H&M for Brick Lane Bikes: for wheel

Never, in all my days, would I have expected this. A collaboration between that monster of fashion retail, H&M, and a tiny little bike shop down Brick Lane.

But the message from all this can only be positive. For someone like H&M to release a clothing collection specifically tailored to cycling is something else. This could feasibly lead to a load of high street fashion luvvies rushing out and buying bikes with no brakes! Imagine!

In all seriousness anything that promotes cycling gets a massive thumbs up and there's no better way to introduce it to the mainstream than this.

Common Projects A/W12: the right foot

Common Projects has come a long way in a relatively short amount of time. The Italian brand has stuck to what it knows - classic trainer styles, expertly manufactured from premium leather and sometimes canvas - and gradually built up the collection. It has now expanded into other shoe and boot styles, mainly with crepe or gum soles.

Decent footwear which, other than a gold-printed serial number on the heel cap, eschews any form of external branding. Find them at Coggles, among other places, but don't sleep, they tend to sell out.

Murakami: skulls and flowers

Takashi Murakami's exhibition at the Gagosian Gallery in Hong Kong opens today. Don't worry if you can't get there straight away - it's on until February 9. It's called Flowers & Skulls, and features skulls and flowers.  Darkness and light. Yin and Yang. That sort of thing of you want to get all deep about it. 

Gagosian Gallery
7/F, Pedder Building | Map
12 Pedder Street
Central, Hong Kong

Mercedes-Benz G63 Brabus Widestar: Fat

At the other end of the motoring spectrum to the Abarth 500c is the Mercedes G63 Brabus Widestar. A monster of an SUV, based on the now legendary G Series and featuring all of Brabus' renowned refinements, including a finely-tuned 5.5 litre twin turbo V8, giving you 620hp. In short this means you'll be spending more time in the filling station than on the road but hey - think of the Nectar points!

Fiat 500c Abarth 2013: More sting

This is the 2013 Fiat 500c Abarth, which looks much like the previous ones, only better, somehow. There's a bit of tweaking under the bonnet, too.

Via Freshness

Rhianna in GQ: moody

Here's a behind the scenes look at Rhianna during her shoot for US GQ. Nice lighting.

Rapha x Oakley: shades of style

Rapha's Oakley team sunglasses have long been a grail item among cyclists, issued as they are only to team riders and never on general availability. Team Condor uses the black and pink frames, whereas Team Rapha-Focus use this rather fetching cream, with red, pink and blue stripe colourway.

Now Rapha is making a pair of Frogskins and Radarlocks available via auction to help promote and support the team. The winner also gets a set of team rider trading cards. Although who you're going to trade them with I have no idea.

Find the auction here.

Quiksilver track bike: not a surfboard

Quicksilver could be the last company you would expect to be associated with bicycles given their unashamed association with boardsports in the past. But if you see a wheel coming past, even if it's not attached to a bandwagon, you might as well jump on it.

Not such a bad thing in this respect, especially if you are into stealth-looking track bikes for getting about. Quiksilver has teamed up with Tange of Japan and Yuki Takamiya from Far East Smokin’ Skidderz to come up with this machine - all matt black with glossy patterns and deep section rims. The frame is alluminium, the forks and headset carbon, the rest up to you.

You will, however be lucky to get hold of one. Production is limited to 50 units and it will be available at Quiksilver stores in Japan. Of course.

Via Freshness

Kate Upton for Vogue Italia: tight

She might be everywhere you turn right now, but that really isn't enough Kate Upton for any man is it? Even  when she is decked out in dominatrix - style shiny PVC. This is a Vogue video - it must be relevant.

On the plus side you get to see more of Kate's curves than you would if she were dressed in, say, a hessian sack. Every cloud ...

Edifice x Present: come together

Nowadays if you have a retail operation it's only a matter of time before you get in touch with one of your suppliers and come up with a collaboration. We saw it in the previous post with Tricker's and End Hunting, and this season just about all the bigger independent retailers have got something going on. Some, such as The Hideout and The Bureau in Belfast have been doing it for years.

One of the most interesting collaborations so far this year is that between East London's Present and Edifice. Together they have come up with a solid capsule collection of jackets, shirts and knits, including the melton shawl collar short blouson, above.

Check out the rest of the collection here