While Halloween is all about locking down the sexiest costume for some, it's all about creating the sexiest beverage for others. French fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier has collaborated with Piper-Heidsieck Champagne to craft a bondage-themed bottle of bubbly. Nothing says "Halloween" quite like it. more ›

At 19 years old, Sand One has put her art up all over the city, from walls in East L.A. to galleries in Hollywood. She's at the forefront of a small but growing group of young female street artists who are breaking down expectations about what has long been seen as a male-dominated field. A self-described "little five-foot girl in heels," Sand is blazing this particular trail with style and humor, in addition to a healthy dose of chutzpah. She chatted with us about her work, her goals and why we shouldn't call what she does graffiti. more ›

A familiar looking black and white rodent painter has appeared with a giant yellow flower at the corner of Melrose and La Cienega. Banksy? Banksyesque? Dangeresque II? Perhaps it's an elaborate Mother's Day offering for one lucky mum. more ›

Govind Armstrong's 8 Oz Burger Bar was usually pretty packed, served up a pretty good burger (and a killer Shortrib Grilled Cheese) along with very slurp-able boozy shakes and a curious (if not completely palatable) Bacon Bloody Mary. After an abrupt March shuttering for a purported "renovation," Eater LA updates diners that 8 Oz is actually closed for good. Or, in their words: "Very Much DONE DONE DONE." more ›

The Los Angeles Police Department have released surveillance video showing the stabbing of a 25-year-old Hispanic woman that happened the night of April 19th, 2011, near Paramount Studios. The LAPD say that the victim was walking on the sidewalk in the area of Melrose Avenue and Irving Boulevard when a man pushed her to the ground and stabbed her multiple times. more ›

Barbies, dinosaurs, roses, leather, skulls and bows collide at Joyrich on Melrose. The brand new store space celebrates pop culture from Hollywood to Tokyo. Last Friday, after months of transformation, Joyrich unveiled their new interiors filled with brightly colored apparel, toys collections, and accessories all vibrantly reflecting in mirrors and lights. more ›

"ATTENTION: SHIT COULD BE WORSE" "YOU LOOK LOVELY TODAY" "YOU ARE NOT COOL" These may be the kinds of phrases you mumble while driving around Los Angeles wishing the few open parking spots weren't so far away and didn't have $4/hr (incl. Sunday) meters. But what if those six-part, multiple-infraction, day-and-time sensitive parking signs in Hollywood were replaced with something more sensible? more ›

Drive down Melrose and you can't help but notice that facade of Osteria La Buca has been painted a bright candy-colored pink. In observance of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month owner Graham Snyder committed to donate 100% of October proceeds to benefit Susan G. Komen For the Cure. more ›

Another independent music store has announced they will be closing down. This time it's Fat Beats, a hip-hop centric record shop with two remaining retail outlets, one in New York City and one here in Los Angeles on Melrose. more ›

A new piece of street art has appeared on Melrose. It's actually in the spot where Banksy put up his "out of bed" rat at Orange Avenue (one of several rats that he's done in Hollywood), which was recently taken down. Unsure if Banksy is actually back in Los Angeles or not, some believe it's not the elusive British street artist. Still, the art has been applauded because the new work has "a clever twist," as Unurth.com notes -- "the rat became Pope Ratzinger." Oh, touché. more ›

We've seen this before--bacon scrawled on some wall or object on the street--and it makes us wonder if this is some performance artist mocking or making a comment on taggers who take their work so seriously they're willing to kill over it. Tagging, "bacon!" or otherwise, is bad for neighborhoods and the city economy (perhaps you could say it's good for cultural/political debate if done right), but real bacon is something Angelenos are willing to have a heart attack for. more ›

LAist loves the pizza you can take home from Mozza2Go (see, see more.) Actually, we love their entire 2go menu. The take-out arm of Pizzeria Mozza and Osteria Mozza isn't a traditional pick, but it's this week's Recession Obsession. more ›

When The Foundry's Eric Greenspan announced he was opening a grilled cheese restaurant, it was big news. Grilled cheese, the ooey, gooey and naughty comfort food that could possibly solve world peace, has encapsulated Los Angeles in the past, whether it be with the hordes of people that show up at the annual Grilled Cheese Invitational (no date announced yet) or head out to the Grilled Cheese Truck. Greenspan, who won the Invitational and is known for competing on Iron Chef, is still working on his restaurant, but Lucinda Michele at Metblogs spoke to him about his plans. more ›

At today's City Council meeting, Ban Billboard Coaltiion's Dennis Hathaway stood up during public comment to bring up a specific issue with supergraphics on one Melrose Avenue building. Two frustrated tenants spoke as well, saying they were sold on the 2nd story office locations by having a view over the famed street. Acording to one of the tenants, a city inspector said the issue is not just civil, but criminal because it was blocking fire escapes. Google Street View catches the building in question, which is 7201 Melrose Avenue, with a supergraphic wrapping around the building. Will the city prosecute the landlord? more ›

