Moxie Dalston, creator of currently-London-based clothing line "I Love Boxie," never had intentions of starting her own fashion company. The traveling screenwriter was all about movie sets and lengthy scripts, until a rocky relationship helped her discover her talent for T-shirt making. Originally handed out to lucky "customers" for free, Moxie’s slogan-rich tees, which feature intriguing statements like ‘hey, you and I are going to have a love affair and it won’t work but somewhere in the middle, my god, we tried,’ have created an underground buzz for the clothing line in which, she says, “every T-shirt tells a story.”

Though she’s a London resident now, Moxie’s an L.A. girl by nature. Here, she talks to us about her label, and life in her hometown of Echo Park:

What inspired you to start your own label?
I fell in love with a T-shirt maker when I was 23. He documented our whole relationship on T-shirts. At first they were really loved up – prints of people kissing, lots of stars and hearts on nice pink tees. But, as our relationship started to crumble, the tees got really dark - black tees covered in prints of rats and nooses. When it was finally over, he made a T-shirt to say goodbye. From that moment on, I knew the power of the T-shirt.

Where did the idea for the slogans come from?
I broke up with someone else and I was supposed to be writing a book about a sham religion I co-founded called confusion-ism, but I wrote the whole thing about my ex instead. It was very cheesy and needy, so I had to flush the whole thing. I kept a few lines and printed them on tees. I started wearing them around town, because I needed to show people what had happened. The collection contained lines like ‘I loved him’, and ‘I need to remember how I forgot you.’ Strangers would come up and say ‘Wow, what the hell happened?’ or a lot of the time ‘Oh my god! That’s my story, too!’ And then, I started to think, actually, everyone should have a tee that tells a piece of their story – where they’ve been, what they’ve seen.

Why "I Love Boxie?"
‘Boxie’ was a neighborhood from one of my scripts. It’s the coolest place in the world that everyone’s trying to get to, but is always one step away. I sent the script off to LA last year, but I couldn’t let that word go.

What are the major differences between Echo Park and your current home, Brixton?
Not much. The best places you can ever live are those where you have no idea what’s going to happen next. I can safely say that about Echo Park and Brixton. They are both communities that are built on immigration and I love being in a world which is utterly its own in a big city.

Where’s the best place to pick up guys in Echo Park?
I think anywhere in America is a good place to pick up a guy. I am both appalled and thrilled by the dating culture, there. We don’t have that in London. It takes about 2 years for someone to ask you out, and finally when they do, you have to go out with them for another 2 years.

Do you have any stories that you could tell us about really bad pick-up lines/corny guys etc?
Years ago, when I was working on a movie set as a runner, I was staying in the hotel where all the actors lived. Everyone would go out every night and get really drunk. One night, an older married actor made a big pass at me. I avoided him for the rest of the night and eventually went home to bed. At about 5am, I woke up and realized that someone was spooning me. It was him! He’d crept into my room, in the depths of the night, and got into bed with me.

Damn. What did you do?
I did that thing where you pretend to stir and make loud yawning noises and eventually he got up and left. I stopped talking to him after that.

What part of Echo Park were you told to stay away from because it was too dangerous? Did you ever listen to the advice?
No, I never listen to that advice. It’s a conspiracy designed to make you not visit the interesting parts of town. Before I moved to Echo Park, I lived in West Hollywood, where every other shop sells cupcakes. Anything, even the minor threat of being mugged, is better than living like that. When I first moved to California, people would say ‘if your tire blows out on the freeway and you’re in Crenshaw - don’t stop, keep driving!’ And you’d be like ‘I can’t drive, you idiot, my tire’s blown out.’ I’ve never been wary of Echo Park, although a little bit further down, MacArthur Park feels like somewhere you shouldn’t take a midnight walk around.

~Donald Crunk @ Styleslut

Check out some of Echo Park's best offerings:
El Siete Mares, 2729 E Cesar E Chavez Ave. (323) 261-3743; "I eat there for lunch and dinner every single day when I am in LA. My reasons are I love fish tacos and I don't believe in paying more than 7 dollars for a meal."
Echo Park Time Travel Mart, 1714 W Sunset Blvd. (213) 413-3388; "I like the idea of magical shops. Of places that are giving you an experience rather than just selling you something."
California Select, 211 Sunset Blvd. (213) 484-6464
Luxe de Ville, 2157 Sunset Bvd. (213) 353-0135
Taix, 1911 W. Sunset Blvd. (213) 484-1265
The Echo, 1822 W. Sunset Blvd. (213) 413-8200
Masa Bakery & Cafe, 1800 W Sunset Blvd. (213) 989-1558