Stanfords travel book shop first opened its doors in 1901 and has since seen its fair share of customers, ranging from classic authors to modern day travel writers such as Bill Bryson and Michael Palin.

Centrally located between Covent Garden and Leicester Square, Stanfords is three stories high and is stocked entirely with guide books, maps, travel literature and accessories. Therefore, for any lover of travel and escapism, a visit to Stanfords is an idyllic way to spend a rainy afternoon and plan your next holiday.

Stanfords has an impressive selection of guide books covering every corner of the globe and detailed road maps to assist even the most adventurous traveller plan their next trip. Scattered among the books and maps are travel journals, colourful travel photography books and old fashioned world globes – making Stanfords a great place for a unique present.

And for those unable to travel, yet forever dream of a sejourn in exotic and far away places – travel literature lines the century old walls, allowing your imagination to be transported across the globe. Understandably, Stanfords is my favourite bookshop in London!

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Stanfords | Relaxing, Shopping
12 -14 Long Acre, WC2E 9LP | Central | +442078361321
Mon, Wed, Thurs, Fri 09:00 – 20:00, Tue 09.30 – 20:00, Sat 10:00 – 20:00, Sun 12:00 – 18:00

Tintin might be better associated with Belgium, but there is a tiny shop hidden on a side street in Covent Garden dedicated to the crafty Belgian journalist (and his dog Snowy).  The Tintin Shop is a cosy shop (definitely not as spacious as Captain Haddock’s Marlinspike Hall), but it is packed with plenty of gifts to keep Tintin fans happy.

The Tintin books are the centrepiece – hardcover editions, special collectors’ books and Tintin art books pack the shelves.  For fans who know all of Tintin’s adventures by heart, there are other items like t-shirts, coffee cups, framed posters and stuffed Snowy dolls to keep everyone pleased.  For serious collectors, there are special figurines which can cost hundreds of pounds, but who wouldn’t want the Thompson twins or Professor Calculus sitting on their desks? 

The recent Tintin film may have introduced Tintin, Captain Haddock and Bianca Castafiore to a new generation of Tintinologists.  This shop ensures that new fans and old can tag along with Tintin on all of his thrilling adventures.

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The Tintin Shop | Shopping | Tintin postcards £ 1.55
34 Floral Street, WC2E 9DJ | Central | +442078361131
Mon – Sat 10:30 – 17:30, Sun 12:00 – 16:00

Shopping on the King’s Road in Sloane Square is a serious business; anyone caught idling on the pavements will be run over by determined shoppers who will show no mercy when looking for the perfect gift. Bargain hunters here wear determined faces and take their shopping extremely seriously.

Yet on Saturday afternoons at Duke of York Square, shoppers and locals seem to take time to chill out. Steely faces melt into smiles, and gruff mutterings turn into laughter. The Farmers’ Market seems to have that kind of effect on people.

An hour or so wandering around the stalls at the Duke of York Square Market is a relaxing tonic for the mind and a treat for the stomach. The air is filled with smoky British sausages mixed with the fragrance of Jamaican rum cakes. French cheese carts stand next to Nigerian food stalls. A short meander is like walking through a global gastronomic wonderland.  The market is also a few steps from the Saatchi Gallery, so you can combine modern art with eclectic food.

On the Saturday afternoon of my visit, a local jazz band entertained locals as they sat down on public benches to chat and eat. I munched through a few empanadas at one booth before sneaking some chocolate at another. I figured the carrying of shopping bags would burn the calories.

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Duke of York Square Market | Shopping, Snacks | Empanadas £ 2.00
80 Duke of York Square | Central
Sat 10:00 – 16:00

I love to relax with a good book. I also like to chill out with a glass of wine. But try taking a hardcover book into a bar. It’s dim. It’s crowded. And you’ll probably be sitting next to a very desperate guy chatting up a girl way out of his league. Not an ideal place to dive into a book.

The solution to the above dilemma can be solved at the V&A Reading Rooms in South Kensington (which has recently been transformed to give a more ‘Continental vibe’ – think sidewalk cafes and street musicians). Located just a few minutes from the V&A Museum, this little bookshop/bar offers space for the more discerning readers just wanting some peace and quiet. Many of the books specialise in design, but there are many other books covering current events, poetry and literature as well.

