There’s no greater act of hospitality than to embrace a stranger as one’s own. It’s in our nature.

Shangri-La’s new advertising campaign captures what we believe is in our nature: hospitality from the heart.

Explains Bruno Aveillan who directed the advertisement: “It’s a very simple story about a man who gets lost in a snow covered forest and who little by little realises that he is being followed by wolves.

“His fear heightens until the moment when he collapses from exhaustion. And the wolves far from attacking him end up saving him, keeping him warm and welcoming him as if he were a member of the pack.”

Continues Aveillan: “This rather humanist approach interested me because it recalled certain ancestral legends and it’s the sort of thing one doesn’t see much of in advertising.”

For more information on the campaign and on Shangri-La hotels and resorts go here.

I was recently introduced to Sharp & Dapper. Based in London, the company has revived a classic gentleman’s accessory and brought it into the 21st century.

The Shirt Companion, is designed to help any self-respecting gentleman to keep his shirt tucked in and his socks pulled up. The unique ‘suspenders for men’ eliminate the hassle of continuously having to tuck in a shirt, by simply attaching the four individual braces between your shirt & socks.

Established and handmade in London’s Notting Hill and with art direction from Aneel Kalsi of Wallpaper magazine, The Shirt Companion is also worn by barmen in top class London venues such as Milk & Honey. An accessory they can rely on for the right image and impression.

Tom Soden, (Group Bar Manager of Diageo) is amongst the many who have become strong advocates of the Shirt Companion, stating:
“I bought a pair of Shirt Companions just over four months ago and I can honestly say that I haven’t worked a day without them since. It seems funny but they have become as essential to my working day as a pair of cuff links or my watch. S&D lives up to their name, it makes you look sharp & dapper. In addition to me feeling confident and fresh, customers immediately see I am a professional, experienced bartender working for a world-class company.”

The Shirt Companion is available now from Sharp & Dapper and comes beautifully packaged in a set of four braces.

One of our favourite online retailers, MRPORTER.COM, is turning One years old, and to celebrate they have teamed up with a number of designers to produce exclusive pocket squares for the site.
Brands involved include:

Alexander Olch
Band of Outsiders
Drakes
The Elder Statesman
Jean Shop
Oliver Spencer
Our Legacy
Richard James
YMC

This limited edition project is sure to turn the pocket square into a collector’s item, with only 50 of each square available.

The pocket square project is just one of a series of initiatives celebrating MR PORTER’s first birthday. From tomorrow a special MR PORTER birthday microsite will bring together a menu of anniversary content, including the launch of an interactive global treasure hunt.

The designer squares go on sale tomorrow on www.mrporter.com

Valentines day is next week, so we imagine many of you will running around this weekend trying to find the perfect gift.
To help you out we spoke to Soozie Jenkinson, Head of Lingerie Design at M&S, to find out her top five fail-safe tips to help you choose your lady the ideal lingerie gift for Valentine’s Day…

1. CONSIDER HER STYLE
If she’s an elegant and sophisticated dresser, look for luxurious fabrics and detailing. If she likes to feel feminine and pretty go for lace and florals, and if she’s a bit of a fashionista then keep your eye out for on-trend prints and jewelled colours.

2. MAKE SURE YOU GET THE SIZE RIGHT
Don’t just guess! Raid her lingerie drawer, look for something she has bought recently and loves wearing, and write the size down. You won’t be in her good books for buying lingerie that’s too small, or too big, and she’s much more likely to wear it if it fits well and feels comfortable to wear.
The shape is really key because some women love wearing balcony bras, (a traditional style which gives maximum uplift and a fuller shape) whilst others love wearing plunge bras (a modern shape which lowers / dips in the centre and gives a great cleavage). Brazilian knickers are the knicker shape of the moment, but she might be a short or even a thong fan. Don’t feel overwhelmed – get clues from her existing collection to see what she feels suits her best.

