J. McLaughlin and KMJ Collaboration
The Coast Village Road women’s designer shop, J. McLaughlin, has collaborated with local designer Kate McHale Jensen, owner of KMJ, for a Limited-Edition Selection of Women’s shirts and tops, sold exclusively at the Montecito store in a limited quantity.
The launch was held on Tuesday, July 2, at the store with store manager Diana Romero, and her team, and Jensen with her Operations Director Taryn Stevens and bestie mom, Trish McHale. Romero explained that Jensen contacted J. McLaughlin’s Chief Merchandising Officer at the Brooklyn office and was able to arrange getting the vintage men’s shirts to do the limited-edition collab.
On display and for sale were the newly designed button-down women’s shirts whose materials were sourced from vintage J. McLaughlin NY men’s shirts. The J. McLaughlin/KMJ shirts have Jensen’s trademark ruffles and three fits – demi, women’s, and boyfriend. The shirts are paired with J. McLaughlin’s sunglasses, hats, bags, pants, and skirts.
The starting point for Jensen’s designs is her upcycling vintage men’s designer shirts, which she hand-selects from vintage fashion houses in Los Angeles. Some designers such as Ralph Lauren shirts are usually their best sellers. The shirt is then laid out with a KMJ pattern, cut, and hand sewn to fit women, making each shirt a one-of-a-kind. Her style is described as modern classic, her icons are Jackie Kennedy, Bianca Jagger, and Victoria Beckham. Jensen is originally from the East Coast and had worked in the fashion industry prior.
In our on-the-spot interview, Jensen explained how she started KMJ, “I wanted a perfect button-down shirt with the classic men’s aesthetic, so I took one from my husband’s closet! I reworked it to fit me, wore it around town and it received lots of requests, so KMJ was born. Initially, I sewed all the shirts myself, and now have teams in Los Angeles and Santa Barbara. There are items in the SB store that are not online, so come by to shop. We sell to boutiques across the country. One sewer does each shirt. We also can rework a shirt from a loved one into a keepsake. Sustainability is one of our key components. We would love to add dresses, matching tops and shorts, and children’s clothes.”
I asked about KMJ designing additional clothing items, such as dresses and skirts. Jensen said they are releasing a new division in the product line outside the men’s shirts for the fall. She has been featured twice in the Montecito Journal for her fashion work. Jensen, a graduate of Otis College of Art and Design Los Angeles, attended Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School in Montecito, Laguna Blanca, and Santa Barbara High. Fashion has always been a passion for her.
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