Even if you didn’t make it to Coachella this weekend, chances are your social media feeds were glutted with photos of friends in cutoffs and tribal-print crop tops running amok in the desert, flower crowns tipsily askew.
Before the fest’s second weekend revs up (oy!), we suggest turning your attention to L.A. designer Jesse Kamm. Her eponymous label is everything Indio’s style parade isn’t: serene, minimalist, trend-proof, and monochromatic. In short, it’s palette cleanser.
A former model originally from Illinois, Kamm launched the collection in 2005 after her day job left her feeling creatively unfulfilled. “I was always trying to put my input into shoots and everyone was just like, ‘No, really, be quiet,” recalls Kamm over a mid-morning snack of dried apricots at her Mount Washington studio, flashing a grin that emphasizes both her Joni Mitchell cheekbones and Midwestern bonhomie.
Nearly a decade later, it’s clear Kamm’s career choice was the right one. Not only is her small label thriving—it’s sold in 20 boutiques nationwide—but she’s become the go-to designer for a community of L.A. Eastsiders (think Brooklyn with palm trees), creative types such as photographer Hilary Walsh, jewelry designer Annie Costello Brown, and textile designer Heather Taylor, who appreciate how her pared-back aesthetic translates into versatility. “I can wear Jesse Kamm to a wedding or the farmer’s market,” explains Taylor. “[It] can become a uniform without becoming boring.” (We’d add Kamm’s sustainability efforts, among them, her use of dead-stock fabrics and a company car that runs on vegetable oil, to her label’s appeal).