At least four homes within the Melrose area have been burglarized this week, the local neighborhood watch, Melrose Action, is reporting. All have occurred in the late afternoon with jewelry being targeted. more ›

13 days ago we wrote about the Parents Television Council boycott of The CW because of advertising for "Gossip Girl" and at Monday's launch party for Mark Liddell's "Exposed: 10 Years in Hollywood" we grabbed the opportunity to ask "Gossip Girl"'s Kelly Rutherford (aka Lily van der Woodsen) about the boycott - please watch the above video for her thoughts. [Also, what a thrill to talk to Megan from the original "Melrose Place"!] more ›

Those artist-inspired USB flash drives known as The Mimobots (see the image to the right) have taken over the Munky King Shop on Melrose for all of November. Tonight is the opening party (7 to 10 p.m.) and Thomas Han himself will be live painting with artists Brian McCarty and Lili Chin on hand. Also: Keeping to a design trend here, Heath Ceramics on Beverly is showing off 75 limited edition canisters tonight. more ›

After an attempted sexual assault on a young women this week, detectives quickly arrested a suspect and released his photo to the public, believing more teenaged women were victimized by the same man. It was just past 1 a.m. on Monday when a female, possibly a minor, was walking on Melrose Avenue near Alta Vista Boulevard. Police say Christopher Webb, 22, walked up, engaging her in conversation. He then allegedly pulled her into an alley where he attempted to rape her, but numerous calls to police prompted a swift response by police, whose lights and sirens spooked Webb. more ›

While we applauded the addition of a couple more female players to SNL, it has meant the departure of two: Michaela Watkins and Casey Wilson. We met Wilson right after she joined SNL a year and a half ago and she was very sweet and we always thought she was great on the show. Lucky for LA, she will be joining the Hollywood Upright Citizens Brigade on September 24. We hope to see them on TV again very soon. more ›

A few months ago the very cute sign for Loyal Army went up next to Kidrobot on Melrose. The white clouds with smiley faces promised some fun shopping. LAist went to check it out and found the adorableness inside. more ›

It looks like the recession has hit Dolce Enoteca so now their offering a recession obsession deal: 50% off everything on their menu through Monday. "No coupons, no flyers... no bullshit... just great food at half price," they said in an e-mail blast. The Dolce Group also owns the Geisha House, Bella Cucina Italiana, Les Deux and Ketchup. The latter spot is now offering half off all alcohol and appetizers during Dodger games. more ›

Brunch at Comme Ça (Chef David Myers of Sona) is quite a treat. I had not done DineLA Restaurant Week there as they had priced themselves in the $44 category, which would have cost $1-4 more than the menu. Even so, I could not resist the temptation of eating here at lunch. more ›

It was just last summer and fall when the Melrose community experienced an unsettling crime wave. Melrose Action, a community-oriented website, alerted folks in late August to the 8th in a string of robberies that took place, then a few days later noted that two more took place and went unreported to police. A month later, more robberies were happening, and although three suspects were arrested in early October, vigilance seems to be the only safeguard of area residents. more ›

Outside Mozza at Melrose and Highland, there are two fresh posters comparing Obama's inauguration as the 44th President to Sidney Poitier's portrayal of Dr. John Wade Prentice in the movie Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. In the classic movie, Prentice's Caucasian fiance introduces him to her family--who is expecting him to be white--for the first time at dinner. Could this be artist Robbie Conal's work or someone else? Posters are graffiti and graffiti is illegal, but it's nice when street art brings dialogue, or at the very least, an interesting perspective. more ›

I recall a point early in the Bush Administration where I overheard an in-the-know friend dub Los Angeles “home of the $1,000 t-shirt.” I then heard it a few more times. It made me curious. But not curious enough to seek the pinnacle of casual couture. If a four-digit price-tag could be found attached to a t-shirt, I thought it best be discovered by someone else. more ›

Jeremy Shapiro wanted to open a store that specialized in the bright, fun sportswear that was the rage when he was in high school. Last May the Los Angeles native opened &Still Clothing (And Still.) “I was wearing all of this,” said Shapiro of the 1990-1994 gear which illuminated his high school years in New Jersey. “All of it.” more ›

We're constantly on the hunt for cocktail milkshakes in Los Angeles. Mmm, nostalgic fun with an edge! Surprisingly not too many places offer them in our fine city. But one night while we were enjoying the grilled cheese pork rib sandwich at 8 oz. on Melrose, we asked the bartender if the chef, bartender, whomever got around to making the alcoholic milkshakes we had heard they were planning to put on the menu months ago. more ›

For the first time since a recent crime wave hit the Melrose shopping district area, arrests have been made. Streets robberies around the trendy Melrose shopping district have been occurring since the summer, prompting police to alert the community and public at large of the incidents. All that led to a formation of a stronger neighborhood watch that informs that a robbery involving four people with a sawed off shotgun. more ›

Photo by Julie Wolfson/ LAist more ›

The neighborhood around trendy Melrose Ave. just continues to take a beating. Various street robberies and now fake Deptartment of Water and Power employees robbing the elderly (which we've seen before). Here's the latest from the local neighborhood watch: more ›