People in Your Neighborhood: La Jolla designer to participate in Fashion Week San Diego

While a new outfit that fits just right can lift one’s mood, clothes by Bird Rock resident Lindsey Bles go one step further. Using a special process, the owner of Bliss & Bles infuses crystals and botanicals into her garments to help give the wearer their healing properties, she said.

Bles will participate in this year’s Fashion Week San Diego events — from the Spring Showcase this weekend to the full Fashion Week in October — to flaunt her wellness-infused fashion for the first time as a designer. She has participated in past events as a model.

When Bles moved to San Diego a decade ago, she worked with a designer of a rock ‘n’ roll-inspired apparel brand that focused on denim-centered looks. It was while in working with denim that she started infusing crystal powders into the pockets.

Taking it a little further as she launched her own brand, she started putting “micro crystals” and botanicals in the garments — a process that takes three days for each piece.

“These are things that are good for your mood or your skin,” Bles said. “When you open the package, you can smell the botanicals. They start working right away. The crystals leave a shimmer on the clothes, but it doesn’t stay forever.”

She’s now working on a line of sleepwear infused with botanicals to help the wearer sleep.

Aesthetically, the clothes are inspired by the beaches of La Jolla and travels to tropical places.

“The clients I make clothes for are in their 30s or 50s; they are professional women that want a balanced life,” Bles said. “They need a little change to celebrate where they are in their life. I love bright colors, flowy dresses and traveling to tropical islands, so my collections are fun and upbeat in clean, classic styles. … I think my stuff says San Diego.”

Bles was invited to participate in Fashion Week San Diego as a designer after years of taking part as a model.

“I reached out during [the height of the COVID-19 pandemic] and I decided this would be the year I wanted to show what I can do,” she said.

After letting organizers know she had launched her own line, “I was so happy when they reached back out to me,” she said. “It’s an amazing program for the community of San Diego. I’m looking forward to mingling and having more events like this.”

Inspired by two of her closest friends, Bles will show two pieces at the showcase Saturday, April 23, at the Hotel Republic in downtown San Diego.

“I’m really looking forward to networking and showing my skill and design,” she said. “I think San Diego has a wonderful and accepting culture, a very live-and-let-live attitude. I feel it’s a very up-and-coming city for fashion.”

Speaking to how San Diego has embraced her wellness apparel, she added: “People love the SoCal vibe and like alternative medicine. A lot of people want that more than ever. It’s the best place for my art as a designer.”

Her local studio is at 5560 La Jolla Blvd. and is available by appointment. Learn more at lindseybles.com or fashionweeksd.com. ◆