This Week The Mice Have Mostly Been...

So it is safe to say The Mice are officially feeling festive! Christmas jumpers have been purchased, our present list is slowly being ticked off and our diaries are now full of Christmassy engagements! It's definitely the season to be taking as much vitamin C and echinacea as humanly possible to ensure we dodge a Christmas cold and can keep up with all the excitement and socialising!

When we haven't been writing thousands of Christmas to do lists, this week the Mice have mostly been...

Desperately searching for a spot of R&R after a seriously non-stop Parisian adventure! 48 hours were spent eating delicious dinners, sipping far too many cocktails, exploring the cobbled streets of Le Marais and inhaling copious amounts of macaroons and pastries! Across the two days we only spent 8 of those hours asleep and managed to clock up 24,000 steps on the beautiful streets of Paris...I'm sure that counteracts all of those extra calories!!

Posts of where we went and what we got up to will be winging their way over shortly, however for now I'll leave you with a mini scrapbook picture reel of what the Mice did...

Sprucing up London Towers to heighten the festive feeling! As I've mentioned our diaries are now bursting at the seams with far too many drinks and dinners, so we're pretty much left with just Mondays to get anything done that doesn't involve drinking too many gin & tonics and eating mince pies! This week Middle Mouse and I used our Monday evening off to have our first official Christmas night and put up our tree!

After a long day at work we bounded home, ripped open our advent window and jumped straight into our Christmas PJ's...if you're going to do a job, you may as well do it properly!!!

First things first...it's essential to have a Christmas film on in the background, but it's so hard to pick...

We eventually opted for good old Love Actually for some feel good viewing!

 Film sorted, next up - nibbles to fuel all that tree decorating...we thought smoked salmon, cream cheese and biscuits would be just the thing! We even ate them from our Christmas plate!

Tree up, lights secured, cream roses hung, there was one last job for me to do...

Drum roll please....ta dahhhh....

Just as we stood back to admire our handiwork the oven pinged and a hearty winter's dinner of beef bourguignon (courtesy of M&S we're not miracle workers!) and a big glass of red, was ready to be devoured!!!

We spent the rest of the evening cosy little mice, curled up in front of our tree watching Christmas films...bliss!!

Only 19 more sleeeeeeps!!!

On that note, stay cosy this weekend and of course get Christmassy! I think it's only right to sign off with one final Christmas message after our bumper Christmas week!!!!

The Mice x

The Perfect Christmas Gift: Porcine Porcelain!

I must say it's been a little while now since I've been this excited to write about a new found gem - I'm practically bursting to share this one with you... 

One word, well actually it's three little words stuck together... Jimbobart - illustrated bone china, so intricate and nostalgic it will melt your heart! James Ward, the talented genius behind the charming ceramics produces the works of art from his studio on Columbia Road in East London. James has perfected the art of storytelling beautifully and creates unique one-off pieces with meaning. Working with pen and ink, the focus of his work is centred around nature and expressive animals, predominantly bears!

I got in contact with James the designer a few weeks ago and he very kindly gifted us Mice a festive side plate dubbed The Chistmas Pig. When it arrived in the post I let out a little Carrie Bradshaw scream of delight as I pulled back the tissue paper to reveal this charismatic little piggy staring back at me all dressed up in a festive jumper and paper crown...

Isn't he just the most perfect Christmas present ever? What could be better than pigging out on a plateful of mince pies or a doorstep turkey sandwich served on a Christmas pig plate?!

Putting side plates to one side (!), Jimbobart sells a whole lot more, including coffee cup sets, serving platers, limited edition prints and original artwork. He is by no means a one trick pony, far from it...

Check at the full range here or head down to the Jimbobart store on Columbia Road above Marcos and Trump, no. 146 - open Sundays 10am - 4pm.

Heiress vs Penniless: Christmas Clutches

If you haven't got the message yet, we're sort of excited about Christmas...
 
So far this week we've brought you our round-up of the coolest Christmas Knits this season (just under a week and a half til Christmas Jumper Day people...) and we've also given you our pick of the best luxe pampering gifts to give your Christmas shopping (or your very own Christmas list) a bit of a boost. Next up, we've got a key Christmas fashion dilemma covered...
 
Picture the scene - it's 7am on a Thursday in Mid-December. You're likely hungover from a couple too many festive gin & tonics last night and this morning you have even more to contend with than usual... On top of trying to make a breakfast which consists of more than just your advent calendar chocolate, and in addition to getting your layering just right so that you don't freeze on the walk to the station, boil on the underground or expose yourself to your fellow commuters as you try to do the public transport strip, this morning you also need a party appropriate outfit for this evening's work Christmas celebrations...
 
Let's pause it right there and avert any pre-Chrimble breakdowns immediately. That's right, we're going to get your work Christmas party outfit sorted right now... This year, you will be wearing a black dress to the office which you can dress down by day and then vamp up for the evening with a pair of very high heels and a blinder of a clutch bag. Now, how easy was that?!
 
What's that? You don't have a blinder of a clutch bag? Well of course we have that sorted for you too - come on what do you think we are? Men not Mice?!
 
What's that? Given the sackfuls of presents you need to buy for 25th December, you don't have the cash to shell out on a blinder of a clutch right now? Well we've thought of that too... without further ado, we bring you the path to Christmas pzazz whatever your budget... 
 