3. CONSIDER A TOUCH OF LUXURY
Every girl loves luxurious lingerie so consider silk lingerie as her special gift. Silk lingerie will be on every woman’s wish list so treat her to something special because it feels extravagant and sensual to wear.

4. TRY NIGHTWEAR IF YOU’RE UNSURE OF HER SIZE
If you’re worried about getting her bra size wrong then consider nightwear or loungewear. Pyjama dressing and vintage glamour looks are so on trend right now you can’t fail but to get it right – and guarantee cosy winter nights in cuddling by the fire. Every woman loves pretty, cosy PJ’s.

5. FINALLY, REMEMBER TO BUY FOR HER AND NOT FOR YOU AND SHE’LL LOVE YOU EVEN MORE!
Yes, red and black sets can be extremely sexy, but there’s so much more choice in lingerie and sleepwear today that you can really be sure to choose something that will be loved by you both and won’t end up hiding at the back of her draw.
If you are far too embarrassed to venture in to a lingerie department, don’t fret because lots of retailers offer products online with next day delivery. Choose wisely and you are sure to have a memorable Valentine’s Day!

I need to be completely honest right from the off – I don’t wear hiking boots. Not in a hiking sense, nor an ironic country-in-the-city sense.
As such, it’s taken a little while to find where the the K-Swiss Classic Hiker Highs fit into a city life. This is now clear.

If you’ve ever been skiing or snowboarding you’ll know that it’s a treacherous business negotiating a scenic, snow-coated town in anything less than your ski/snowboard boots or big, deep tread hiking boots. It’s also difficult to find any suitable boots that aren’t painfully bland and unstylish. The same applies to hiking, I would imagine.

The K-Swiss Classic Hiker, however, is the perfect middle ground boot. Granted, I wouldn’t wear them to nip to the shops (unless it was snowing, obviously) but I would wear them around any little Alp town or country retreat and feel the business.

Those opting for trainers to remain fashionable would slip and slide past me, envious of my steady poise and solid grip on the terrain. Those trudging up the hill in their beige, run of the mill hiking boots would be taken aback by the stylish contrast of the rich brown leather upper and contrasting lighter tan K-Swiss stripes.

They’re comfortable, warm, secure, good with baggy jeans or salopettes and very on trend. They aren’t too bulky or wide on the foot, and support for both ankle and arch is fantastic.

I’ve naturally focused here on where I would wear them, but there are of course numerous other occasions where these could be a great shoe. If your journey to the shops would be made better by the attributes above, then wear them to the shops. Don’t let my talk of higher altitude stop you.

In short, a great shoe for the outdoors – be it mountains, hills or if it suits, the High Street.

Guest post by @Alex_Clough

A friend of mine has been with his girlfriend for six years and I’ll be honest, she’s pretty hot. Problem is they argue constantly, and I’m not talking the casual bickering that most couples go through, I’m talking about weekly rows on an apocalyptic scale. Their relationship seems to have picked up a little recently but frankly that is because they stopped living together and simply don’t have the opportunity to fight as much. Poor logistics probably aren’t the basis of a solid relationship though and most of his friends have told him repeatedly over the past few years that he needs to give her the old heave ho. It’s likely that her friends have been saying the same thing but he insists that he loves her and can’t see himself with anyone else. So where did it all go wrong?

You’ll no doubt know people in similar situations and wonder why they stay together. Perhaps you’ve been dating recently and are wondering whether your new squeeze really is worth committing to. When it comes to relationships most people at some point have taken a moment to wonder whether the person on their arm is really right for them. Well ponder no more. My foolproof and frankly stupidly simple method will help you instantly get a grip on whether Mr Right is really Mr Wrong or whether you need to put a bit of distance between you and that perfect girl next door.

It’s a little system called the THREE Ls. Basically if you have all three Ls, your relationship will work. If you have less than Three, it’s doomed. Simple.