This cosy spot is actually two bright and airy rooms full to the ceilings with books, with the first room also holding a small bar. Rather than separate you from the book stacks, tiny tables are placed throughout the rooms to actively encourage you to challenge your interests as your taste buds drown in wine or espressos. Just be sure not to spill any of your drink into their books – that’s just rude.

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The V&A Reading Rooms | Coffee & tea, Shopping, Snacks | Glass of wine £ 4.60
No.8 Exhibition Road, South Kensington | Central | +442072250594
Open from 11:00 daily

Broadway Market on a Saturday is a snap shot of what life in Hackney is all about. A true mix of styles and cultures, young and old, traditional and new. It is a microcosm of what living in a truly global city is all about. 

Broadway Market is not a large street yet the market on Saturdays see this street crammed with life. The weekly stalls attract the crowds, but the shops, the pubs, the restaurants and cafes all join in. It is what I want a weekly market to be. Lively, but offering something for everyone. Go for the shopping, stay for the people watching!

The market is primarily a specialist food market where you can get organic meat, fruit and veg alongside fresh fish, cakes, bread, cheese, sausages… but you can also get vintage clothes, furniture, hand made brooches, bike repairs/spares or hit the shops instead of the stalls and get art books at Artwords, fabulous coffee at Climpsons, all your sewing needs at Our Patterned Hand or a proper East End pie and mash at the historic Cooke’s. The choice really is that varied.

Personally, I always make sure I pick up at least one samosa from the Gujarati Rasoi stall as they are simply the best I have ever tasted. But be aware, if you only get one you will have to go back and get another, and at £ 1 each why not?

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Broadway Market | Bars, Coffee & tea, Shopping, Snacks, Restaurants (Various)
Broadway Market,E8 4PH | East
Sat 09:00 – 17:00

Being a music fan and specifically a vinyl fan over the last few years hasn’t been easy. Record shops have closed by the dozen and second hand records have been harder and harder to find – unless you go online. But part of the thrill and beauty of records is having them in your hand. Feeling the weight of the vinyl. The smell of it. Seeing the graphic design as it was meant to be seen. And most record collectors will say the same; ideally shopping for second hand records should be done in person, on foot, not online. Luckily for me and for vinyl junkies like me, places like the excellent Flashback still exists.

Flashback opened in 1997 and used to sell second hand clothes in the basement. That has changed and the vinyl is now downstairs while CDs and DVDs can be found on the ground floor. I like the fact that the records are in the basement. It adds to the mystique. Makes the search for that elusive LP that much greater. 

The place is friendly, the staff knowledgeable and most importantly for the digger, the prices, on the whole, are very reasonable.

The Londonist recently compiled a top ten record store list for Record Store Day and what did they put top of the list? Flashback, of course. Although for the diggers, that list is a very good London resource.

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Flashback | Music, Shopping | Per album € 5
50 Essex Road,N1 8LR | North-East | +442073549356
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 19:00, Sun 12:00 – 18:00

When you think of Danish design and hygge cafes you do not think of Hackney Downs, but that might soon change as Chase & Sorensen is a Danish modern furniture shop and cafe on a very non-stylish junction in Hackney Downs. That combination implies Chase & Sorensen shouldn’t really work, but somehow it isn’t just working but actually thriving. 

The collection of modern design classics are sourced directly from Denmark every few weeks which has meant Chase & Sorensen are very competitively priced. They claim on their site to ‘provide customers with reasonably priced, well-crafted and aesthetically on-point pieces of furniture’ and while they seem to be doing that very well indeed it is the inclusion of the Scandinavian coffee bar that make this place a step ahead.

The seating is the shop and vice versa. You are eating and drinking on the chairs, the sofas and the tables they want you to buy. Be that a £ 800.00 Edvard Kindt-Larsen teak sofa or a £ 300.00 Børge Christoffersen occasional chair. And I like that. I like it a lot.

Added to that they are using the walls of the shop as a gallery and have quite a few reasonably priced smaller items such as Royal Copenhagen vases, Fog & Mørup lamps, teak mirrors and vintage leather bags. One of the best decision they have made, however, is to sell the wonderful Cinnamon buns from local baker Violet.

Design classics and good coffee and cakes – a winning combination.

