LA-based designer, Brenda Equihua’s eponymous label, Equihua, has hit another culture touchpoint with the release of its latest drop. The ‘Reina’ drop features two limited-edition cobija outerwear pieces designed by David Gonzales, the creator of the Homies characters and figurines that dominated the 90s. Gonzales also designs blankets, and Equihua used the blankets to create these limited-edition garments.
The collection includes a limited-edition Cobija Hoodie ($495) and the Reina Cobija Coat ($710). Both black and white outerwear pieces feature a damask-like design on the front around the zipper, and the Virgen de Guadalupe on the back.
The iconic Homies characters and figurines are a group of Chicanos from East Los Angeles that, despite the challenges of inner-city poverty and oppression, share a cultural bond that helps them turn to laughter and good times as an antidote to reality.
The figures originally first debuted in an underground comic strip in Lowrider Magazine in 1978. The original homies eventually expanded to over 300 characters that would appear on t-shirts and vending machines, where over 150 million figurines were sold, breaking records worldwide.
Equihua, included most recently at the Museum at FIT’s ¡Moda Hoy! exhibit this summer, posted a video of the ‘Reina’ Cobja Coat is hanging, ready to be shot for promotional purposes. In the video, a bystander is heard reacting to the coat: “I had to pop a u-e for that, that’s fire.”
The limited-edition ‘Reina’ Cobija Coat and Hoodie is now available for purchase on the label’s website.