Not for the Masses San Francisco’s culture of individuality, Asian influences, and temperate weather patterns make it the ideal city for local designer Al Abayan to produce his lines of designer sportswear. It is no accident that Al chose San Francisco as his home base to start his clothing lines eight years ago. “New York follows magazines, Los Angeles follows television, San Francisco doesn’t have an industry that dictates its style trends,” Abayan explains. This freedom has produced a culture of individuality here that appeals to independent designers like Abayan who prefer to let their own inspiration serve as their ruling force. He distinguishes San Francisco from these cities by contrasting its “cosmopolitan” atmosphere to the notoriously larger “metropolitan” fashion centers of New York and L.A. Abayan emphasizes that the concept behind his 1x2 and Grey Area lines is more in sync with smaller, creative fashion houses like Helmut Lang, than with conforming to the mainstream masses like locally headquartered Levi's. His use of modern and contemporary fabrics, but with Japanese influenced, stylized lines, demonstrates how Abayan uses sporty fabrics in an unconventional way. Cotton t-shirts with phrases like “empirical beauty” and “pure lackluster” are casual but mock the tenets of the fashion world in “Moschinoesque” style. The absence of strong weather patterns in San Francisco is reflected in the 1x2 and Grey Area pieces that Abayan describes as a comfortable set of designs for aesthetics. “There are no extremes in the weather here so our clothing isn’t too heavy, nor too light,” Abayan says. This allows him to experiment with innovative fabric combinations such as paper coated with synthetic fabrics and breathable, coated nylons. What is in store for 1x2 and Grey Area this spring? In addition to a new store that Abayan hopes to complete on the first floor of his Petrero Hill loft, he promises more tailored, formal looks using sportswear. You can expect to see more too, literally, through his transparent materials that allow you to see the construction of the clothing and “manipulate it and use it for what you want.”

Little version of the Travel Bag. This bag gets its influence from those old bowling bags! Be the envy of all your friends with this styling bag. Plastic coated cotton rip cord fabrication lined in nylon. Top zipper closure. Front pouch pocket. Adjustable shoulder strap. Slightly padded for added resilience and structure. Metal feet to prevent scuffing. 12”W x 13”H x 3”D with 56" x 1" detachable shoulder strap. Waterproof. Please note fabric has slight sheen. Available in Beige or Blue (shown).

Our Price: $40,00    

Exude confidence with this comfy urban tote. A new twist on the utilitarian messenger bag. Made of durable waterproof rip-stop fabric, this bag will schlepp your stuff all year round! Plastic coated cotton fabrication. (Has a slight sheen.) Roomy 10” x 12” main compartment. Flap closure which works as an inner pocket. 45” x 2" wide shoulder strap for convenient portage. Available in Beige (rt), Blue, Grey (lt), or Olive.

Our Price: $40,00    

Fun "retro airline bag"! Be the envy of all your friends with this styling bag. Plastic coated cotton rip cord fabrication lined in nylon. Top zipper closure. Front pouch pocket. Adjustable shoulder strap. Slightly padded for added resilience and structure. Metal feet to prevent scuffing. 16”W x 12”H x 3”D with 56" x 1" detachable shoulder strap. Waterproof. Please note fabric has slight sheen. Available in Beige, Blue, Grey, or Olive (shown).

Our Price: $49,00    

There’s nothing lackluster about this tee. Extra soft 100% preshrunk cotton jersey t-shirt. Boxy fit. Square printed on front. “pure lackluster” printed on back. Available in Pink, Blue, Khaki, and Grey.

Our Price: $25,00    

empirical adj. relying or based solely on experiment and observation rather than theory. Who needs proof when it’s obvious? Extra soft t-shirt. Preshrunk. Boxy fit. Letter “e” printed on front. “empirical beauty” printed on back. 100% Preshrunk Cotton Jersey. Available in Pink, Blue, Khaki, and Grey.

Our Price: $25,00