The singer, actress, and budding fashion designer tells T+L about her new store on Melrose and her favorite shops, restaurants, and places to hang out in town.
Multi-talented singer and actress Christina Milian added fashion designer to her repertoire with the launch of her street wear brand, We Are Pop Culture. Though the label was originally online-only, it became so successful that Milian recently opened a brick-and-mortar shop on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles.
Just after wrapping up the filming of the second season of her E! reality show, "Christina Milian Turned Up," and between shooting Fox's new comedy series "Grandfathered" and Hulu's drama series "East Los High," and working on her soon-to-be-released five-track EP, Milian talked to T+L about her design success and some of her favorite L.A. haunts:
I've always wanted to get into fashion, and when I had the opportunity to design a clothing brand that mirrored my day-to-day lifestyle, I quickly took it up. I love expressing myself in every way, as a performer and now as a designer. I just want to be the inspiration to women everywhere to be happy and comfortable in their own shoes. Fashion allows you to express what you feel.
Now that the online sales have been a success, opening a store was the perfect next step in building the brand—girls really do love to come in and shop and see the clothes in person. I was able to redesign the entire inside and outside of my store so our customers could walk in and have an experience.
When I first moved to L.A,, Melrose was a landmark place to shop. I have so many memories of finding the newest, hottest trends there, and it was where all the cool stars shopped. Plus, in the days of Von Dutch, Christian Audigier welcomed me with open arms. He dressed me in all their attire when my music career was just starting, and I saw his empire grow right there on Melrose. I hope to have the same success and bring that same energy back to Melrose and keep it booming.
Opening Ceremony, Fred Segal. Anything on Robertson is fun, and I just spotted the Moschino store on Beverly—gotta go there. Plus there are a whole bunch of vintage stores that are amazing.
Taco Madera, Katana, and you can't beat In-N-Out!
Warwick on Wednesday! Great music, great crowd, and not too crammed. Glass Hookah Lounge is a new, sexy hookah joint that's really nice inside and has great shisha.
Voda Spa—it’s open until midnight. Super sexy and amazingly affordable! I could spend the entire day there getting treatments, chilling in their multiple saunas, swimming and drinking wine, eating great food and lounging.