Number one; you need Lust. Fairly obvious but you need to fancy your partner. This is not normally an issue at the start of the relationship as typically what lead to you getting together was initially some form of mutual attraction. Add alcohol into the mix and hey presto you might have managed to pull that girl that was hitherto out of your league. Of course once she’s wiped last night mascara out of her eyes and seen that you are in fact a slightly overweight, balding man approaching middle age she is unlikely to stick around. Without Lust the relationship won’t get off the ground but for those lucky enough to have initial mutual attraction, Lust only becomes a problem further down the road.

The second L is ‘Like’. You have to actually like your partner. This normally comes after Lust. You fancy someone, you actually pull them and then spend a bit of time not drunk and wham, you either like them or you don’t. How many times have you heard a bloke say ‘she’s fit but really annoying!’?. These relationships usually have a shelf like of around 3 weeks, but if by some miracle you meet someone who you fancy and they fancy you, and you like them and they like you then wham, you’ve got a relationship. You’ve got ‘Lust’ and you’ve got ‘Like’ and that means you will probably give it a go and hey chances are it will work out ok for a while, maybe several years. But the third L is always the decisive factor eventually.

The third L is of course ‘Love’. After several years with someone you not only find attractive but get on really well with, the chances are you might fall in love. Bang. Scary times. But not as scary as when he or she doesn’t love you back. This can be a real relationship ender. You’re sat there one day thinking I lust after this girl, like her personality and frankly can’t see myself with anyone else. So you tell her you love here and she says she ‘likes you a lot’. It’s a cliché but also a classic example of misalignment of Three Ls. You love her but she only likes you. Bang. Relationship over.

So far it’s all quite simple but if this was the case then why do relationships go bad? One minute you’re all in lust with someone you really like who loves you back and next minute the relationship is just not working out. How is this possible when you had all Three Ls? Well you need to ask yourself if you still have them. Typically you start with Lust and Like then Love follows and yet we find ourselves in a situation, just like the friend mentioned at the beginning of this article, where we are in love with someone but can’t seem to make it work. The simple answer is to look again at the Three Ls. In the case mentioned, he Loves her. He Lusts after her but basically he hates her. Somewhere over the course of their relationship they just stopped liking each other but when people have had all Three Ls they find it hard to exit a relationship. In this case they need to really break up as they will only fuel each others anger. Worse though but potentially repairable is another example. A couple who once had the Three Ls are finding things tough. They look at their relationship and realize they still love each other deeply and still like each other but in this case the lust has gone. It’s easy to see why; a few pounds gained and a bit of hair lost all leads towards lethargy and a distinct lack of lust. This can sometimes be rectified with a gym membership, hair replacement or in drastic cases, cosmetic surgery but if you can’t get that missing L back then the relationship is doomed.

We’ve all been there in a relationship that’s on the rocks, wondering why it isn’t working but by applying the Three Ls you can quickly see where the cause of the trouble is. If the love is gone then chances are its over, but that will be obvious. If it’s that there is no lust then there’s a load of places you can go to try and sort that out but if you realize that actually you just don’t like you partner then maybe it’s time to call it a day. Try the Three Ls. It’s simple but I haven’t found a case yet where it doesn’t hold true, and you never know, it might just give you the confidence to start being true to yourself.

Guest post by @jamieoharvey

Philips recently released The Sonicare DiamondClean, a £250 toothbrush, but is it worth it? Read on to find out.

The Sonicare DiamondClean is probably one of the most techy toothbrushes I have ever come across, its packed with teeth cleaning features and even looks good.

The bush has a long oblong handle that features a power/mode select button and an illuminated display to indicate which of the brush’s five cleaning modes you’re currently using, in addition to battery charge levels. The five cleaning modes are designed to target specific areas of your mouth, allowing you to specialize your brushing with settings such as gum care or the whitening mode. Th brush has been clinically proven to remove up to four times more plaque than a manual toothbrush, increase gum health in only two weeks and whiten your teeth in as little as one! In addition it has an impressive rechargeable lithium-polymer battery, which is good for 3 weeks of regular usage from a single overnight charge.

