder that a happy life is simple. Archive note: three objects, told in first person. Collection: private archive. Recorded October 2026 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Page 8: After three years of living abroad, I was finally moving back home. Money was tight. My lease was ending. It was time. I had packed my bags about a week or two early, just like usual. But on the very night before my flight, as I rolled my only suitcase to the front door, the wheels cracked. First one, then two. It was 5 PM or maybe 6? It wasn't a big city, so the stores closed quite early. And for some reason, I'm still not sure why, the locals don't use large suitcases, medium-sized ones at best. So I spent the next three hours running from town to town, grabbing taxis, and jumping on trains. I found a few that were big enough, but they cost nearly twice what I felt they should. And though I had just enough money in my account to cover it, I just couldn't stomach the thought of spending almost all of it. I walked home in tears, frustrated with my situation and fully aware of how much I contributed to it. I felt like a failure. I failed at surviving in my dream city. I failed at solving a problem as simple as this one. And now I was going home with nothing.
Page 9: The words "Maybe you are nothing" swirled around my head as I turned the key and opened the door. And there it was. This baby blue suitcase. My roommate knew. She knew how tired I was. She knew how much I had grown to distrust myself. She even knew my favorite color. So she traveled to another city and bought it for me. She did for me what I would not do for myself. We sat on the floor, taking turns crying and laughing. We ate chocolates as we repacked my life into this new suitcase. Together. Seven years and ten countries later, I'm still living out of this suitcase. Its presence somehow makes even the most unfamiliar places feel like home. The zipper is stuck. The lining is fraying. And its wheels are starting to squeak. It's probably time to get a new one, but I simply can't stomach the thought of it. In the margin: It was then I learned that true friendship is being seen, and being loved anyway.
Page 10, A Closer Look: what makes this suitcase this suitcase. The zipper: it broke at Changi Airport while I tried to squeeze in my friends' gifts, and hoped the airline would ignore the overweight bag. (They did.) The straps: they ripped while I was cramming what felt like my entire apartment inside for the third time. The scuffs: each mark is a memory, but I'm convinced most of those marks came from KLIA airport's carousel drops.
Page 11, Where It's Been. Pack light. Leave room. Never be so weighed down with the life you've built that you lose the freedom to discover what else it could be. Guangzhou, China, 2016 to 2019. Miami, Florida, September 2019: home felt strange after being away. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 2023 to 2025: roti bakar and nasi lemak in mamak shops. Bangkok, Thailand, September 2025: mango sticky rice and bubble tea at midnight. Istanbul, Turkey, June 2026: warm simit with fresh cream and honeycomb. Hyderabad, India, September 2026: mutton biryani with bare hands in living rooms. A map marks each city. It's interesting how I remember my favorite places. Not so much by landmarks, but by who was there, what we ate, and where we sat. The suitcase carried things from place to place, but I remember most the things carried home in my heart.
In the full sample

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This is one of three objects in Kristiann’s record. Request a complimentary consultation to view the full sample.

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Cover

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The details

Made to be held.

Thoughtful typography. Carefully composed photographs. A linen-bound cover.

Every design choice is made to support the stories inside, without overwhelming them. The result is a book intended not only to be displayed, but to be read and returned to.

These pages are from Kristiann’s own record and show our editorial and design approach. Your own book will be shaped around the stories, photographs, and belongings you choose to share.

Imagine the stories in your own family.

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