As Alice visited the amazing city in January, our theme of this week’s post is All Things L.A.! We would like to share the California Apparel News’ special N.Y. Textile Preview from January, featuring the latest textile trends that include our designs! Check out the full guide by clicking here, and click on an image to take a closer look.
Shades of Green
Going Graphic
Jungle Love
Wearing the Purple
Here Alice tells us all about her awesome adventure!
It was my first time in America and I went to LA to visit fabric converters in order to better understand their needs. It was really interesting because I met really different swimwear, sportswear and clothing markets to those I know in Europe. The LA style is very casual and relaxed with a real sportswear feel. Popular brands are Quicksilver, Volcom, Vans, Converse, Billabong… all kinds of skate and surf branding, which I really like.
Walking the streets of LA
Walking the streets of LA
Street Style Designs
The new craze in LA is yoga and anything to do with it is very cool, wearing your yoga kit not just in the gym but also during the day. A lot of this laid back style is printed, so I will be developing more designs for this kind of market following the trends for geometrical patterns, textures, camou, abstract prints, non-print prints and tie dyes, often with a splash of fluo colors like neon yellow and fuchsia.
Yoga designs
One for the ladies…a sneak peek at a future post! 😉
It is California so there are still lot of “hippies”, so all the boho styles are easily understood by brands such as Free People and Anthropologie who love to use paisley, flowers and ethnic prints.
LA itself is beautiful and it was much bigger than I imagined! The weather was wonderful as they do not really have a true winter: the temperature last week was about 20-22 degrees during the day and 11-12 in the evening, so you can imagine how happy I was having left wintery Italy. 
I was lucky that my US colleague Elaine Knight took me out after work and we visited Hollywood, The Chinese Theatre (where the Oscars are held) and the gorgeous Venice and Santa Monica beaches. I was a child in the 90’s and I can’t forget Baywatch with Pamela running down the beach; so I had to see it with my own eyes! Santa Monica is one of the nicest areas of the city, with lots of restaurants and bars for the evening. I had a walk in the sand without my shoes and just wearing a t-shirt: I can assure you that doing that in January is something quite extraordinary!
Alice having fun in the sun!
Baywatch memories!
Venice beach is completely different as this is the zone of artists and the fabulously quirky with very creative and interesting shops. It is a blend of street and sports wear. Here you can find the Muscle Gym on the beach, where Schwarzenegger used to train his muscles! Everything here revolves around the beach. Everybody also drives everywhere and the city is full of some beautiful cars, I’ve included some photographs of my favourites!
Visiting LA was certainly worth the long journey. I loved the sun and life style… people were positive and lovely and so kind to me. I hope I can visit again soon!
American themed designs
Here are some of our favourite looks from over the pond this week from the 21st Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards, held on the 25th January in Los Angeles.
Lupita Nyong’o (Credit: Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images)
Sarah loved Lupita’s floor-length, floral Elie Saab gown: “This look caught my eye this week as it is bold due to the stripes while the floral is subtle. I would love to twirl around in this!”
Natalie Dormer (Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
Alannah has been lusting after Natalie Dormer’s incredible Naeem Kham dress: “This elegant gown is my favourite this week. The bright floral pattern with the ombre effect make this the perfect Spring dress.”
The Print Affair 
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