This Week The Mice Have Mostly Been...

It's F...F...F...Frrrrriday!

Oh yes it is!

And as it's been at least two weeks since one of us was last sunning ourselves on a beach somewhere, you'll be relieved to know that the London Mice will soon be filling your Instagram feeds with lots of sun-soaked smoasting as this weekend they're jetting off on yet another holiday! Lucky little 'uns!

When I haven't been wistfully eyeing my empty suitcase and wishing I was zipping off on a jet plane too, this week this Mouse has mostly been...

Drooling over each and every pair of swoon some heels in the Olivia Palermo x Aquazurra capsule collection. Yeah, we know, she's a reality TV star, but this is hardly your average famous-for-five-minutes-person-lends-their-name-to-shoddy-product collaboration. Take a look at these babies and tell us you aren't at least considering blowing a hefty chunk of August's paycheck on a pair...

Prices start at £375. Fight you for them when they drop on Net-A-Porter on the 25th...

Sipping divine concoctions at my new favourite cocktail hotspot, the Woods. This slinky new addition to Hollywood Road's buzzing bar scene manages to be minimalist yet cosy, buzzy yet quiet enough to have a proper chat and shakes up some of the most deliciously different cocktails I've tried in a very long time.

The Watermelon Cilantro is fruity and aromatic with a spicy kick. 

While the Fizzy Cucumber Gimlet is super refreshing and summery - a garden in a glass. 

I've heard great things about the 4-course prix-fixe cocktail menu which includes a gin basil smash that you quite literally take a hammer to before you drink. Hammered on Hollywood just took on a whole new meaning...

The Woods

17 Hollywood Road

Central 

Hong Kong

+852 2522 0281

Cranking up the aircon and pretending that Autumn's come early, while shopping the awesome Needle knitwear sale. If you haven't discovered Needle yet, hop over to the gorgeously shoppable site immediately - when the cold weather sets in, these cosy chic separates are going to be your NBFs! The Needle fall/winter '14 collection drops in a couple of weeks' time, but until then go and shop up a storm in the sale. Luxe knitwear at a snip? How can you say no to that?! 

Ithica Lace Hole Striped Jumper

Now £67.50 (down from £135)

Ravello Cable Knit Jumper

Now £65 (down from £145)

Capri Colour-blocked Striped Jumper 

Now £44 (down from £125)

So that just leaves us with one last thing to say before we head off for a couple of rounds of celebratory Friday cocktails...

x

The Mice

Bardot on a Budget: J Crew X Altuzarra Collaboration

It should by now have become pretty apparent that the Mice are partial to a designer/high street collaboration.  We breathlessly counted down to the Mary Katrantzou X Topshop collaboration, we swooned about the DVF X Gap kids' wear collaboration and we were nothing short of manic over the Marni X H&M collaboration.

This week's delirious collab joy has been incited by the amazing photos that we spied on Vogue.com today of the new Altuzarra X J Crew collaboration.  The collection can apparently be pre-ordered over the phone tomorrow and will be available online and in store from Monday 23 April.  The collaboration is the result of this year's CDFA/ Vogue Fashion Fund competition which was won by Altuzarra.  Runners-up, Pamela Love and Creatures of the Wind will launch their J Crew collaborations later this month - collab excitement overload or what?!

The Mice are huge Altuzarra fans and the French designer didn't disappoint us with his aw12 collection which was one of our favourites of all the fashion weeks and which we'll very much be channeling come September.

Images via: www.style.com

The collection for J Crew takes a very different tack to the military tailoring and deep spice tones that we saw on the catwalk in February though.  Altuzarra has cited Brigitte Bardot and Jean Seberg as inspirations and we also see more than a hint of his 2012 Resort collection.  We can definitely see Bardot posing coquestishly on a St Tropez beach in the gingham tie front dress and the breton striped pieces look as though they've been borrowed straight from Seberg's wardrobe.

Altuzarra's J Crew collection is very clean and fresh; preppy basics peppered with gingham and breton stripes in a tricolore palette.  We're loving the navy and red jumper which has been specially knitted to make it look worn-in, perfect thrown over a pair of skinnies and some ballet flats for a relaxed but elegant weekend look.  Our favourite piece though, is the breton striped dress - crisp and clean, can be dressed up or down, a true wardrobe staple in the making.     

