What to wear this summer and the best L.A. vintage finds, according to stylist Bin X. Nguyen

Los Angeles Times

5 hours ago

Bin X. Nguyen came of age in the mid-2000s at the height of celebrity paparazzi culture, watching MTV, poring over Teen Vogue, and following icons like Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie from his bedroom in the suburbs of San Jose.
'Escaping the mundane life of suburbia was really what influenced my childhood,' Nguyen says. 'When I was 8 or 9, watching 'America's Next Top Model' with the icon that is Tyra Banks and watching 'Project Runway,' I was really inspired by fashion. You saw how glamorous and unglamorous fashion is, and somehow this world was so enticing to me.'
'The Devil Wears Prada' came out when Nguyen was a teen, which he describes as the 'catalyst' for his time as a fashion and culture writer at his college newspaper, and later, Santa Barbara Magazine. While he was there, he met stylists on the cover shoots. Between witnessing their creativity in real time and consuming media like 'The Rachel Zoe Project,' Nguyen decided to move to Los Angeles and begin his career as a professional wardrobe stylist.
These days, Nguyen is known for styling everyone's favorite musicians, from Katseye to Role Model to Phoebe Bridgers, with plenty of actors in between — think Lana Condor, Jonathan Davis, Laysla De Oliveira and Alexandra Shipp.
He stresses the importance of cultivating a sense of identity through style: 'I just want to create beautiful work that inspires people. At the end of the day, I want to make lasting images that people will reference.' He often pulls from his Vietnamese heritage, drawing from the layering of an áo dài while working.
'Referencing old Vietnamese photos of the '70s and '60s is really important to bring my culture to the forefront of fashion,' Nguyen says. 'Having little touches that speak to you, whether it be your jewelry or your hat or your scarves, all these things are important to you as a special, dynamic being.'
Nguyen jokes that his personal style doesn't always give L.A.
'It's L.A., we live in athleisure. Don't get me wrong, when I do returns, I'm in athleisure. But when I go out, it's important to serve a look,' Nguyen says. 'You want to serve, as the girls say, c—. That's a part of L.A. that's very niche. L.A. people will go out in like jeans and a T-shirt, whereas I'm in vintage designer clothes and a 4-inch heel, you know?'
My most memorable shoot was with an NBA player named Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. We shot in a hotel room super quick. I love a pop girl and an athlete — I think my dream clients are both. I just want to show off body and skin, and I want them to look ultra-cool.
One shoot I'm most proud of is with Katseye for the cover of Teen Vogue. It's so special to work with a group of diverse girls, and they're so unique and talented. The aesthetic was the early 2000s, beachy, young, fresh, like Abercrombie. That's something that I grew up seeing all the time, like the models on the Abercrombie bags and going to Hollister and seeing their design.
So they wanted to build that into this 2025 version of it, but diverse and cool. I think we definitely accomplished that. It was also a full circle moment for me because when I was 15 and 16, Teen Vogue was the magazine that I subscribed to. I would collect the copies every month and there's still a stack of them in my closet, so it's very exciting to have that moment now.
A moment where I felt like I made it was getting to go to Pharrell's first runway show for Louis Vuitton. There was a choir that came out and sang this amazing song and Rihanna and ASAP Rocky were sitting across from me. Tears just started falling from my eyes, and I was like, this is part of the dream that I had of being a part of this life. Just to be welcomed into this space feels so crazy to me.
Some of my dream people to work with are photographers like Steven Meisel and Inez & Vinoodh. I would love to make beautiful images with Nick Knight. In terms of celebrities, Zoë Kravitz, Bella Hadid, Nicole Kidman — but at the same time, I want to work with new talent like Tyla and Chappell Roan. They all have a sense of identity. I think it's so important to have your own style and your own personal creative ideas of what you want to look like.
Those girls have really honed in and cultivated their identity. And when you look at something, especially if you look at a dress or a piece of art, and you associate that art or that garment with that girl. I want to create that with my own client one day.
Three words to describe my own day-to-day style are sensuality, preppy and edgy. I love American sportswear. Ralph Lauren's a huge influence of mine, but there's always an edge to it. There's like a little secret that's elevated, and you are only going to know when they want to tell you. There's a mystery.
An ideal day in L.A. is taking an hour to do a yoga class or go walk in the park. I hike once a week for two hours. I love my job, but it's also very important to take care of your mental health and be in nature and find gratitude. There's one called the Vermont Canyon Tennis Courts hike and you go all the way to Dante's Peak.
As an Aries, my personal style is ever-changing because my personality is so spontaneous. You just want to do things all the time. You never stop. If you meet an Aries, they're like, 'Let's go here, let's do this, let's go there.' I think that plays into a lot of my work and my clothes. I'm always thinking, what can be different in terms of this image?
My emotional support clothing item is a 4-inch boot. I'm not the tallest person — and when I wear my boots I'm still not the tallest person — but it brings in a feeling of confidence where I can stomp somewhere. Sometimes that's all you need, and it changes your posture, and you just feel like you can take anything down.
If I was a cocktail, I would be a St. Germain Spritz. It's called a Hugo Spritz, but the core of it is St. Germain, Prosecco and club soda, and on a summer day with mint and lemon … It's so yummy. I wish I had some in my fridge. It is the most refreshing drink. And I'm anti-Aperol. It's all about Hugo, like you have to experience the Hugo Spritz. Your life will change.
This summer, everyone will be wearing longer-length shorts. More people are wearing board shorts now, it's not above the knee anymore. And baby tees and Havaianas flip-flops.
If last summer was brat summer, this summer is where I'm going to be really stupid for the last time. It's from personal experience. This is the last summer of my 20s. I just feel like I can get away with certain things in my 20s before I turn 30, so this summer is going to be crazy and stupid for me. When I turn 30 in April, it's going to be smart spring, like business savvy, strategically everything. But this summer is going to give, let's puke. Let's drink a s— ton of alcohol and puke, because I have one summer left to do that.
The best vintage finds are at the Long Beach Antique Market. On the third Sunday of the month, there's this lady named Veronica. You will find the most incredible vintage. The look that I wore to the Vuitton show was from her vintage stall. And I love the Goodwill on San Fernando in Atwater Village where you buy by the pound. You literally have to come in with gloves and your headphones because it's such an intense experience, but it's so cheap and I have found gems from that Goodwill.
It's so unserious for people to be like, 'Fashion is everything, fashion is my life.' Fashion is a major cause of global warming, and it can create a lot of damage in the world. It's not brain surgery, but you'll meet people that make it feel like brain surgery and that's when it's not fun anymore. I just want to have fun and create beautiful images.
Something I wish people knew about the fashion and styling industry is that 75% is hard work and schlepping, you're carrying things all day, every day. It's a lot of logistics. But 25% is glamorous. There are moments where you're like, 'Wow, these spaces that I'm in are actually insane, and I'm so grateful to be here.' But the 75% is not fun or pretty. A lot of people don't know that when they get in, and they run from it really quickly. I do it because I love it and I'm inspired by it. It's something I've wanted to do my entire life, and I can attest to it with the amount of Teen Vogues in my closet in my childhood bedroom.