There are two big myths about Los Angeles.  One is that Hollywood is a real place where movie stars congregate on the streets and in film studios.  The other is that people in LA have no taste.  Both are just not true.  First, Hollywood is not a real town, it’s a neighborhood that’s part of LA, and it’s more of a seedy adult playground with its dark bars and tired hookers than it is a movie fantasyland.  Second, a typical starlet is not a tacky-glam bimbo yapping into a cell phone to her agent.  While some fresh-from-Iowa ex-prom queen might sport poufy hair, talon-like nails and distressed denim miniskirts, the pros adopt a casual-chic look—low-riders, silky shirts and loose, shiny hair.  Success here means looking cool, being on top of things, and then seeming like you just don’t care.

LA shopping caters to this too-cool crowd—throwaway, hyper-trendy fashion that might be excruciatingly expensive, but is meant to be worn with relaxed ease.  Angelenos love dressing down.  A young beauty could sport the same outfit—boot-cut jeans, Manolos and a slinky halter—at Spago as she could at In-N-Out Burger.  And while she might shop at the omnipresent Mall, she probably also cruises the eclectic boutiques that line Third Street and Robertson, Beverly and Melrose Boulevards.  It’s on these less famous streets, not in Hollywood or on Rodeo Drive, that you’re more likely to spot actual stars and star-making stylists.  And it’s in these shops that you can find the unique flavor of LA—a little funky, a little sexy and a lot of quiet glamour.  ‘Cause if you’re really cool, you don’t need to announce it—people will know.  That’s what being a star is all about.