The other day I was pitched a story about Code.tv, a new website with video that promotes hot spots in LA. I surfed the site and came up with pretty typical LA fare in beauty, shopping, food, clubs and other similar categories that most of us read about in all the fashion/food/guy type magazines — even travel magazines and email newsletters feature where to go/see/eat in LA. Rarely do you ever see anyone feature anything beyond LA/Santa Monica/San Fernando Valley and maybe a smidge of Pasadena. I even talked to some people with the site and wonder if it could be a bit broader in scope and not so LA Elite oriented? After all, most of the money is spent by the rest of us, not just the celeb oriented crowd.
Mediabistro’s Fishbowl LA covered this new site and I had to stick my 2 cents in (ok maybe they got 50 cents worth out of me!). We exchanged emails. Here’s what they posted on their blog: War of Northern Aggression
Now I have a bias since I live SOUTH of LAX and live at the beach.. a darn gorgeous one where they do a huge amount of movie and tv show filming (CSI Miami is done here a lot) and we have at least one crew here every week. Also we are so close to the OC border, that if I chose to take a flying leap into a channel, I could swim to the OC–so much for the so-called "Orange Curtain".
What is the Orange Curtain? Nothing tangible– it’s more a lifestyle and state of mind. It’s the feeling that all that you need is available within the OC. After all, there are 4 and 5 star resorts that celebs frequent in the OC (Vaughn/Aniston for one) and tons of great clubs and restaurants with great views and easier parking –with and without valet and lots without meters too!
The shopping is to die for and the boutiques could go head to head with the best of Montana Ave and Third Street and even Melrose. Given that Fashion Island has it’s share of exclusive stores like Original Penguin, Kate Spade, Charriol and TONS more .. along with gorge shopping centers sprinkled up and down PCH (aka Pacific Coast Highway), there’s no lack of shopping. Should you feel the need to go to ONE spot, Costa Mesa’s South Coast Plaza beats every other mall in the country in $ per square foot –there is very little that isn’t there and rather than drive all over LA from Santa Monica to Brentwood to Rodeo Drive to Melrose and beyond, one can park for FREE with lots of parking (except in December), and see tons of designer boutiques, large well -stocked department and specialty stores all under one roof — not to mention a couple of dozen great restaurants on site and surrounding the mall by a couple of blocks–even Mortons is here.
There’s no reason to avoid the drive since it’s easy, beautiful and the great part is that Fashion Island and South Coast Plaza are less than 15 minutes apart by car– beat that if you can LA!!!
Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE LA. I am up there all the time– I do my fair share of contributing to the tax base there and given how much time I spend driving up and down the fwys, they should give me my own carpool lane or give me a special license plate: LA Girl In the Know.
I just find it most interesting when there people who refuse to drive south of LAX or a group, particularly a website that could easily get coverage of this HUGE area of So. CA where the median home price beats that of LA County consistently. When kids are driving Benz and Porsches to school, that’s real affluence (not sane imho but still it exists)
Part of the reason why I created LA Story is to cover all of So. CA since most people think LA = Hollywood/ Beverly Hills + Santa Monica and that’s it. There’s so much more to LA than that. From the great stuff south of LA to the OC– one can find a hillside glass wedding chapel overlooking the Pacific, great spots to eat, hike, shop, and a lot of spots that will feel like Third Street or Melrose or Montana because these stores sell the same lines. From Belmont Shore’s Second Street with store upon boutique upon hip store full of clothing for him, her and even the canine/feline bunch to Seal Beach’s cool Kate Daniels to Chassure with hot hot sizzling hot ROBIN’s Jeans down the coast, you can find great fashion partnered not to far from great restaurants and cool clubs or nifty niche bars that treat you like one of their own.
So get out your keys, rev the engine , leave LA and the "attitude" behind and check out the rest of LA since there’s a lot more to So. CA (did you read about that Quiksilver PUBLIC party for Dane Reynolds new surfing film in Huntington Beach that I covered (and have more images to insert)? Would that happen in LA? Answer me that!)
Ever wonder WHY there are so many shows featuring the OC?
The Real Wives of the OC; The OC; Laguna Beach and more coming at you.
So this is Stevie doing her thing to promote the love and integration of all of So. Cal into a happy destination and not just the Disneyland, Anaheim Angels-ville (nice food there actually) and then head back up the freeway. Stay a while, hang out. Check out the vibe that’s humming in the OC and South Bay. It’s why it’s the next big hot spot. LA Story .
>