Images via: www.vogue.com (collage via www.fabsugar.com)

The collection retails from US$145 to US$345 which, while it isn't cheap, we still think represents amazing value for quality pieces which are timeless enough to have you dusting them off  each spring for many years to come.  And let's face it, for a slice of Altuzarra magic, it's pretty bargainous!  

NYFW Round up

One down, three more to go.

On Thursday night New York Fashion Week drew to a close and the fash pack flocked to London where London Fashion Week is now in full swing.  We've been pretty much glued to Style.com since NYFW kicked off on 9 February and we are very excited about what we've seen so far.  So what trends have emerged for Autumn/Winter 2012 so far?  What were our personal standout NY shows?  And did the celebrity designers show credible collections?  The Mice give you their NYFW round up...

The key trends that we took from the NY shows were leather and fur, military and menswear tailoring, and deep rich colours with an abundance of bright, lipstick red.  Various collections had a vintage feel with the sixties proving to be the biggest influence.  Over-the-knee boots and leather elbow-length gloves also gave a bondage edge to several shows.

Our personal favourite shows were Jason Wu, Derek Lam, Mara Hoffman and Altuzarra.  We also loved all things Victoria Beckham.  There is absolutely no two ways about it, the girl gives great dress.  And we desperately want to get our hands on the delicious new Harper bag which is of course named after the newest addition to the Beckham clan.  

Victoria showed again that she has serious fashion clout with two very strong collections.  But did her fellow celeb designers succeed to prove that they deserved their place next to the Oscar de la Rentas and DVFs of New York Fashion Week?  The Olsen girls showed a beautiful, super luxe collection of simple, clean pieces.  Rachel Zoe, celebrity stylist turned designer graduated to the runway this year but pretty much showed a collection straight out of her own wardrobe.  We loved elements of the sixties heavy, Rolling Stones look but there were definite moments that it all seemed a little Karen Millen.    

So that's our canter through NYFW and here are the highlights and key themes from our top fifteen shows.   

Who: Derek Lam
What: leather, sixties, monochrome, oxblood, mustard, silk maxi paired with arran knits.

Who: Mara Hoffman

What: Boho, gypset, bright, seventies, prints, embellishment, Aztec, shawl collars and floppy felt hats

Who: Diane Von Furstenberg 

What: "Glamourous at a moment's notice", berry and chocolate with flashes of chartreuse and turquoise, wide leather belts, jumpsuits, elbow-length leather gloves, colour blocking, playful, surrealist prints.

Who: Rachel Zoe

What: Trouser suit, jewel tones, fur, sixties, Marianne Faithful, prints, big knits, hippy hair, over-the-knee suede boots.

Who: Victoria Beckham  

What: long, lean, sleek, bodycon, moss/khaki/olive/black with flashes of lipstick red,military, sporty, flat chunky boots.

Who: Jason Wu

What: Military, capes, studs, leather, lace, China, black, khaki, burgundy and scarlet, tasselled earrings, gold embroidery, capes, quilting, fur.

Who: Tracy Reese
What: citrus orange/lime, turquoise, jewel tones, monochrome checks, clashing prints with metallic leather accents, futuristic, felt baseball caps.

Who: Monique Lhullier

What: black and lipstick red, sultry, bondage, leather, sharp, sleek silhouettes, sequin embellishment, 80s, waists cinched, Robert Palmer, sheer panels.

Who: Victoria, Victoria Beckham

What: Simple, sleek, colour blocking, quirky prints, black and deep, rich colours.

Who: Rodarte
What: Monochrome shearling, forties, lapels, tailoring, leather, earthy tones, clay red, aborigine print, chunky knits, stripes.

Who: Oscar de la Renta
What: Tailoring, twinsets, boucle, jewel print, sixties, powder blue and baby pink, hairbands, Park Avenue Princess, youthful, glossy, opulent, fur and fishnets.

Who: The Row
What: Clean, simple, minimalist, sharp, luxe, fur, monochrome with caramel, tan and chocolate, flat ribbon sandals.

Who: Altuzarra
What: Military, tailoring, Morrocco, seventies, black and rich spice tones, over-the-knee leather boots, fur, waists cinched with thick obi belts, tassels, pom poms and gold discs.

Who: Preen
What: Floral and butterfly prints, towering platform lace-up shooties, monochrome and muted, autumnal shades mixed with bands of bright, lipstick red, panelling, lace, texture, rope drawstring belts.

Who: Marchesa
What: Opulent occassionwear, delicate, intricate, etheral, lace, laser-cut leather, gold - molten and antique, feathers.

All images via: www.style.com