226: LA ≥ NY

Getting dressed at Mohawk General Store.

Mohawk General Store was one of LA’s great independent stores long before the city began threatening New York’s standing as the superior womenswear retail scene. That thought occurred to me when I was in town for some 48 hours last week, and the concept entering my mind forced a software update on the perceptions I held about my city.

New York is a great menswear city, largely since Colbo arrived to bridge the gap between hardcore collectors and more casual dressers (the fact that Colbo was having a popup while I was there further bolstered LA’s standing). And C’H’C’M, Stoffa, Jacques, Knickerbocker, and Cueva form a rhombus around it wherein shoppers can go to discover brands they won’t find on the pages of Nordstrom (though Jian De Leon has elevated that experience, too).

Meanwhile, in that same loosely bound shopping district lies MNZ shop (from whom we’ve seen starkly few new silhouettes for going on years now), Cafe Forgot (thank god for them), T.A. (ditto), and La Garçonne, which both sides of the aisle should feel extremely blessed to have face-to-face access to (I’m a pronounced fan), ditto Bode.

Where womenswear shoppers are spoiled is with vintage—Desert Vintage, Lara Koleji, Ending Soon, James Veloria, Tokio 7, DUO, plus the newly opened Old Jewelry—just to rattle off a few. Plus, an emerging network of stores on my side of the East River (Outline, Tangerine, newcomer L’Ensemble in Dumbo) makes Brooklyn a plausible destination for HF shoppers.

Still, all of these microcosms combined don’t have the range that LA does these days. Between H.Lorenzo and Dover Street Market (superior to New York’s), Just One Eye and RLT, Noodle Stories and LCD (if you’ll make the trip), a vast spectrum of scenes is served with gusto. Mohawk, for its part, seems to know its Silverlake shopper better than they know themselves, at times.

Before my trip, I reached out to Bo Carney, who owns Mohawk’s men’s and women’s stores and their in-house line SMOCK alongside her husband Kevin. She’s a great businessperson, dresser, and Instagram follow—I’d seen her posting selfies in the store’s new-in pieces from a some nice-looking space that I knew not to be the store. When I asked to come by and try on some of their spring arrivals, Bo and Kevin kindly set me up in the apartment-studio they keep a few doors down and basically said, “knock yourself out.” I did!

Below, a few outfits and pieces I pulled out from Mohawk’s racks.

Pleats Please Issey Miyake MC April Shirt in Purple Onion, $410 / Pleats Please Issey Miyake MC April Pant in Black Pepper, $340 / Acne Studios 809 Heel in Dark Grey, $700 / Little Liffner Banana Chain Bracelet, $575 (my own) / Casa Ayllon Sonia Silver Ring, $145 (my own) / Sophie Buhai Everyday Silver Hoops, $225 (my own)

After shooting what were basically all of my very top pieces from the store, I challenged myself to only get one thing. I made it this Pleats Please top in a lilac color that really complements the neutrals story I’ve been slowly emerging from at the same rate the sun is coming out.

The shorts were very tempting, too. This isn’t the first spring I’ve been tempted to buy them (and you know what, realizing that now is maybe a sign I should). I tried them on at La Garçonne, similarly paired with a Pleats Please top for a polished but defiantly comfortable ensemble.

And it’s a bit of a copout to say that every piece was my favorite, but I’ll leave you with this: Nothing could have prepared me for how comfortable these Acne shoes were. They added inches to my legs (and I’m especially aware of my 5’5” frame in Bermuda lengths), but I honestly felt like I could spend all day in them. In fact I really wanted to.

Amomento Ribbed Mock Neck Cardigan in Dark Navy, $185 / Acne Studios Super Baggy Fit Jeans in Light Blue, $620 / Beaufille Slant Belt in Black, $300 / Dries Van Noten, $720 / Simuero Aro Grande Earrings, $230 / Marge Sherwood Zipper S Bag in Powder Pink Crinkle, $240 (below)

I’ve had vintage Margiela jeans on my mind for a while, moreso in theory because they haven’t sat right on me when I’ve made attempts previously. These Acnes, however, were alarmingly well-suited from first try-on, not to mention extremely (as in, sweatpant-like) thick and soft.

I’d say the other star of this look is the Beaufille belt, a quarter inch wider than the belts I have in my rotation. The heavier look paired with the sculptural buckle are a balanced match for big jeans.

Dries Van Noten Debbie Embellished Checked Midi Dress in Green, 1,785 / Rachel Comey Faraday Shoe in Black, $450 / Simuero Aro Grande Earrings, $230 / Simero Espiral Necklace, $230 / Simuero Uva Ring in SS/Green Clean Prehnite, $208 / Casa Ayllon Sonia Silver Ring, $145 (my own)

I’m pretty sure there’s just one left of this Dries dress in stock at Mohawk (there’s a few more on Bergdorf, at least), and whoever gets it is going to love the way it looks on them, that much I know. Enjoy stealing the show at the spring wedding you’re attending. It’s absolutely worth one-upping the bride in (kidding! Unless…).

My thing here was to amp up jewelry, c/o Simuero, and pare back shoes with these tasseled Rachel Comey loafers that are still very elegant.

Dries Van Noten Cocoon Shirt in Light Blue, $695 / Dries Van Noten Centina Bra Top in Light Blue, $260 / Lauren Manoogian Rib Short in Bone, $250 / Bembien Solana Bag in Sienna, $295 / Little Liffner Banana Chain Bracelet, $575 (my own) / Casa Ayllon Sonia Silver Ring, $145 (my own) / Sophie Buhai Everyday Silver Hoops, $225 (my own)

My ideal urban beach look—for heading up to the roof or sprawling out on a big blanket in Fort Greene Park to catch a tan while everyone’s stepping over each other at Tilden with an hour and a half in traffic waiting for them at the end of their afternoon. Matching Dries tops and ultra-cozy LM shorts (underwear, but not) make this otherwise very loungy look elevated enough for public consumption. Jewelry seals the deal.

---

Magasin may earn some money if you make a purchase through one of the links above.

Follow us on Instagram at @magasin.ltd.