Azalea Boutique thinks: Everybody is Beautiful

I have not met Joel Knoernschild. When we got our first shipment of his debut collection Kazuo last week, he made my list of “Who I want to meet.” I loved everything from this line that I wish I was a boy. But since that is not an option, I need to convince my man to be dressed in this stuff. Joel is a half caucasian, half Japanese, and this heritage fueled his unique interpretation of crossing over Japanese street wear with California cool. The line is named after his grandpa Kazuo, who was a Japanese-American during the hard era of WWII. He quoted, “…that’s why a lot of this brand draws from remixing military themes, as well as the “Z” in K.Z.O (Kazuo) coming from the ‘Z’ in the Japanese internment camp ‘Manzanar.’” (- from Evil Monito site, http://evilmonito.com/2008/07/20/joel-knoernschild/).

Joel actually came to our store, and thought that we’ll represent KZO really well.

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In the world of over saturated, over thought premium denim, where brands rise, fall (or never took off at all…) - when I couldn’t possibly get excited about another new wannabe, I was pleasantly surprised with Naked & Famous. First, the price point is really really good ($109-124). Secondly, wait a minute… I am getting a selvedge, raw, great quality denim for how much??? $109!! Ho! And thirdly, it has a great fit, with details that is comparable to $300 pair of selvedge jeans out there. Finally, they are Ginno’s favorite new thing, and what our denim guru says it’s cool, then, it’s cool. That’s how it works here at Azalea. If the name reminds you of “Rich and Skinny” (a not-so-cool brand that made me cringe, twice) - here’s the explanation of what’s up with the name:

“The brand name Naked & Famous is a satire of our celeb-obsessed culture. We aim to poke fun at “Hollywood” and “Glamour” brands that sell jeans for $300 and up solely because Jessica Simpson wears them and not because they are higher quality.

Our logo is reminiscent of 1950`s Pop-Art. Early Pop-Artists depicted the “ideal blond” as a satire of mass media and mass culture, then fed it right back to them. We intend to do the same.”

They are available online or at the store! If you don’t see a size, call us up 415.861.9888! We’re always reordering, so we can call you when your size is in-stock.

You can learn more about them here: http://www.nakedandfamousdenim.com, they are pretty hilarious.

Cathy: We got a new line Coming Soon
Me: Oh, what’s the brand that’s coming soon?
Cathy: It’s Coming Soon!
Me: What’s coming soon???
Cathy: The brand that’s coming! is called “Coming Soon” !!!!
Me: Oooooohh. The line is called Coming Soon …! I wonder whose line it is…
..And then I found out quickly that it’s the newest capsule collection by Yohji Yamamoto, the Japanese avant-garde visionary designer of our time! The pieces at a glance looks very simple and well tailored, signature of Yohji Yamamoto’s design, and as you engage a little bit more, you can see that they are all intricately constructed, with unique details and refinement. The price points are affordable, despite the euro, the pieces retail on average about $150-$280 USD.

We got in a grey hoodie and a beautiful white shirt for men a few days ago. I think if you really like A.P.C., you will really love and appreciate the aesthetics of Coming Soon. The collection is about being non-brand oriented, effortless, super casual, and modern - rethinking everyday basics for the new generation of stylish young professionals.

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Double K designer, Kelleigh Kincaid started crafting necklaces that were deeply inspired by the art nouveau movement in Europe at the turn of the century. She donates 10% of the proceeds from each necklace to the Susan G. Komen breast cancer foundation! Everything is made from recycled materials, vintage one-of-a-kind pieces, as a commitment to eco-consciousness. Kelleigh previous experiences include working with designers Lara Miller and Geren Ford (both are carried at Azalea!), as well as editorial fashion styling. She came to Azalea one day to show us her stuff and we thought that they were fabulous!

Here is Corey G Money’s latest obsessions. A stack of Sylvia Design for men’s rings, Spitfire Sunglasses, and a Diesel Hat!

I thought Ginno would pick skinny raw denim as his favorite item at the store. But lo and behold! This scruffian quickly went over to the beauty section and start telling me how awesome this Peppermint Scrub is from Malin + Goetz is. I didn’t think he scrubs, so I was pleasantly surprised. Makes me wanna try it now! I think what’s special about the M+G scrub is the unique mix of bamboo and pumice as an exfoliator to shed dead skin cells, combined with the peppermint extract to soothe the skin afterwards. This is great for summer season, when you should exfoliate before tanning, to avoid uneven patches. I, myself, is a loyal fan of REN stuff, but seeing how excited Ginno is when he was telling me about it, I am going to give it a try. I took home a sample and will be using it tonight - I will report the result soon!

It’s not because its from Stella McCartney…
When Cathy showed me the linesheet to order these bags from, I was so excited that I just had to order a personal for myself! Stella makes these from 100% recycled polyester, vegan and eco-friendly, even the dustbag it comes in is totally biodegradable. AND so chic. It is a definitely much anticipated collection for this season. I am in love with the colorblock tote, because the details show up more and its a perfect size for my bigass 17″ Apple Powerbook, .. I mean Macbook Pro. It sticks out a little bit, but its ok. For a handbag, I always look for nice lining as well as durability - because I am a working girl and I tend to be a bit rough on my bags.

In the beginning I was like, whoa, $350 for a poly bag, but the design of the zipper and everything reminds me of the Chloe Betty Bag that I was eye-ing a while ago; Stella really did not skimp on the details. Anyways, I am a happy owner of a beautiful handbag. You guys will probably see me with it when I work this weekend!!

Hello! We are Cathy & Corina, who started Azalea Boutique in July of 2003. We were introduced in San Francisco by a mutual Cornell friend and immediately bonded over our loves of good food and clothing brands like See by Chloe, James Perse, Sonia by Sonia Rykiel, Rag & Bone, and more. Our foray into the world of clothing retail began by throwing trunk shows in hotel rooms, nightclubs and Corina’s house. For the first year, what would soon be called Azalea consisted of two girls with a traveling rack of clothes, doing fashion shows and selling items online that we modeled themselves. After one really successful trunk show at Spa Bar, we decided to look for a space to make into Azalea Boutique. After exploring several different shopping areas but were most impressed with the atmosphere, location and existing businesses in Hayes Valley.

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