Vintage clothing may have gone mainstream, but a few new boutiques off the beaten path maintain their eclectic flavor. Here, shoes and earrings at Ari on La Brea Avenue. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)
Ari vintage clothing. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)
Clothes are displayed in the open to tempt passersby. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)
Ari occupies a patch of pavement at the corner of La Brea and Olympic. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)
Miho, left, and Mifune Kubo co-own Ari, which has been open for about seven months. (Barbara Davidson / Los Angeles Times)
A midcentury modern chandelier and a neon sculpture by Tracey Emin hang in Justin Kern’s vintage clothing store, Not to Be Reproduced. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
A Tracey Emin etching, “Kate Moss,” and Christian Louboutin shoes at Not to Be Reproduced. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
A custom Chanel bag and a Whiting & Davis silver mesh bag hang alongside vintage clothes at Not to Be Reproduced. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Justin Kern stands in his store, which is actually in his Hollywood Hills home. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Vintage clothing and vintage volumes share space at Kulturas Second Hand Book Store in Santa Monica. The clothes are picked by co-owner Irene Coray; the books are the domain of her husband, Andrew MacDonald. (Ringo H.W. Chiu / For The Times)
A customer looks through clothes at Kulturas. The collection comprises about 150 pieces. (Ringo H.W. Chiu / For The Times)
A vintage jacket and books at Kulturas. (Ringo H.W. Chiu / For The Times)
Vintage accessories at Kulturas. (Ringo H.W. Chiu / For The Times)
Shoes and accessories at Kulturas. (Ringo H.W. Chiu / For The Times)
A green Bill Blass dress that Irene Coray estimates is from the mid-1970s goes for $175 at Kulturas. Despite some designer names in the mix, she says, quality trumps labels. (Ringo H.W. Chiu / For The Times)
