A Look at the Into the Woods Collection from California 89
The woods around Truckee are the soul of this town. Tall pines. Soft trails. Birds at dawn. The smell of warm bark in July. The hush of fresh snow in January. Locals love the woods more than they love almost...
The woods around Truckee are the soul of this town. Tall pines. Soft trails. Birds at dawn. The smell of warm bark in July. The hush of fresh snow in January. Locals love the woods more than they love almost any thing. So we built a small clothing line around that love. We call it the Into the Woods Collection. This is the story of how it came to be and why it means a lot to us.
What is the Into the Woods Collection?
It is a small line of tees, hoodies, and hats with art that tells the story of the Sierra forest. Pines. Cedars. Firs. Trail signs. Tree rings. Soft greens and browns. The whole vibe is calm, grounded, and rooted in the place we live. It is the line you wear on a hike, on a slow Sunday, on a long camp trip, or just on a normal Tuesday.
The art is hand drawn. The cuts are easy. The colors are soft. It is the kind of clothing you will keep for years.
Why a forest collection?
Tahoe gets a lot of love for the lake. We love the lake too. We even built a whole line around it called Love Blue. But the woods deserve their own story. The trees here are old. Some are over a hundred years old. They hold the soil. They make the air clean. They give us shade in summer and quiet in winter. They are the silent stars of this whole town.
So we made a line that says thank you to the woods. Same way Love Blue says thank you to the lake.
What does the line look like?
The full set shifts with the season. A few core pieces stay year round.
Soft cotton tees with pine art
Long sleeves with tree ring prints
Hoodies with small forest scenes
Hats with simple tree icons
A few stickers and small goods
Each season, we add one or two new prints. Some sell out fast. Some come back. The whole line is built to mix with the rest of your closet.
Who is the Into the Woods Collection for?
Anyone who loves the trees. That covers a lot of folks.
Locals who hike all week
Bird folks
Camp lovers
Trail runners
Slow Sunday walkers
Yogis who love a quiet moment
Folks who just like the way pine trees feel
Kids who grew up in a tree house
We see Into the Woods tees on every kind of person. That mix is the point. The trees belong to all of us.
How do I style an Into the Woods piece?
The art is calm. So the rest of your kit can be simple. Here are a few looks we love.
For a forest hike
Into the Woods tee
Light hoodie
Trail pants
Solid shoes
A small day pack
For a town day
Into the Woods long sleeve
Dark jeans
White sneakers
A hat for the sun
For a camp night
Into the Woods hoodie
Soft sweat pants
Wool socks
A warm beanie
For a slow Sunday
Into the Woods tee
Soft shorts
Bare feet on a wood deck
A book in your hand
The art is the star. Keep the rest quiet. Let the line do the work.
What kind of art is on the line?
The prints are hand drawn. We work with local artists when we can. The art shows the things you would see on a real Sierra trail.
Single pine trees
Small forest scenes
Tree rings up close
Trail signs from real local trails
Soft animal prints (deer, bird, fox)
Tree silhouettes against a sky
Each print starts as a sketch on paper. Then it goes through a few rounds of edits. Then it gets printed in small runs. We do not do giant batches. Small, careful, and slow is the CA89 way.
How is the line made?
We work with print partners who care about the planet as much as we do. The cotton is soft and made to last. The dyes are picked to hold color through years of washes. The cuts are tested by real folks (us, our friends, our team).
We do not chase fast fashion. We do not push out a new line every week. We make pieces that last and we restock the ones folks love most.
Why is this line called “Into the Woods”?
Because that is what locals do here. We get tired of a hard week and we go into the woods. We get lost in a slow walk. We sit by a creek. We come back home with a clear head. The woods fix things.
The line is a small reminder of that. When you put on the tee, you carry a tiny bit of the trees with you. Even on a stress full work day. Even in a busy city. The woods are always close.
Does it tie back to the Tahoe area?
Yes. Every piece in the line is built around the Sierra. We are in Truckee. The trees we draw are the trees out our back door. The trails we sketch are the trails we hike on weekends. The line is a love note to this real place. Not a generic forest line. A Sierra line.
We are also a proud supporter of Mountain Area Preservation and the Tahoe Fund. When you buy from California 89, a small part of that goes back to the place that started us. The forest gives a lot. We try to give back.
What is the story behind the first Into the Woods print?
The first print was a simple pine tree. Just one tree. Hand drawn. Soft lines. Our team picked it because it felt like the trees you see on the drive into Truckee from any side. Not flashy. Just real. We printed a small batch on tees. They sold out in a few weeks. We knew we had something.
From there, the line grew. We added long sleeves. Then hoodies. Then hats. Each new print started the same way. A real sketch of a real Sierra thing. No clip art. No stock graphics. Just hands and paper and ink.
That slow start is part of why locals love it. The line grew because real folks asked for more. Not because a marketing plan said so.
What is the most loved piece in the line?
Hard to pick just one. But the long sleeve with the tree ring print is a fan favorite. Tree rings tell the age of a tree. They also tell the story of every dry year, every wet year, every fire it lived through. A tree ring print on a shirt is a small love note to time and to the trees that hold so much of it.
We get more emails about that piece than about most. Folks tell us they wear it on hikes. On long drives. On quiet days when they just need to feel close to the woods. That feedback is why we keep making it.
Where can I see the line in person?
The full line is in our Truckee store on Donner Pass Road. You can touch the cotton. You can try the cuts. You can pick the prints you love most. Our team is there to help.
If you can not come in person, the full Into the Woods Collection page on our site has the whole set with photos and details.
How do I care for an Into the Woods tee?
Easy steps that keep the print sharp: - Wash cold. Always. - Turn it inside out before you wash. - Skip the high heat dry. Hang dry if you can. - Skip the bleach. Of course.
Do that and the line will last for years. Locals tell us their first Into the Woods tee is still in heavy use after five seasons. That is the kind of news we love.
Can I match it with the Love Blue Collection?
Yes. The two lines are made to mix. Wear an Into the Woods tee with a Love Blue hoodie. Or a Love Blue hat with an Into the Woods long sleeve. The colors blend. The vibe matches. Together they tell the full Tahoe story. Lake plus forest. Water plus trees. The whole place in one closet.
Browse both lines side by side on the California 89 home page for the easiest mix.
Why locals love it
Locals love this line because it does not shout. It is a quiet shirt for a quiet life by the trees. We see it on guides, on cooks, on yoga teachers, on park rangers, on small kids, on grand pas. The mix is the magic. It works for any one who loves the woods.
If you love the line too, the Into the Woods Collection is waiting. Pick a piece. Wear it on your next hike. Tag us on social so we can see.
For more on the Sierra forest, the team at the US Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin keeps a great library of facts and stories about the local woods. The Tahoe Forest Stewardship Coalition also shares what locals are doing to keep the trees healthy. Both are worth a read on a slow Sunday.
A small note from our team
We are a small family shop. Female owned. Locally drawn. Made in a town that loves its trees. Each Into the Woods piece comes from real care, real hands, and real Sierra love.
When you wear it, you wear a piece of these woods with you. We hope it makes you smile. And we hope it pulls you back to the real woods, soon and often.
See you on the trail.