Posts Tagged ‘Melrose Place’

Melrose Place, along with Rodeo Drive and Wilshire in Beverly Hills, are fashion central in Los Angeles. And Melrose Place has been playing host to a lot of interesting fashion and art events lately – including early in March, Kimberly Brooks’ “The Stylist Project” group of paintings, which opened at Lead Apron, and was presented by Vanity Fair and Dior. A few months back, stylist and costumer and Harper’s Bazaar editor Jacqui Getty held an art opening with work by her daughter Gia Coppola and some other hip young L.A. ladies who are would-be artists. Now, on March 28th, a bridal event called Unveiled: Bridal Style Revealed is taking place outdoors along tree-lined Melrose Place that Sunday afternoon. During the event, couture bridal designers, Monique Lhuillier, Carolina Herrera and Temperley London will all be opening their doors for specially curated modeling presentations of bridal couture. (These confections of wedding gowns are by Monique and Carolina – they make just exquisite wedding gowns, both of them). The Unveiled event is not forgetting the grooms-to-be with grooms wear and accessories by

So for anybody who watches the hot new shows, I’m sure you’ve noticed that fashion… HIGH fashion, is invading your living room television… and I’m not talking about Project Runway! Forget Vogue, Elle, and Harpers Bazaar: First it was Sex and The City, then there was Cashmere Mafia, Lipstick Jungle, Gossip Girl, and now The Beautiful Life. Seriously, kudos to Zac Posen and Versace for going mainstream on the CW. Who doesn’t love advertising to the millions of viewers that are faithfully tuned into their favorite shows! Even 90210 has stepped up their style, and Melrose Place is right behind them!

I personally think it’s refreshing to see our favorite stars fancied up on the small screen. Whether its street chic or red carpet worthy. it makes the shows that much more visually appealing!

One of the weakest things about the Melrose and Melrose Place area is that the food selection isn’t great. At night, there’s Ago, Lucques and Commes Ca as great dining spots – but for breakfast and lunch speedy eats, the pickins’ are slim.

But they just got a little fatter. XOORO opened at 8630 Melrose Avenue, next to Sweet Lady Jane’s bake shop, near Mel r’ Rose liquor – just a Churros’ throw from Alexander McQueen and Marc Jacobs (are their skinny employees going to start eating them? Oh, NO!) They sell premier Spanish fritters, long skinny fried dough pastries, but they don’t just have powdered sugar – they have chocolate coconut, hazelnut, tiramisu flavor, peanut butter, peanuts, and it goes on and on, www. XOORO.com. The website is SO cute, it shows the churros dancing around like they’re on a merry-go-round!
And they taste divine. So what if it’s summer? Looking good in fall clothes is all that matters – and that’s two or three months away.

Mary Norton started her original line “Moo Roo” in the south, where she’s from – feathered handbags and shoes that she got on the Oscar red carpet in the luxe heydey of the 1990’s, and that’s how she launched her line. She changed the name of her accessories brand to Mary Norton, got big NY investors, and opened a store on Melrose Place – right between Oscar and Sergio Rossi.

We saw what happened to Sergio Rossi. They shut down this past Christmas, 2008.

Now Mary Norton will close the doors of her boutique on Tuesday June 30th, and Melrose Place will be the quieter – and the emptier. Apparently, everything in the store is eighty percent off now, before the shuttering, if you want to check it out.

This Thursday, June 11, from noon to four, the Catherine Malandrino Maison store on Melrose Place and LaCienega (651-652 N. LaCienega), will host an exclusive day of shopping, cocktails, and personal hair consultations from the Fekkai stylists who will be on hand. There will be thirty off all the clothing, and you’ll also get a Fekkai gift bag with purchase, with over a hundred dollars worth of free products in it. This is SO tres Francais, we can hardly stand it. Can you imagine the accents of Ms. Malandrino and Monsieur Fekkai in the same place? Well, they won’t be with us, but their styles and their Frenchness will be – for a good bargain. The cafe in the Malandrino Maison has a lovely quiche and green salad, too – bien sur.

