Long time best friends Taryn Manning and Tara Jane have done just about everything together since junior high, including moving to L.A. at the age of 19 to pursue acting careers. Now the duo have combined their creative efforts to found clothing line Born Uniqorn. Carried at Brunette, Ron Herman and Fred Segal and sported by the likes of Lindsay Lohan, Born Uniqorn spreads its philosophy that everyone should be true to themselves (or "be you," as its initials read) by creating pieces that are structured, easy to wear and anything but run-of-the-mill. The two took time out to give us the low down on their line, what inspires them and why unicorns are awesome. —Lyndsey Saul


You two are best friends? How did you meet?

"We met in 7th grade in San Diego. We went swimming one day and asked each other if we already had a best friend. Neither of us did, so we decided to be each other's best friend then."


Tell us about the birth of Born Uniqorn?

"We were hiking in Runyon Canyon one day, talking about the disappointments in our careers and decided we wanted to do something productive with our time together. We thought ‘What can we do that they can’t take away from us?’ So we started asking our friends like Charlotte Ronson questions [about starting a clothing line], took our confidence and great love, hit the streets of downtown L.A. and blew our savings."


What inspires your designs?

"We love to people watch. We watch when high schools let out—their sense of style is so much more free, they're not so commercial. We also went to Coachella this year and took pictures of people we thought looked awesome. We have an inspiration board and go from there. It looks like a big mish mash, but it makes sense to us."


Who are your favorite designers?

"Stella McCartney, DvF is not too trendy and classic forever, Marc Jacobs. We love American Apparel, Grey Ant and J Brand jeans."


What kind of fabric are you attracted to and why?

"Wild and fun all-over prints, fabrics usually used for kids’ onesies and old school fleeces is what we’ve been known for. Lycra—we grew up dancing and our first collection was all ballerina-inspired. Loud, funky and edgy. Though, we’re more conservative now. Our eye and line is specific and is growing up with us. Right now, its stretch fleece and French terry.'


What trends are you noticing right now?

"Heather gray. We love that. The ‘70s and ‘80s are in right now. Fun, bright colors, stretch canvas, light and brightly colored denim."


Favorite neighborhood in L.A. to go shopping in? What stores do you like?
Taryn: “Fred Segal, Los Feliz, Silver Lake—Una Mae's and White Trash Charms. The Valley is awesome. The stores on Ventura, Tracy Reese, Veronica M. and there's Gap and Banana Republic for basics.”

Tara: "Wasteland, Melrose Trading Post and the Rosebowl. I love to pair vintage with something like Marc Jacobs."


How would you each describe your personal styles? How do you combine those styles into one line?

Taryn: “Edgy with a twist. Bohemian, hip hop, rock and roll and a little ghetto fabulous.”

Tara: “Whimsical and contemporary. The hippie look with Grecian sandals, I’ve always loved that. My parents were total hippies, my dad airbrushed shirts for Cher in the ‘60s. And just authentic, original stuff, the only thing I don’t wear is black. We are both chameleons, we like to set ourselves apart from the rest."


What kind of girl do you design for?

“Contemporary, younger versions of ourselves. Girls who are free, and confidant with who they are: L.A. girls who are edgy and think outside the box. Our price points are also very important to us, we never want our fans to not be able to afford our clothes. So we keep it between $50-$175 for a jacket or dress with a lot of detail that could easily be priced at $400 if we were another brand."


Where is the perfect place in L.A. to wear Born Uniqorn?

“It’s definitely a day for night line. You can wear it to work, then throw on a scarf and heels and wear it to a club. You could go to Teddy’s or Hyde in a jacket with a cute hat and some tights. It’s hard to pinpoint a perfect place because it can really be worn anywhere. We’ve said it before, but it really is aimed to be the perfect third date outfit. Sexy, but not high maintenance.”


Any plans on making shoes, purses or other accessories? 

"We would love to do everything! Dog clothes, children’s clothes. We’d love to follow what L.A.M.B. and Juicy have done. That’s our goal."


So Born Uniqorn is a play on "be unique,” but you've also said that you love unicorns—why?

Taryn: “Unicorns are awesome! We just love what they represent. Hope, magic, mystery— they're intriguing; we’ve grown up with them, watching movies with them like The Last Unicorn. Plus, my Chinese astrological sign is a horse and we wanted a cool name for our line—we can't really explain it. And I know we spell, 'unicorn' differently. But it’s not because we’re stupid. It's 'be unique,' so we wanted to spell it [uniquely]."


www.bornuniqorn.com