Five LA based brands to kickstart your summer wardrobe

As each day gets closer and closer to 90° highs, it’s hard not to dreamily envision a summer ahead, free of midterms and 8 a.m.’s. With a new season around the corner, it’s hard to fight the urge to completely remodel your closet to welcome the summer months (especially when you have an uncontrollable online shopping addiction).

So, if you’re looking for a summer update, trying to implement a few new statement pieces into your outfit rotation or if you’re thinking of endlessly scrolling  through these exclusively online shops to put off that pesky paper, look no further. Here are five brands born and bred in sunny Los Angeles to prepare you for a hot next couple of months. 

OGBFF: 

Reinstate the baby tee as this summer’s staple

Short for Original Best Friend Forever, OGBFF is barely a year old and already making waves across influencer pages. Designers Angela Ruis and Lauren Schiller run the brand entirely out of a bedroom, where they got their start selling on the independent reselling app, Depop. 

After gaining almost 30,000 followers on Instagram and almost instantly selling out on their weekly Depop drops, the pair recently broadened their influence by publishing their first website. They specialize in unabashed early 2000s nostalgia and ironic baby tees, some of the most popular styles in L.A. this past year. Their most popular designs feature bold text exclaiming “HOT PERSON AT WORK” or “FLOP ERA,” each for 40 to 45 dollars, depending on the style you choose. Between their tees, micro skirts and sweat shorts, you can concoct an outfit that will make you feel confident and inspire a lot of double-takes. 

Angel Moon:

Dreamy pieces you can spend every sunny day in

Founded only weeks before the pandemic in 2020, Angel Moon has slowly but surely gained a large dynamic following due in part to their large online shopping presence being pushed center stage since the start of quarantine. The brand has frequently shifted their creative direction upon inception to match the everchanging aura of L.A., but has remained consistent in their prices and is open to all customers’ price ranges throughout these changes, with custom tank tops as low as twenty dollars. 

Recently, Angel Moon has prioritized incorporating sets with faintly acid-washed fabrics complete with dainty symbols and shapes. The designer makes a case for arm warmers to come back again (a move only the fashionably bold would take on during the hottest months of the year), meticulously matching them with the ethereal and fairy-like patterns of the tanks and pants also found on the website. Worn by Kendall Jenner and Bella Hadid, this brand will only grow in popularity as it reaches its genuine style and creative approach. 

Tootsie Jewelry:

Add a little pizzazz to your bikinis or beach fits

This jeweler is a perfect excuse to pile on the accessories before you walk out the door. Tootsie, a two-year-old company, specializes in making necklaces, waist chains, bracelets and more for every aesthetic or style, never straying too far from the 70 dollar price mark. Each item can exist as a statement piece on its own, with chunky gold hearts or a string of perfectly mismatched charms that shimmer and sparkle in the L.A. sunshine. But the secret to the craft is being bold enough to layer the most antipodal pieces on top of one another, purposely clashing to compress chaos into one outfit. 

Left Hand L.A.: 

Go against the sundress and jean short norms

Self-proclaimed as the “founding mothers of DIY fashion,” two actual lefties established this brand in 2012 and have now seen it grow a cult-like following as it reaches its ten-year anniversary, gaining traction with the more alternative side of L.A. street style. 

Virtually every piece listed on their website features a unique, DIY element, whether it be interesting added safety pins, unique ironed-on patches or full teddy bears sewn onto collars or pockets. Most of the additives are nods to nostalgic pop culture moments, such as “The Parent Trap,” “The Shining” and “Rugrats.” Because each article is a handmade one-of-a-kind piece of clothing, the pricing for this brand usually settles more towards the hundred dollar mark. The loud, chaotic mixture of elements of each piece has proven to be popular amongst celebrities, as well, seeing that Billie Eilish has been an avid patron of the small clothing company for years. 

Moonkissed Collective: 

For those hoping for a Summer of Love

This brand is aimed directly at the hopeless romantics, specifically those who want to stay as Instagrammable as possible while still dressing for the L.A. heat. For instance, their most popular item (thanks to its status as a popular overnight TikTok sensation) is a thin tank top lovingly highlighting an intimate love letter showered in lipstick kisses. Other popular tees showcase JFK, and Jackie O. immortalized within a gold heart-shaped locket, as well as other representations of love and loss, embellished with dainty bows and lacey trims, all between 40 to 45 dollars each. What’s more, Moonkissed is very graphic-designer friendly, intending to be a space to support and uplift Gen Z designers. In short, if you love love, you’ll fall in love with this label. 

These are just a fraction of the bountiful and beautiful designers L.A. has to offer. Hopefully, this inspires you to dive down a rabbit hole of online retail therapy. Happy shopping!