 

The Melrose Place family has a gem of a new neighbor: Neil Lane. The Diamond Man finally opened his La Cienega boutique, right above Monigue L’hulier’s store, just slightly north of Melrose Place, on Wednesday night. And it shows just what rocks can buy, with his turnout: Kate Walsh, Rachel Griffiths (in an American flag shirt for the election, even though she’s Australian), Debi Mazar, Tori Spelling, Carmen Elektra, Dana Delaney, Nicky Hilton – it had a high density of celebs for a store opening, but then, Lane has surpassed Martin Katz as the king of Hollywood award shows and diamonds. Lane was in a tiny antiquary mall on Beverly Boulevard for many years, where he created birthday gifts for Annette Bening and Goldie Hawn, but when a fire ravaged the building, he decided to get serious about a real boutique that befits his celebrity clientele. No recession visible here. There were diamonds and gowns galore, just in time for November sweeps and the tv ratings blitz – and time to start planning those Golden Globe and Oscar jewels.

Jeweler to the stars Neil Lane is taking up new residence – and opening his first full-fledged boutique, on LaCienega, just half a block north of Melrose Place, a store down from Monique L’hullier’s store. It is under construction now, and a spokeswoman for the jeweler laughed when asked when it might be open. “October?” she giggled, but clearly, it will take as long as it takes – and certainly will not be open in time for the Emmy’s on September 21, for which Lane will surely be “jewelling” (a Hollywood verb if there ever was one) some stars. Meanwhile, Lane’s longtime West Hollywood kiosk – where he began his vintage jewelery company so many years ago – burned down four months ago, when a fire struck the upstairs of the building on Beverly Boulevard, west of Robertson. Lane has been designing and selling jewelry – both for his own line and his line for DeBeers – out of a temporary office on Sunset in a medical building since the fire. But slow down, there will be no fire sales on Lane’s diamonds.

                Lane will be in good company near Melrose Place – Lanvin, Chloe and Nina Ricci are eyeing spaces, and Vince is opening in early September, as well.

 

 

 

         French retailer Agnes’ B, a longtime denizen of Robertson Boulevard’s corner of Alden, tucked between Chaya Brasserie on Alden, and across from The Ivy on Robertson, will be leaving its Robertson location and shutting its doors on September 30. It’s unfortunate – but look for some great bargains on their mens’ and womens’ clothing as the ending days drawer near. We do know they have the best knit berets anywhere -  in the best colors. Why the move? Well, Robertson has Ralph Lauren and D & G coming this September, and now with Intermix, Vince, Seven Jeans, and the new Chanel accessories store – the rents are no doubt going sky high. Employees say Agnes B hopes to reopen in Los Angeles in spring 09, and hopefully – they will open on Melrose Place. Meanwhile, we noticed Retro Specs, the eyewear store on Melrose Place, is going out. Retail in Los Angeles seems to be in a giant state of flux.

 Melrose Place already has a very French Euro vibe – and in August, it’s about to get more so. That’s when Catherine Malandrino will open on LaCienega and Melrose, right across from Melrose Place, her new concept store, “Catherine Malandrino Maison” – but those waiting for an opening party, that won’t come till later in the fall.

The new store will house all of her collections, a French/Italian café’ (Melrose Place needs more food – no joke), plus the new Assouline book on her designs that celebrates Malandrino’s ten years of her brand. The interior will include her signature “Summer Rain” chandelier, that is massive and beautiful – and the exterior will look like a country home in the south of France. Also for the brand’s decade anniversary, Malandrino will re-introduce her iconic “flag dress” – created for the fall line of 2001, it was the window at Bergdorf’s right after 9/11/2001 – and was worn by both Madonna and Julia Roberts at the time. It’s the dress that put Malandrino on the map – and an update version will be sold for fall just in time for the 2008 elections!!!! Malandrino won’t be resting on these laurels, either – she’s opening new stores in Vegas at the Palazzo, Istanbul, Dubai and Kiwait.