Remember the days when vintage shopping and bargain hunting were one and the same? Believe it or not, that’s still the case in Echo Park, perhaps the last bastion of high-quality, low-priced secondhand garb in the city. It’s also the place to scope out new local design talent before anyone else—you’ll come away with the sort of pieces that will themselves be coveted by vintage collectors one day.
Stepping out: Echo Park shopping guide
By Erin Magner
Special to MetromixJuly 30, 2008
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Luxe de Ville
2157 Sunset Blvd. - Los Angeles,213-353-0135
Really hot for vintage, especially from the 1980's, but you'll find awesomeness dating all the way back to the 1940's. Don't forget to check out new designs by the owner, Oskar de la Cruz (we hear "Sex and the City" stylist Patricia Fields is a fan).
California Select
2111 Sunset Blvd. - Echo ParkIf American Apparel’s monochromatic hot pants and hoodies are too one-note for the symphony that is your wardrobe, check out their sister store, California Select, a collection of the greatest hits of '80s fashion. Kids’ retro vests, vintage swim cover ups, and a selection of LPs turn innocent...
Taxi CDC
2146 W. Sunset Blvd. - Los Angeles323-397-0448
Deborah Brosenne, one of the founders of Triple Five Soul, has left the comforts of New York and planted her new roots here in L.A. She decided to focus on repurposing vintage items and giving them modern shapes and cuts and now showcases them at her shop, Taxi CDC. Find one-of-a-kind pieces at this pearl of a boutique.
Sirens and Sailors
1104 Mohawk St. - Los Angeles213-483-5423
Think one of a kind flouncy dresses, wood-carved accessories and up-to-the-minute high-waisted carrot-leg jeans, all in a converted craftsman off Sunset in Echo Park. And the opening hours sometimes vary, depending on the whims of the proprietors. Which makes us love them even more.
Lemon Frog Shop
1202 Alvarado St. - Echo Park213-413-2143
Do yourself, your closet, and everyone who has to look at you a favor and go, go, go to Lemon Frog. Having opened in late 2007 with the idea of providing “something for everyone,” the vintage boutique offers everything from impeccably-maintained dresses to retro ties to groovy charm jewelry at prices so low we thought we were reading the tags wrong. And as if selling inexpensive and beautiful clothes isn’t enough of a service to the world, it’s also recently become the home of Seraph Cosmetics, a line of organic makeup beauty products.
MediaNoche
1200 N. Alvarado St. - Los Angeles213-353-4995
This funky Echo Park boutique carries new and vintage clothing for the gritty and glamorous. It features hip, burlesque-esque, Brit-rocker cut clothing for men and women in the vain of David Bowie, Richie Rich, Amy Winehouse, and Dita Von Teese. Black Halo, Tart, Tracy Kahn, SIWY, Johnson, Leona Edmiston, Heatherette, Kimberly Baker, Kill City, English Laundry, Cheap Monday, and Sweet Soul are all featured labels. The store also boasts the ability to special order hats in all sizes and styles including fedoras, pork pies, derbys, driving caps, panamas and cowboy hats to name a few.
Flounce
1555 Echo Park Ave. - Los Angeles213-481-1975
Boutique vintage shopping that takes you back to a gauzy post-1930’s world of smiley gift cards, chiffon dresses, suitcases fit for a cruise, and shiny shiny men’s pyjamas.
Front St.
1154 Glendale Blvd. - Echo Park213-413-6666
Endovanera opens its underground hideaway of a shop in the only place that would allow their mysterious airs to persist—a seedy underpass in Echo Park. Scout your favorites from this rising indie clothing star and take advantage of the on-site design studio to tailor-make your outfit. Label-savvy hipsters fret not—Front St. boasts a near-invisible sign, so you still get to feel like you're hunting for your cool threads.
