Shopping is Katy Perry's big love

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Katy Perry took the stage at Madison Square Garden as part of her Prismatic World Tour in a fittingly reflective crop top and skirt. (Kevin Mazur / Getty Images)

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The Valentino music note gown that Katy Perry wore to this year’s Grammy Awards put a new twist on Hollywood glamour. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times)

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Katy Perry donned a light green Gucci gown with an embellished neckline for the Grammy Awards in 2013. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

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Katy Perry paired an enormous hat shaped like a rose with an Alexis Mabille couture dress for the 2012 MusiCares Person of the Year Tribute. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

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Katy Perry sparkled in this white Armani gown, complete with feathered wings, at the 2011 Grammy Awards. (Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times)

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Katy Perry’s peppermint-covered dress coordinated with the candy colors of her dancers’ ensembles on her California Dreams tour in 2011. (Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)

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A yellow dress dotted with hearts gives Katy Perry a leg up in a performance at the 2010 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. (Peter Foley / EPA)

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Katy Perry’s retro-inspired style shines in a performance for the Grammy nominations in 2010. (Michael Robinson Chavez / Los Angeles Times)

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The pop star paired yellow Vintage Jet Rag onesie with a red vintage belt and turquoise shoes by Nicholas Kirkwood at Bar Chloe on Second Street in Santa Monica in 2008. (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

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Here, the songstress wore a gray and pink Shareen Vintage dress and Sonia Rykiel pumps. (Bob Chamberlin / Los Angeles Times)

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Perry brings her style to her on-stage performances as well, like in this red party dress with a full skirt. (Alberto E. Rodriguez / Getty Images)

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“There are definitely flavors of that 1940s pin-up in how I dress,” Perry has said. Here, she struck a pose at Z100’s Zootopia party at the Izod Center in New Jersey in 2009. (Rob Loud / Getty Images)

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“I really like to look like a history book,” Perry has said. “I can look 1940s, I can look 1970s hippy hippie-chic, or sometimes I’ll pull that ‘80s Brooklyn hip-hop kid with the door-knocker earrings.” (Roger Kisby / Getty Images)

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The Santa Barbara native wore this shimmering orange dress to the Guys Choice Awards in 2008. (Frederick M. Brown / Getty Images)

June 15, 2008 12 AM PT

How would you describe your look?

I tend to lean a lot on the Lolita-pinup thing. High-waisted shorts, onesies and vintage tops. It’s like in that Elton John song “Tiny Dancer” when he sings, “pretty eyes, pirate smile.” It’s innocent but can still be sexy. But some days I wake up and I want to wear Converse and be a little more scruffy and dirty.

What do you think makes a person stylish?

A nice dose of sexiness.

You live in Hollywood now. Where do you like to shop?

First off, shopping is my drug of choice. I like Shareen’s downtown. I’ve been shopping there for years. I get tons of dresses -- you can fill up a bag for so cheap and have a week’s worth of outfits. I also like Golyester, that vintage store on La Brea, and Pop Killer in Hollywood, which has the best Japanese imports -- gloves, scarves, clothes. I get all my sunglasses there, because I lose sunglasses all the time. They’re $20 each and they’re so cool. Also you can shop till midnight.

Who are your favorite designers?

I love Marc Jacobs. I know that’s so standard, but I do. I like Brian Lichtenberg too. There’s also an up-and-coming New York brand that I use all the time named . And Neil Barrett is a good friend of mine and always sends me amazing androgynous leather things like vests and jackets for when I’m feeling a little darker and wanting to wear black. Jeremy Scott isn’t afraid to make fun of clothes and I like that.

What’s on your fashion wish list?

That Stella McCartney floral [pants] jumper. Oh my God, I need that in my life.

What do you like in a bag?

I’m carrying a black Chloé bag that basically should be in a trash can because I’ve demolished it. But I have all kinds of amazing purses. I have a watermelon purse that I carry a lot. It’s from H&M. I’ve been shot by the paparazzi before wearing it -- which doesn’t happen often -- and the headline was like, “Watermelon Girl!” I love all kinds of things like that, that have fruit motifs.

What is your indispensable makeup?

I don’t leave the house without Laura Mercier concealer and without my eyebrows done. They frame the face.

What L.A. restaurants do you like?

Magnolia is my favorite -- I eat there at least once a week. I also love this place called Los Tacos. . . . It’s on Santa Monica Boulevard right next to a 7-11, it’s cash only and it’s open 24 hours. You order at the counter and take it and sit. I get the beef enchiladas with green sauce. And the Farmers Market at the Grove is like going to Epcot Center. You get everything you could ever want in life right there.

What do you like to do on your time off?

I love going to shows. The Troubadour, Henry Fonda and Avalon -- those are my favorite places to see music. I like to take in the nicer things, too, like going to the beach. And if I need to go away and remember where I came from, I can be in Santa Barbara in an hour.

Emili Vesilind

Shopping is Katy Perry’s big love

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