In the Fashion District
by Yume Ninja-Sovereign | August 22nd, 2012
I often get questions about where I buy my shoes and frames, among other things. Though I do a lot of my shopping online, I also have an amazing resource here in Los Angeles.
So where can I get some awesome deals in person? Los Angeles Fashion District. I decided to meet up with Reject Superstar one day and give you guys a short picture tour!
In a full black and white outfit, a bit of Sugarpill’s “MOCHI” on the eyes, and OCC’s Liptar in “Anime” I went downtown to bear the heat.
Some of you may have heard me refer to it as FD in previous posts.Though it’s not a huge secret to us Los Angeleans, anytime I’ve had friends from out of town visit, I always tell them to head down there.
The general rule of Fashion District is this: if you can find it on ebay or on chinese shopping sites, you can find it in Fashion District!
That’s right, anything from shoes to glasses, wigs, accessories…whatever! 9 times out of 10, you’ll be able to go down to FD and find it. Usually if you’re lucky or brave and buy more than one item from a vendor you can HAGGLE! Haggling is the best way to get a good deal.
8Bit glasses? FD BABY! That’s where I got all of my black 8bit glasses. They usually go for about $5/each or $10/two. If you get more than two, I encourage you to haggle.
Also, don’t be afraid to walk away! WALK AWAY if you’re not getting a good deal. Why? Because there are more than 20-odd blocks of vendors, and I 100% guarantee that you’ll find another vendor who is selling the same exact item and will sell it to you for cheaper.
Is that being cheap? I don’t think so.
Some people don’t realize how inexpensive these items are. So how do I figure what they’re worth? First off, GOOGLE is your best friend. Find out how much these items actually cost on ebay and chinese websites (EVERYONE IS GETTING THEM FROM THE SAME PLACE!), factor in the cost of importing, and the vendors profit, and you can usually figure out whether or not the item is actually worth what they’re charging.
You don’t have to be good at math!
Another tip is also to start in the main alley itself. This is located between Maple Ave and Santee St itself. It starts around 12th street, and goes up to Olympic blvd.
Every day we’re shufflin’!!
Reject Superstar showed up in the cutest mint and pink outfit. I commend her commitment to fashion, because it was over 90 degrees that day.
We both loved these glasses but I didn’t end up getting them. I probably will go back and get them eventually!
There are vendors upon vendors here. This is also a go-to place for Quinceaneras, weddings, prom, and apparently hats …that’s new.
There were literally hats EVERYWHERE this summer.
There’s are also vendors who sell various fashions from bootylicious jeans, to your vintage-floral types.
Behold this spiked body-con dress! It was $22 if my memory serves correct.
Some stalls are hit or miss, but if you get there early, you can always spend more time poking around.
SHOES!
If you don’t buy anything else…. go there for the shoes.
There are tons of shoe stalls. If you’ve ever looked at shoes on sites like GoJane, UrbanOG, etc you’ve probably seen shoes that you’ll find here in FD. The biggest pluses are the following:
1. TRYING THEM ON
2. Usually about $5-10 cheaper than online
There are plenty of times where I’ve seen a shoe online that I liked, and went down to FD to see it in person.
Fashionable shoes aren’t the only kinds of shoes available either, there are plenty of stalls that carry “stripper” shoes for very cheap.
Now that the “PLUR” (RAVER) movement has returned (remember the 90s? i sure do!), there are a lot of stores popping up in FD that carry all of your EDC loving needs. These stores not only carry the furry leg warmers and bikinis, they also carry a variety of hosiery and under things.
WIGS are also a fixture in FD. There are plenty of weaves and hair shops in FD. There are also specific hair supply shops surrounding FD. Plenty of wigs that you see on EBAY or the like, can be found downtown, usually for about the same price (after shipping). I love the convenience, you don’t have to wait 2-3weeks for them to arrive, you can just go downtown and buy it.
I think the biggest tip is to bring cash, and come early. Getting there early means you won’t have to walk in the sun and get more time to poke around.
It’s also best to go during the weekdays. The weekends are usually the busiest times. Some shops are also open year round, regardless of holidays.
It can get really overwhelming if you don’t make yourself comfortable. FD also spills into the Garment District, as well as the Flower District.
