Palm Angels t-shirts have recently become the fashion essential in the world of designer streetwear. Keeping it real with roots in the LA skater scene, what initially began as photography-based documentation of the West Coast happenings has transformed into a designer streetwear fashion brand. To make things even more interesting, it was actually a coffee-table book on the skater culture in Los Angeles that the Italian-based designer created, which in turn inspired him to start a line of luxury streetwear-inspired clothing.
Palms Angels t-shirts epitomise trendy casual wear with its super hip designs and modern shapes. The laid-back and ‘chill’ California vibe is high on both trendiness and comfort. The innovative graphics and funky, dynamic prints are what make the t-shirts unique, distinguishing them from others with their cutting-edge trends.
The inspiration behind Palm Angels t-shirts
Italian founder Francesco Ragazzi has spent a considerable number of years living in Los Angeles, where he got more in touch with the skater scene. He launched the brand in 2015, and the year before had released a book with the same name. The book titled ‘Palm Angels’ expresses his passion and enthusiasm for the LA skater scene, which is the very same feeling that comes out in the exclusive line up of Palm Angels t-shirts. Besides innovative graphics, many of the items in the collections bear the brand’s logo – which is often incorporated into the stellar prints.
Sometimes hearing about a brand from the designer’s point of view is the very best way to understand the inspiration and vision behind it. When asked about his unique blend of Italian fashion with Cali streetwear, Francesco Ragazzi has replied, “As I always say, Palm Angels is an Italian reinterpretation of American culture. My collections are a hybrid of Italian and American sensibility typified by urban silhouettes, Californian iconography and expert Italian tailoring. This mix basically forms the DNA of my brand.”
The story behind the name
You might be wondering about how the name came to be for this hip label of luxury streetwear. Well, it all comes back to that book on LA skater culture that Francesco Ragazzi created. The very first photo he had taken showed a backdrop of palm trees at California’s famous Venice Beach, which is where the “Palm” in the brand’s name derives. In front of the palm trees, there was a skateboarder in action with his long blond hair flowing in the wind. The photo was taken at sunset and the warmly-colored sunshine illuminated the scene. The skater’s head, haloed by the setting sun, was reminiscent of an angel, which became the second term of the label’s name. The essence of these two symbols of the iconic tree and the haloed figure translated to the brand’s name, “Palm Angels.”
The second term in the brands name also references LA, the so-called “city of Angels,” and the name translates from Spanish as ‘the angels.’ With the unique blend of modern Cali vibes and traditional Italian craftsmanship, it is no wonder why the Italian label has so quickly become a big name in fashion. Palm Angels t-shirts are no exception to this characteristic, presenting high-fashion designs and created from only the highest-quality materials. They are made in Italy from deliciously soft cotton and stitched together with exquisite craftsmanship. Palm Angels T-Shirts generally come in an oversized, loose fit so that they are just as comfy as they are stylish. These short sleeve tops have arguably become one of the most popular items in the brand’s designer collections, which some fashion-enthusiasts even consider as the go-to iconic staple.
Palm Angels t-shirts and LA landscapes
A prevalent theme of Palm Angels t-shirts graphics is, of course, palm trees. These extremely tall trees with their graceful, slim trunks leading up the fanning foliage at the top impart a graceful and beachy look that has strong associations with the west coast city. The widespread city of Los Angeles is known for its beautiful palm trees that come in a large number of varieties. Since the palm trees in LA are such an iconic feature, you might be surprised that most of them are not actually native to the area. For a fun fact, many of these special trees were planted back nearly a century ago, in preparation for the 1932 Olympics. The city planted a whopping number of as many as 40,000 trees to add character, charm and beauty to the city.
Graffiti-inspired graphics are another trendy touch to Palm Angels T-shirts. One especially popular model in particular features a large palm tree on the front with dripping paint at the bottom as if it were freshly spray-painted graffiti on a wall. Other models have the first word of the label’s brand name in big letters in the center, showing the variety and creativity of the brand in using its logo on text as well as images. Most definitely, with the legendary status of the famous tree, seeing the image of a palm or just the word itself in print evokes the cool vibes of the renowned Southern Californian metropolis as well as Francesco Ragazzi’s trend-setting designs.
Bold graphics and logo designs
Celebrity fashion-enthusiasts, including many athletes, musicians, actors and actresses choose Palm Angels t-shirts for their fresh images and prints. Some popular images include sharks, teddy-bears, flames, a palm imprint and of course palm trees. Adding extra edginess to these designs is a theme of being broken or sawed in half – some of the sharks are segmented in two, while a headless teddy-bear sits beside its head. The exclusive brand also is quite playful in the way it makes great use of its logo, with a wide variety of fonts and creative placements in the design. For example, many of the tops feature the logo alone in bold script, whether it's cursive, block letters, or the iconic blackletter font. The placement is also very innovative, with centered letters, marching vertically down the front, or even just on the hem at the neck. In other Palm Angels T-shirts designs, the first word of the logo is blocked out in a way that looks like it has been spray-painted over.