The Sparkly Chic One

Edie Parker Flavia Box Clutch
£965

Zara Mother of Pearl Minaudière
£39.99

The Novelty One

Charlotte Olympia Christmas Pudding Pouch
£495

New Look Christmas Pudding Coin Purse
£3.99

The Tinsel One

Kotur Margo Bell-Embellished Tinsel Clutch
£290

Clark's Botanicals Thakoon Holiday Set
£42
(this Thakoon for Clark's Botanicals clutch comes complete with some scrumptious products to make you look even more sparkly - win, win!)

The Bling One

Anya Hindmarch Marano

£450

Monsoon Samir Glitter Clutch

£35

The Transparent One 

Charlotte Olympia Holly Pandora Perspex Box Clutch
£595

ASOS Clear Clutch Bag with Internal Glitter Purse

£30

 

3BM Christmas Gift Guide: Luxe Pampering

Following Hong Kong Mouse's festive start to the week yesterday, I thought I'd stick with the 'Holidays are coming' theme and share my pamper gift guide!

There's nothing nicer than receiving a gorgeous gift set of indulgent products to spoil yourself with at Christmas. I always think that a great present is the sort of thing that you wouldn't buy for yourself, something that's a real treat. When I was growing up it was ALL about Body Shop gift sets - going back to school in January I was pretty much a walking Dewberry, with the odd day of White Musk thrown into the mix! Nowadays I'm partial to gift sets with a little more of the luxe factor and there are lots to choose from out there - see my pick of the best below...

The White Company - White Lavender Cracker Gift Set - £25

Presented beautifully in a crisp white cracker shell with lilac tie bows at either end, this is the ultimate Christmas cracker in my opinion! And the luxe doesn't stop at the packaging, this little crackerjack is concealing some serious beauty bang - a cuter than cute mini candle, thick body lotion and a sweet smelling shower gel. The added bonus is that there's no need to wrap the little beauty as it would look super pretty sitting underneath the Christmas tree or even nestling proudly in between your knife and fork at the table on Christmas Day...

 

True Grace - Christmas Noel Home Scent - £20

Twinkling fairy lights, advent calendars and festive carols all add to the Christmassy cheer throughout December, but what about the smell of Christmas? Don't waste time and energy trying to conjure up that festive fragrance naturally because I know a brand that has captured it and bottled it... True Grace! The True Grace Christmas Noel Home Scent is a scrumptious concoction of pine, cedarwood and amber - a single spritz and we guarantee you'll feel as though you've been transported to a snowy corner of lapland... All I can say is how did I not know about this festive little secret earlier?!

ESPA - Sleep Couture Gift Set - £55

I'm a bath baby through and through - I have one almost every night before bed and it's near impossible to coax me out once I'm submerged! Now there's abslutely no hope thanks to ESPA - this indulgent box of sleep-inducing goodies boasts a soothing bath oil, body oil, aromatic spray and scented candle all laced with Sandalwood, Frankincense and Rose Geranium. Simply A-M-A-Z-I-N-G...

 

Now you just need to decide who's on the nice list this year and get gifting (probably also not a bad idea to subtly leave this window open as a little hint for passing friends, family and colleagues...)

Christmas Jumpers

So, it's December! 

We've opened the first two doors of our advent calendars!

The ridiculously enormous tree is dominating the living room in Mouse Towers Hong Kong and the London Mice are on the Christmas tree case this evening!

If you're even a little Scrooge-like, it's probably time to stop reading now and to be frank, you're best off not coming back til January…

We all love absolutely everything about Christmas. We're just too excited for words that it is now officially ok to watch Christmas films on a loop, crack open the mince pies and hint at things we'd like to find under the tree in twenty three day's time (OMG, only twenty three days to go….!).

And to get festivities going in Hong Kong, this weekend I'll be wearing my very best Christmas jumper to not one but two parties while I drink my way through gallons of mulled wine! If you don't have your Christmas jumper yet, it's time to get shopping because on Friday 13 December it's Save The Children's Christmas Jumper Day. If you haven't had the make-it-better-with-a-sweater memo yet, we're talking one day when everyone dons their most festive knit, donates at least a pound to Save the Children and well and truly gets into the Christmas spirit while helping out a very good cause.

Thinking that your Christmas jumper is something you'd really rather keep behind closed doors? Then it's probably time to got involved in the Wooly Big Text Auction for the chance to bag yourself a snazzy knit designed by the very best of British fashion talent. We're talking…

Alexander McQueen…

…Vivienne Westwood…

…Burberry…

…and Mary Katrantzou.

Check out the full set here.

All you need to do is text the name of the designer whose jumper you're after along with the amount in pence you'd like to bid and the lowest unique bidder will walk away with their wooly… What are you waiting for?! Get involved!

If you're not feeling lucky, it's probably best to secure a back-up, so here's our pick of the Christmas crackers to keep you cosy this December...

River Island Grey Sequin Reindeer Jumper
£38

Eleven Paris Home Alone Christmas Sweatshirt
£50

Vintage Renewal Sequin Bells Jumper
£40

Markus Lupfer Penguin Sequinned Jumper
£250

New Look Pudding Jumper
£27.99

Meadham Kirchhoff Maria Embroidered Sweater
£341.67

Topshop Knitted Holly Jumper

£40

 

Blue Chelsea Girl Cracker Jumper

£25

By Malene Birger Olav Sequinned Jumper

£199

 

Lot78 Printed Cotton Sweatshirt

£135