And if you’re looking for less repetitive items, try poking around the blocks outside of FD (north of 9th street, and west of Santee). There are really interesting shops on the outskirts that tend to be less packed.
This sparkly sign attracts me.
These shoes were from a mens suit store about 4 blocks north of FD. I really liked the odd colored shoes.
And my hands down favourite store outside of FD?
Beverly Hills Hosiery! I love this store to death. They have just about everything in the underthings and legs department. If you’re looking for high-end items, this is probably not your store. However, if you need some basic fishnets, or cute pattern tights, maybe just want to buy some tights/socks/leggings obsessively….
this is the store to hit up.
I love shopping here because the staff doesn’t hassle me and everything is labeled and priced. Haggling is not done here, but everything is also very organized and clearly marked. It makes the shopping experience very easy.
There’s also usually some interesting street art when you’re downtown in Los Angeles. From weird to cute, it’s usually there on every wall.
Well that’s it from me.
So if you’re ever in Los Angeles and want somewhere fun to shop, definitely check it out.
Nice Work , i will add yr blog in my fav …:) Between me and my husband we’ve owned more MP3 players over the years than I can count, including Sansas, iRivers, iPods (classic & touch), the Ibiza Rhapsody, etc. But, the last few years I’ve settled down to one line of players. Why? Because I was happy to discover how well-designed and fun to use the underappreciated (and widely mocked) Zunes are.
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’891905216 which is not a hashcash value.
Wonderful bolg, in case you are looking for methods to generate income Click Here
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’1533326464 which is not a hashcash value.
Thanks for the auspicious writeup. It in fact used to be a entertainment account it. Look advanced to more added agreeable from you! However, how can we be in contact?
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’0 which is not a hashcash value.
Find out how you can get tons of quality backlinks to your site for pennies on the dollar! You can rank a brand new website, or improve the rankings for an existing site really quickly with these guys! http://LinkBlasts.com
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’691402240 which is not a hashcash value.
It’s really a nice and helpful piece of info. I am satisfied that you just shared this helpful information with us. Please keep us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’0 which is not a hashcash value.
Hello There. I discovered your blog using msn. That is a very well written article. I’ll make sure to bookmark it and come back to read more of your useful information. Thank you for the post. I’ll certainly return.
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’0 which is not a hashcash value.
The keys to a good time at the fashion district are as follows! Stick to these and you’ll come out on top!1. Know what you want.It’s overwhelming because there’s so much stuff and the folks that work there are quick to pressure you into trying stuff on. Don’t get swept up and look for what works for you!2. Know what looks good on you. Because it’s quick fashion, the quality of almost everything there is on the cheap side. Because it’s quick fashion, they don’t put out products that are cut well, or shaped to be flattering on all body types. Plus there’s so much of it! Make sure the item is flattering before you buy it.3. Carry cash!4. Give yourself time to look around. Parking is such a pain, so ample time makes this a worthwhile trip!5. If you’re good at it, try to haggle in the smaller shops. There are bigger shops at the fashion district that definitely won’t though.6. Don’t be a sucker. Nuff said.I personally love accessories in the area, so a pretty piece of jewelery is usually the highlight of my trip!
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’0 which is not a hashcash value.
I do like the way you have framed this concern plus it really does present me personally a lot of fodder for consideration. Still, thank you for this fantastic piece.
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’1382654720 which is not a hashcash value.
We have a lot of those hat stores down here, but they’re for old Southern Baptist ladies. I wonder who wears those in LA
I have no clue! I think it’s very “mother of the bride” ..so maybe mexican moms at quinceanera’s?
i have never seen those kinds of hats pop up before.
Posted on Do you people have a fbcoaoek fan page? I looked for one on twitter but could not discover one, I would really like to become a fan!
[WORDPRESS HASHCASH] The poster sent us ’0 which is not a hashcash value.
Excellent post! I usually go to the FD for fabric and never have time to look at everything else. I will def plan a trip for shoe and accessory shopping soon!
i love the shoe selection in FD just because it’s basically anything you would want online that isn’t from Taobao.
i also think it’s an awesome place to go look for last minute wigs!