FASHION : Shopping Around for Gifts That Say “L.A.”
No amount of fake snow will ever turn Los Angeles into a Currier & Ives Christmas scene. December in Southern California is the season when we shop in shirt sleeves, searching for mufflers and gloves. We buy pink-flocked Douglas firs from blond surfers wearing shorts and rubber thongs.
It’s time to develop a shopping style that befits our latitude and seems logical in the 70-degree heat, one that will garner presents to satisfy the locals on the list as well as anyone east of the Mojave Desert.
There’s a simple formula for this mode of Christmas shopping. First, consider the natural attractions of Southern California (the sun, the beach and the mountains). Next, apply them to specific gift categories (cosmetics, neckties, pajamas, lounge wear and accessories). Add a bit of regional sensationalism (conspicuous consumption, the fitness compulsion or the New Age fascination with crystals), then head for the mall.
Even if your gift-giving list reads as long as a James Michener novel, it’s possible to find the perfect present that speaks--no, shouts--it’s pink-flocked heritage.
Gifts for sunny weather are sure to send a regional message. Perpetual sunshine, after all, does require an arsenal of protective coverings. Sunglasses, like shoes and handbags, are a necessity. You simply don’t leave home without them. Many of the late-night crowd are so attached to theirs that they sport them long after the sun sets. Rhinestone-studded sunglasses by Anne Klein, at Bullocks Wilshire, make nice day-into-evening shades.
Skin-care products are another must-have to counteract the ravages of the sun. Cosmetics companies such as Lancome and Biotherm will have their sales representatives put together entire gift baskets of sun-protecting products. There are lotions, gels, shampoos and moisturizers to choose from. Just ask for this service at any large department store’s cosmetic counter.
Local cosmetics and skin-treatment companies will do the same and include gift certificates for facials. Vera’s Retreat in the Glen has a line of PABA-free sunscreen products for those who are sensitive to that sun block ingredient. If you’re looking for a little something extra in your sun block, Elan Elan in West Hollywood sells a sunscreen spray that sparkles like glitter on your skin.
One good thing about perpetually sunny days is that they give us two months of sweater weather and 10 months of bikini time. As a result, a swimsuit is a much better present than any mohair cardigan. The California-based swimwear manufacturers are beginning to produce all manner of swimsuits--for glamorous evenings: There is glittery lame, and for nightclubbing, there is black leather with a matching jacket.
Other models are street-worthy when draped with sarong skirts or worn with matching shorts. Designers’ recent efforts have made swimwear an all-purpose wardrobe item, one that does not seem at all inappropriate for gift-giving in December.
Most of the surf wear-inspired sportswear companies are based in L.A.’s back yard, and they make their presence known in local stores. Gotcha, Body Glove, Stussy, Surf Fetish and a dozen or so others have recognizable logos coveted by young teens everywhere. This passion is inversely proportional to the distance teen-agers live from the beach. Those completely landlocked in their home states seem to be the most ardent surf wear advocates.
To satisfy those burning desires, Gotcha and Body Glove have created gift packs of either sweat shirts, wallets and woven bracelets or key chains, wallets and pens. Sure, the logo is everywhere, but that’s the attraction. The products are sold in almost every major department store, which makes them easy to find.
Even our most pedestrian of shoes--rubber flip flops--have heard the bells of Christmas ring. At Ashbrook’s in Santa Monica, one enterprising young designer is selling his plastic fruit- and flower-bedecked “fruit-flops” in a gift basket of real fruit.
Zealots for fitness abound in Southern California, and so do products designed to help them on their journey to perfection. The gym bag has reached the proportions of a medium-size suitcase. One by Ogio has a little shelf for clothing, a holder for shoes, and pockets containing many plastic bottles for emollients and soaps. It’s perfect for the jock who is compulsive about keeping order.
For people hoping to achieve jock status but who can’t quite keep up the momentum, there is a quick and painless remedy--the Charles Atlas Instant Muscles, flesh-colored inflatables that strap onto the 90-pound weakling’s biceps. They are packaged in a can and sold at Heaven, a shop in the Beverly Center. To soften the burn of aerobic fatigue, Fred Hayman Beverly Hills carries a jogging suit of pure cashmere. At $1,095, this exercise wear could easily fall into another indigenous category--conspicuous consumption.
It’s the stuff of local legend. Blatant displays of wealth and buying power are the key. But it doesn’t mean you have to spend a lot to get your message across. Franco Moschino thought of all those women who like their handbags inscribed with the designer’s initials when he created his status bag: The price is glaringly embroidered in gold thread on the outside of the handbag (150,000 francs). Moschino’s bag is available at the Shauna Stein boutique in the Beverly Center.
Men’s pajamas by Joe Boxer, the San Francisco-based designer, are available in fabrics featuring crumpled dollar bills or dollar signs printed on a money-green background. They cost only about $40 at The Broadway and Camp Beverly Hills, but it’s the thought that counts.
Things that say hello from Hollywood are almost always appreciated in the right circles. Someone special would be wild about the sunglasses that have “Hollywood” written in a holographic image across the lenses, or a leather belt with “Hollywood” spelled out in Indian beads. Both are available at the Soap Plant on Melrose Avenue.
For a sophisticated, Old Hollywood gift, Rick Pallack’s men’s store in Sherman Oaks has silk ties with the likeness of Marilyn Monroe or Clark Gable woven into the fabric for $49.90 each.
New versions of the Old West are a great thematic device for Christmas gifts from Southern California. The Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum in Griffith Park has a gift shop that’s loaded with cowboy wrangler wear. There are denim dusters that are ankle-length with a long slit in back for comfort in the saddle. They are come in sizes for little cowpokes, too.
Pony-skin anything is also riding the crest of trendiness this winter. The most unusual application of it could be the bathing suit by Beten Gav, sold at Fred Segal. At the newest, Beverly Hills location of Bootz, the shoe store, there are pony-skin boots. But those that appeal to the flashiest Rexall Rangers this holiday season are in brilliant, chameleon green lizard.
If all this isn’t inspiration enough to make it a So-Cal Christmas, there are even more things out there to choose from that just couldn’t come from anywhere but here. Designer Brenda Welch makes a swimsuit dripping with crystals and available at Everything But Water, which has stores citywide. And the surfing Santa legend, titled “A California Christmas Story” and told on the front of a sweat shirt, is available at Robinson’s for $19.99.
