California Apparel News

A genteel lifestyle and a will to experiment with style inspire fashions in Pasadena, Calif.

Photo Gallery

Whats Checking | Pasadena's Fashion Forecast

In a city that’s home to the sprawling Rose Bowl Flea Market, Norton Simon Museum, world-renowned California Institute of Technology and Cordon Bleu culinary school, clothiers must embrace a wide array of tastes that are becoming more sophisticated, said Norma Rodriguez, manager of Pasadena’s venerable Elisa B. contemporary boutique.

“The Pasadena woman is evolving,” Rodriguez said. “She’s gotten more sassy.”

The diverse city’s main shopping streets are located in Old Town Pasadena, which is the home to many specialty stores with nationally known nameplates, such as Armani Exchange, Lululemon, Diesel, Gap and H&M as well as independent shops, such as leading surf boutique Val Surf and Elisa B.

The independent-boutique scene mostly set up shop in the 900 and 1000 blocks of East Green Street, where Albert Einstein reportedly used an office during his stay at Caltech, which is home of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. California Apparel News dropped by a few of Pasadena’s independent shops and saw what was new.

ELISA B

A jacquard knit dress by McQ-Alexander McQueen is selling well at the Elisa B. boutique, located in the One Colorado compound on Colorado Boulevard. It retails for $465, said Elisa B. store manager Norma Rodriguez. “It’s not super trendy,” she said. “No one has it in Pasadena.”

3.1 Philip Lim label’s “The Trompe L’Oeil” layered T- dress also is popular at Elisa B. Women like the dress’s mix of silk and cotton, Rodriguez said. It retails for $525.

The “Viscose Crepe” blazer by Alexander Wang retails for $375 at Elisa B. The blazer, with a loose silhouette, is part of a diffusion line, Rodriguez said. “It looks like it is part of a collection, but you’re paying half price,” Rodriguez said.

ATELIER FEMME

“The biggest category is T-shirts,” Atelier Femme founder Sandy Potter said of her boutique. It is located at 1033 E. Green St. in Pasadena and sells to women in their 30s and women who are “30-aspirational.” The top T-shirt brand at the store is Velvet by Graham & Spencer. The sweet spot for T-shirt prices hovers around $75. People love the color and the fit, Potter said. “The designers in Southern California know how to design for casual dressing,” she said. Her clients are interested in shirts that are fashionable but not overly embellished or oversized.

The Velvet label’s white wrap top retails for $75. “Customers love the side ruching,” Potter said. “It makes it fit well through the body.”

Bailey 44’s knit sportswear dress retails for $174 at Atelier Femme. “It’s comfortable, stylish and easy to wear.

California’s obsession with color blossoms in the Clover Canyon “Liquid Jersey” dress, which retails for $318. Pinks and mint greens are but two colors in the dress’s bouquet.

ONE LOVE PASADENA

One staple for every wardrobe is the rock T-shirt. Julia Takai took the rock T-shirt a step further. The owner and designer of One Love Pasadena, which is located at 991 E. Green St., customizes rock T-shirts into one-of-a-kind tank tops or fringe dresses. The customized shirts retail for $22. Her consumers gravitate toward shirts depicting classic bands The Beatles and The Rolling Stones and pioneering punk band The Ramones. But the most popular subject on T-shirts is Eddie Van Halen, virtuoso guitarist from the band Van Halen and a native son of Pasadena.

RISQUÉ

After her wedding, Risqué owner Ellen Sepulveda had the choice of buying a house or opening a lingerie boutique. Without any retail experience, she opened Risqué at 1045 E. Green St. in 2005. Offering independent and European lingerie made her boutique stand out, Sepulveda said.

Popular looks include Betsey Johnson label’s retro-leopard baby doll. It retails for $79. “It’s fun. It’s flirty. It’s daring and it’s very detailed,” Sepulveda said.

Spanx shapewear is a big seller at Risqué. The Spanx “Super-Higher-Power” panty retails for $38. It is popular for helping to smooth out clingy dresses and, yes, to provide shape, Sepulveda said. “It reminds you to hold in and stand straight,” she said.

Few apparel companies get bridal lingerie right, Sepulveda said. However, Los Angeles–based line Jezebel got Risqué’s stamp of approval. The bridal bustier retails for $78. It is stylish, the bustier’s cups provide a good lift, and it is easy to move in. “No one wants to be stiff on their wedding day,” Sepulveda said.

French label Maison Lejaby’s bras retail for $130, garters sell for $90, and panties sell for $55, Sepulveda said. The French label’s fit and details, such as Swarovski crystals, make it popular. Getting lingerie right is important. “It is the first thing you put on your skin at the start of the day,” Sepulveda said.

“It makes you feel beautiful and you can take on the world.”