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Chase & Sorensen | Coffee & tea, Shopping, Snacks | Latte £ 2.20
238B Dalston Lane,E8 1LQ | East | +442085335523
Mon – Fri 08:00 – 17:00, Sat 08:00 – 18:00, Sun 10:00 – 17:00

Victoria Park Village (obviously not a real village) is a little leafy secret in East London on the edge of Victoria Park. Consisting of just the two shopping streets, Lauriston Road and Victoria Park Road, this ‘village’ feels somehow different. Perhaps it is the proximity to the park itself (which is Britain’s oldest public park, built in 1842!) or the lack of through traffic, but whatever it is, it is definitely working.

House prices around the village are now sky high and the shops do tend to have an upmarket feel to them, but there is a very varied selection of (mostly) independent shops, pubs and restaurants. 

The Royal Inn On The Park has an excellent selection of draught beers and is packed for the very good Sunday lunch. The Lauriston has DJs and excellent pizzas to go with their beers. The Empress Of India is a fantastic restaurant open for brunch onwards, serving meat from the award-winning Ginger Pig butchers across the road. For fish you can go to Jonathan Norris Fishmonger or if you don’t want to cook it yourself head across to the Fish House for a good old fashioned fish and chips! 

Coffee, cakes and snacks are to be found at Elbows Cafe, the lovely Amandine Café and Loafing; excellent Vietnamese can be had at Namo; Su Sazzagoni has traditional Sardinian food; Bottle Apostle excellent wines; The Deli Downstairs is great for fresh bread, cheese and hand made pies; while Haus makes sure your own home is tastefully decorated and furnished. Lovely.

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Victoria Park Village | Coffee & tea, Relaxing, Shopping, Snacks, Restaurants (Various)
Lauriston Road,E9 7HJ | East
Depending on location

The area around Liverpool Street Station in East London was once associated with poor slums and the scene of the crime for the Jack the Ripper murders. While the pub Jack’s victims use to drink at still stands, The Ten Bells, the area itself is now very popular with London’s artistic and unusual.

After a short walk from Liverpool Street Station, you’ll come across the Old Spitalfields Markets (105a Commercial Street) which is open every Sunday. Whilst these markets are definitely worth a peak, keep wandering towards Bricklane where you’ll find the Old Truman Brewery (91 Bricklane).

Inside the old brewery, you’ll discover up-and-coming designers selling a unique variety of handbags, clothes and jewellery. There’s also a few vintage clothing stores and chic boutiques dotted around the area, which is a refreshing change from the usual high street entourage of clothing stores.

After a spot of shopping, and a curry at one of Bricklane’s many Bangladeshi restaurants, keep your eye out for warehouse art exhibitions which seem to be popping up all over the place. And last but certainly not least, ensure you have a drink in the beer garden of Vibe Bar, before stumbling across the road to 93 Feet East (150 Bricklane). Whilst this place is sweaty and jammed, it has become an East End institution well known for its eclectic mix of live music and its intimate atmosphere.

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Bricklane | Art & culture, Bars, Coffee & tea, Music, Shopping, Snacks, Restaurants
Bricklane | East
Markets open Sun, most clothing stores daily.

Jane Bourvis is a small and unassuming shop positioned among the many charismatic antique stores which line Notting Hill’s Golborne Road. Upon entering the store, you are met with antique tutu’s, Victorian fairytale dresses and delicate fabrics draping from the ceilings and walls – sending an image of Sarah Jessica Parker twirling round to the sound of the cello and the flutter of fairies.

The beautiful lace fabrics and dainty dresses will have you wondering whether you could get away with wearing a beaded corset or ballerina dress to your next party. After some serious consideration, if the answer is still no, there is a unique jewellery collection and cute little homeware items which might be on the slightly more practical side.

However on a grander scale, if you’re planning a wedding and waltzing down the aisle in antique laces has always been your dream, Jane Bourvis specialises in designing vintage couture wedding dresses in addition to headpieces and bridal corsetry. The individually handcrafted dresses and attention to detail will no doubt leave you in possession of a truly individual and special piece -hopefully the groom is of equal calibre!

And despite not being in need of a wedding dress or a pink tutu, I make a point of entering the fairytale world that is Jane Bourvis every time I’m in the area.

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Jane Bourvis | Shopping | Small gifts £ 10.00
89 Golborne Road | West | +442089645603
Tue – Sat 11:00 – 18:00