So Long U.K., Hello L.A.

British fashion designers Liza Bruce and Andrew Dibben are discovering Los Angeles through the lens of Silver Lake, the latest hip neighborhood-of-the-moment, and far from their London roots.

Within the last year, Bruce and her husband have settled into a hilltop mansion in the bohemian neighborhood near downtown. Dibben, 31, her former assistant and most recently creative director for Mark Eisen in Los Angeles, also lives in Silver Lake and opened a shop there last summer.

The two extol the virtues of Los Angeles--a vibrant, creative community with progressive attitudes and fabulous weather--at a time when London is basking in a fashion and cultural revival. They chose Los Angeles over New York, banking on what they see as this city’s emerging fashion profile.

“In fashion, New York is the place for a while. Then it’s Paris,” said Bruce, who has designed swimwear and form-fitting clothes for two decades. “I think L.A. will be one of those cities fashion will circle around. It will have its moment.”

The city--and its Hollywood celebrities, fashion’s new darlings--have prompted Gucci designer Tom Ford and evening wear designer Randolph Duke to buy homes here. L.A. has become a necessary presence for designer shops such as the newly opened Daryl K, Betsey Johnson and Miu Miu.

Bruce and Dibben say they came not for the celebrities, but for the city’s modern attitude and rich blend of cultures. They share a similar design aesthetic that they say works in the iconoclastic context of the city. They make modern clothing that relies on fabric innovations such as Lycra, Velcro, magnets and low-maintenance fabric finishes to achieve an effortless, uncluttered style.

Neither Bruce nor Dibben knew of the other’s plans for Los Angeles. They stumbled across one another when “I was looking at the space Liza was looking at on Melrose,” Dibben said. Early this year, Bruce opened her only U.S. store, on Melrose Avenue near Fred Segal. Dibben followed a few months later with a combined shop, showroom and studio in a former art gallery on Silver Lake Boulevard.

Moving Here for Personal Reasons

Both designers betray a certain amazement at their good fortune in Los Angeles. After all, Bruce and her husband, artist Nicholas Alvis Vega, were practically begged to lease a wing of a beautiful mansion in Silver Lake, the kind of place natives and celebrities alike have jealously eyed.

During a fact-finding tour of interesting L.A. stores, Bruce wandered into Odalisque, a Hollywood design studio. Owner Dana Hollister recognized Bruce and her husband because she had carried for five years “the most beautiful photograph of a house you could imagine.” The picture was from a magazine story on Bruce’s London home.

“I said, ‘You have to live with me!’ I hadn’t even closed escrow. I absolutely insisted,” Hollister said. The couple ultimately agreed to lease a wing.

Now, Bruce can look across all of Los Angeles from the mansion’s marble pool or soaring windows. The couple even drives a uniquely American car--a 1970 Pontiac GTO convertible.

Bruce and her husband initially were drawn to Los Angeles for personal reasons.

“We came to L.A. because Nicholas and I decided we wanted to build in the desert,” Bruce explained. The couple talked about a number of structures to build in Joshua Tree, including a carved-out caravan of Airstream trailers, an idea that links Bruce to her car-designer father. They still have a home and a flagship boutique in London, and a new rental in northern India’s Jaipur where they manufacture jewelry.

Both her Melrose store and London flagship were painted in a gradation of rainbow tones by Vega, the better to set off Bruce’s vibrantly colored clothes. She dresses the sexy minimalist in figure-conforming silhouettes and custom swimwear--a logical extension for the woman who started her career making silky bikinis.

Bruce says she likes L.A.’s economics: “You can live here with a lot less money. The way you look and the way you dress are critical in New York.”

For Dibben, Southern California offered an opportunity to establish himself more affordably than in London.

“Look at this store,” said Dibben of his airy space. “It’s 2,000 square feet. I’d have to be a multimillionaire to afford this in London.”

At Bruce’s urging, five months ago Dibben became the first upscale designer in recent memory to settle among the neighborhood’s thrift stores and vintage furniture shops. The location is unorthodox, but Bruce and Dibben have faith that Silver Lake is ready for high fashion as more well-paid residents settle in the area.

Dibben may be a lesser-known name, but his credentials are impressive. His first job out of fashion design school was in Vienna as Helmut Lang’s design assistant. Next he returned to London to assist Bruce for a year. From 1994 to 1997, he was Eisen’s creative director, a move that opened his eyes to the West Coast.

When he signed on with Eisen, Dibben didn’t expect to spend time in Los Angeles--or to like the city.

“Within three or four months, I absolutely loved it here,” Dibben said. Friends encouraged him to live in Los Feliz, near Silver Lake. Two years ago, he bought a “tiny but perfect” house in the Silver Lake hills that he shares with a new puppy.

“On my street in Silver Lake, there’s every kind of ethnicity and sexual preference happily living together,” Dibben said.

As goes the neighborhood, so goes his clothing.

“I don’t believe in gender-specific clothing,” he said. His muse is a slightly feminine-looking man and a vaguely masculine-looking woman who can interchangeably wear his crisply tailored trousers, subtly ornamented T-shirts or streamlined jackets.

Basking in a Yard and a Gym Membership

“The thing that’s so incredible about this city is the space, the light, the architecture,” he said. His dog has a yard and Dibben has a gym membership--both of which are luxuries back home. Neither designer has regrets about leaving the rain and gloom of London for L.A.’s luxuriant sunlight.

Both designers are making long-term plans for the city.

Dibben contracts with local manufacturers who match his exacting quality standards. His store also serves as his showroom and design studio, from which he plans to launch a retail and wholesale expansion. He currently wholesales his line only in Japan.

Bruce also may make L.A. the base of future wholesaling and licensing operations for her line, which she manufactures in England. Her husband may manufacture his art furniture (which is sold at the store) here as well.

They shrug off the doubts about L.A.’s dubious reputation as a fashion or cultural center.

“There’s some bad propaganda about L.A.,” Vega said. “You do have to make a real effort to see what makes it interesting. You have to spend days driving around to find it. But you turn off the highway, and [it seems] you’re in a another country. It’s like Fantasy Highway.”

With their moves, they’re fighting the weight of history, when Europe and the East Coast defined sophistication in fashion.

“Real sophistication incorporates modernity,” Bruce said. “And L.A. epitomizes that.”

* Liza Bruce’s boutique is at 7977 Melrose Ave., (323) 655-5012. Andrew Dibben boutique is at 1618 Silver Lake Blvd., (323) 662-9189.

* Valli Herman-Cohen can be reached by e-mail at valli.herman-cohen@latimes.com.