Beyond Vintage
Remember New York before CBGBs was a John Varvatos shop or when Times Square (formerly Smut Central) boasted theaters showing The Devil in Miss Jones?
Neither do I. For those who do, however, I'm quite jealous. And when I go to New York, I love visiting What Goes Around Comes Around in Soho for a chic-but-unsanitized taste of the city before I ever had a chance to visit it. Co-owners Seth Weisser and Gerard Maione obviously got more than a taste. "We went out every night — except Saturday," says Weisser, who now lives on Long Island (Maione resides in Manhattan). "Saturday was amateur night. Thursday and Sunday nights were a different story."
WILD WEST: Cowboy and Native American inspiration at What Goes Around Comes Around.
With Weisser's knack for vintage finds, you'd think I'd have been more excited to visit their L.A. outpost that opened a year ago at Space 15 Twenty on Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood. I don't buy vintage often, but I have an unnatural attraction to those who devote their lives to it — people like Doris Raymond of The Way We Wore, for example. A supreme depth of knowledge in what came before faux-vintage and ironic T-shirts is the sexiest attribute of any fashionphile.
Weisser and Maione are international scavengers, and have amassed an impressive collection of yesteryear finds, so much so that one boutique obviously wasn't enough. Perhaps it was WGACA's proximity to Urban Outfitters that kept me away, though a recent visit left me impressed. The shop is curated using a more California state of mind, and an on-trend Native American print aesthetic pervades. Even Space 15 Twenty's hired hipsters who were setting up outside for a Thursday night anniversary event and attempting to cop an attitude when directing guests to the right door were, compared to New York brusqueness, utterly impotent. So an amazing shop with non-threatening salespeople and minimal hassle and fuss? Sign me up.
BOOTED: Denim and boots take a cue from decades past.
"There's a lot of thrift out there. Not a lot of real vintage," Weisser says. "We try to put it in context. It has to be at least 80s to qualify. The 90s is all about labels, but 80s is something you can see from miles away." With that in mind, Weisser and Maione launched a ready-to-wear collection inspired by their favorite finds a few seasons ago, with a fall 2010 collection worn on models that evening and spring 2010 already on the racks (the collection is also sold at Ron Herman and Planet Blue, among other L.A. retailers). Buffalo plaid is a hit for fall, as is a $550 rabbit vest with a printed snakeskin pattern (A perverse representation of predator and prey? You decide.)
LEATHER AND LATTICE: Looks from What Goes Around Comes Around's fall 2010 collection, recently on display at the Hollywood location. Model photos courtesy of WGACA.
The men's collection is based on $180 woven shirts with Japanese fabric, something "lived-in, but not damaged or destroyed, not RRL, and inspired by unionmade brands in America," Weisser says. The price point, while certainly high above thrift, is often definitely below RRL's as well. We owe a lot to Ralph for making American fashion is what it is today, but beyond RRL's quintessential denim, I'd rather find a vintage denim jacket and rub it with sawdust and rust myself rather than pay $349 for one at Barneys New York.
What Goes Around Comes Around, 1520 N Cahuenga Blvd, Hollywood, 323-836-0252. shopwgaca.com