Three years after announcing itself as America’s new go-to lifestyle label for hipster hippies and rebellious party girls, For Love & Lemons shows no signs of slowing down or yielding ground.
In fact, the sizzling hot California brand stormed into 2015 by releasing two big new collections simultaneously last week — the Pacific Escape spring line of wispy dresses and casual fashions, and a new collection called Wanderlust from its undies offshoot label Skivvies.
The two collections — romantic, ethereal and revealing — are meant to complement each other and, in fact, it’s often hard to tell which pieces are meant for outerwear and which are underwear. (That’s the lingerie-like Luau maxi dress, below, from the new fashion line.)
But the distinction hardly matters in FL&L’s universe: its embroidered tulle maxi dresses and macramé-like bralettes have become a kind of anytime uniform for hip young exhibitionists who don’t mind being stared at.
And FL&L gives you a lot to look at. Its campaign lookbook for the new Skivvies collection includes more than 80 images, with model Alena Blohm standing in for all those dreamers who wish they could spend their days in canyon-side chalets soaking up the California sun.
The new Skivvies assortment doesn’t stray far from what has become FL&L’s signature look: soft, sheer pieces overlaid with dramatic embroidery patterns or fashioned from peekaboo stretch lace.
The company had a huge bestseller last year with its crochet-like Bat Your Lashes underwire bralette, and you’ll see the next iteration of that look in the new Snapdragon range (top photo above). FL&L is also fond of appliquéd floral decorations, and its new Secret Garden bralette seems to be made entirely of embroidered daisies.
For Love & Lemons is the brainchild of best friends Gillian Mahin and Laura Hall, who have turned a childhood dream into an inescapable fashion tastemaker with several big retail partners. And that’s no simple feat.
FL&L has carved out a space in the very busy retail landscape populated by more established party-girl brands like Wildfox, Planet Blue and Urban Outfitters, which try to interpret the fickle tastes and ever-changing aspirations of young shoppers, and where brand loyalty can disappear (or develop) overnight.
For now, For Love & Lemons‘ winning formula is perfectly on trend for anyone living west of the Rockies, and those who wish they were. And that’s a big crowd.
Here are some of our favorite shots from the new Skivvies lookbook, called Wanderlust. See the rest at the For Love & Lemons website.