Author: Caroline Olsen-Van Stone
Though its New Wave glory days are over, alternative and high fashion still live on at Melrose Avenue. A bit farther from Oxy than Pasadena, Melrose offers an edgier scene with more parking. We hit Melrose from Highland to La Cienega, and here are our highlights.
Among boutiques and vintage clothing shops, you’ll find the concentrated remnants of early ’80s Melrose in Necromance (7220 and 7208 Melrose Ave.). As the name implies, this store carries the spooky, the unsettling and the aesthetically interesting. The façade and window display feature Victorian Goth décor that is tame compared to the items within the store. You will find a surprising array of edible insects, bone saws, taxidermy seahorses, x-rays of almost anything creepy and the ubiquitous skull jewelry. It transforms the weird and horrifying to an unexpectedly compelling aesthetic. Necromance has two locations on the same block.
Melrose is a haven for thrift store and vintage junkies. Though the prices are higher than Goodwill, the selections are superb. You’ll find your signature pieces at: Slow Clothing (7474 Melrose Ave.) and American Vintage (7377 Melrose Ave.), among others.
If you’ve ever dreamt of sporting Jules and Vincent from Pulp Fiction on your shoes, bike, or dog’s sweater, check out Break Your Neck Urban Customs, where a team of artists is waiting to put any design you want on anything you want. Get your kicks at Break Your Neck Urban Customs (7552 Melrose Ave).
Melrose isn’t all vintage stores, high-end boutiques, and big-name designers. Cosmopolitan Books (7017 Melrose Ave.) is a derelict castle of literature. Eli Goodman, the shop owner, sits behind a desk fortified with piles of books. The shop is the result of 30 years of book (and dust) collecting. Shelves soar up to 20 foot ceilings with books crammed in any way they can fit. Handmade signs mark the variety of sections, from counter-culture to African Studies to early 20th century encyclopedias. The signs convey Goodman’s personal love for his collection.
Across the street from the bookstore is Golden Apple Comics (7018 Melrose Ave.), a sizeable comic shop that covers the superhero canon and some Vertigo. While looking through a rack of new DC graphic novels, we spotted Knocked Up star Seth Rogen chatting with the cashiers. His distinctive laugh caught our attention. (He really does laugh like that!)
We have provided only a mere glimpse of this vibrant neighborhood. More fashion, food and quirky spots await the intrepid L.A. explorer on Melrose Avenue.
Getting There: If you want to try public transportation, count on two hours each way (catch the westbound 83 bus on York and Avenue 46, exit 11th and Main, then catch the 10 bus toward West Hollywood, exit Melrose and La Brea). By car, take the 2 South to the 101 North, exit Santa Monica Blvd, make a left on Highland and then a right on Melrose. Drive time is a mere 20 minutes, and street parking is easy to find on most side streets.
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