Tech aside, the DiamondClean looks great on your bathroom shelf. The brush comes with an eye-catching silver travel case and a nicely cut glass tumbler with a silver base unit that it rests in all while wirelessly charging.

Using an inductive charging system similar to that found in Powermat chargers, simply placing the brush into the glass resting on the base unit (with the base unit plugged into a wall socket) charges the DiamondClean. With the green-lined travel case, it’s a similar principle, lying the toothbrush down inside rather than standing it up, and connecting the case via a USB connection on a PC or laptop to charge the brush. A useful feature for those who travel a lot.

After only one use of the DiamondClean I was a fan. My teeth as clean as they do after a visit to the dentist. For those not use to using an electric toothbrush Philips have cleverly designed the brush to ramp up the intensity of the cleaning cycle progressively after your first few brushes, letting you get used to the brush gradually. While testing out the brush I generally stuck to the default “Clean” setting. In this mode the DiamondClean uses a 2 minute “Smartimer”, automatically switching off after you’ve brushed for the recommended 120 seconds. In addition it will stop the motor for a split-second at 30 second intervals to help you better judge when to move onto a new area in your mouth. It’s a great way of making sure you’ve done a thorough job. After only a few weeks of using the brush I noticed my teeth look notably whiter and my mouth felt fresh.

Satchels have been big this year and we don’t expect this trend to disapear anytime soon. While there are a lot of companies making satchels, we highly recommend The Leather Satchel Company.

The Leather Satchel Company make custom satchels for the same cost as many off the shelf competitors, meaning you get a one of a kind bag for a great price. On their website you can pick from an impressive array of colours and style combinations.

After placing my order for a classic chocolate brown leather satchel, I received an email from their workshop to discuss in depth what I was going to use the satchel for and to make sure it would suit my needs. In the end I opted for the 14″ with briefcase handle and strap for a degree of flexibility.

Among some of the many other options to customize your bag include adding deeper gussets to allow you to slide in ‘more books’ in your satchel and Backpack Straps, perfect for cyclists.

All satchels are hand-crafted in Britain from top quality, natural heavy leather by artisan leather-smiths. This standard design features a long adjustable shoulder strap and is stitched using a colour matched blend of cotton and nylon for extra durability. The straps and fasteners are then finished with silver buckles and finally the satchel is riveted for completeness. All satchels come with a 30-day money-back guarantee and a 5-year craftsmanship guarantee.

Here is a peak inside my satchel.

A few weeks ago we were invited to one of our favourite Savile Row tailors, Spencer Hart, to learn about their recent collaboration with Samsung.

The collaboration involves integrating mobile technology into the traditional craft of Savile Row design and lifestyle tailoring. To be perfectly honest I was a bit skeptical at first, but as soon as I saw how the tailors were able to use the Samsung Galaxy Note, all doubts disappeared.

The Samsung Galaxy Note features the S Pen – and advanced pen-input technology combined with a full touch 5.3” HD Super AMOLED screen for sketching, editing documents or annotating images. Spencer Hart founder Nick Hart is using this technology to complement the traditional tools of tailoring for measuring up clients and showcasing different fabrics, fits and designs.

We had a chance to speak to Nick Hart about the collaboration. He explained how it is changing the way they work stating: “In our world we spend time with our clients to make sure everything is perfect and there’s a huge amount of detail we need to record to create clothing that’s tailor-made to them. When you work with high profile people things need to be done quickly and you’ve got to be flexible – using this new technology will make us more efficient as a business and allow more time for creativity.

“And of course it’s not just for work. I travel a lot and I’m always looking for new ideas. The Galaxy Note means I can capture inspiration while on the move, through images, memos and sketches, and share them instantly with colleagues, suppliers and even clients!”

The Samsung Galaxy Note devices is now being used in store at the Spencer Hart flagship at 62/64 Brook Street, London.