Alice Naylor-Leyland and Harley Viera-Newton met through mutual friends on a night out in London.
“I always loved her kooky style, her love for bows and sweet little animals,” said Naylor-Leyland, founder of Mrs. Alice, the U.K.-based homeware company. “So, she was one of the first people I thought, ‘Hey, who could we have this L.A. moment with?’”
Viera-Newton, a fellow Brit who’s based in L.A. — the model, DJ and designer behind the brand HVN — was tapped to collaborate on a Mrs. Alice capsule. It launches May 1 exclusively on MrsAlice.com.
“I’d always been such a fan of her brand and an avid customer,” Viera-Newton told WWD. “There is such a cute overlap of motifs, prints and ideas with our brands and a collaboration was a no-brainer. In my mind the HVN girl is the Mrs. Alice girl.”
They were drawn to the same vintage prints, landing on cherries, bows in red velvet and baby blue, embroidered pink poodles and gingham designs to dress the tablescape — complete sets of plates, glassware, utensils, napkins, tablecloths and placemats.
“All of the inspiration very much derives from those wonderful prints that Harley uses in her dresses, and I think those are blended well with the Mrs. Alice tableware,” Naylor-Leyland went on.
The spirit of the line is to add “whimsy to normal life,” she added. “Elevate the norm.”
The two hosted a cocktail party at The Maybourne Beverly Hills’ The Terrace to celebrate the collaboration, bringing out Gia Coppola, Jessica Hart, Rachel Zoe, Akira Akbar and Rachel Matthews. Guests, many in HVN, enjoyed Champagne, Aperol spritzes and tea sandwiches.
