We love everything about Italy. Well, except for Berlusconi. Its fashion, its food, the ancient buildings and the savoir-vivre… they all have a very high content of style and good taste. When it comes to paper and paper-related products it is no exception.

Fabriano, a cozy boutique located in Via del Babuino, between the Spanish steps and People’s Square, carries the most stylish and minimalist collection of everything that can be made out of paper: squared blocks of notes, coloring books, agendas, notepads, drawing pads, beautiful RSVP books and, of course, folders and business cards holders.

My personal favorite: whenever I get invited to a nice dinner, I bring along a bottle of good wine and this special adhesive sheet that allows the labels from wine and beer bottles to be removed and collected. It works great when the drink is exceptional. Or when the occasion is memorable.

Fabriano’s boutique is like a museum for paper. When I visited, they had this magnificent haute-couture nightdress made entirely with colored paper done by a Mexican illustrator who combined the beauty of fashion and the simplicity of paper.

They also have a store in Rome – Fiumicino airport. It comes very handy when you need a nice stylish souvenir from Italy to take to your relatives but want to avoid the poorly made key chains and magnets.

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Fabriano | Shopping | Small notebook € 10
Via del Babuino 173 | City center
10:00 – 21:00 daily

Furla is one of my favorite brand/designers and since we have some stores in Rome, I do go window shopping at times. My favorite store is the one located at Piazza di Spagna.

I go there and look at the purses, wallets and key chains, and then once I make my decision on what I would like, I save a bit of money and so I have an excuse to go back and buy the item. Mainly I love their bags and am so excited about their new collections for this summer… it is so bright!

When I went to visit some of my friends in the States I got them key chains from here since they make a great gift (and doubles as souvenir) – cute and elegant!

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Furla | Shopping | Pink leather purse (m) € 122.50
Piazza di Spagna, 22 | City center | +390669200363
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 20:00

La Botteguccia di Gilla used to be called something else but now it’s new and improved with new management and owners. If you love quality jewelry like me this is the store to go to, all their items are 925 silver plus you get to see different gems from amber to pearl to coral in very interesting arrangements from simple to more creative.

You can either buy for yourself or as great classy gifts to bring back. The store is very tiny but it is definitely worth it, make sure to check out their own production section as you will find great innovative pieces.

The service is very friendly and you are always greeted with a smile and most of the sales girls are multi lingual. I have to admit that I actually come here more now with the new team than I did before and always leave with a bag in hand!

Via Sistina, were La Botteguccia di Gilla is located, is a street filled with shops and a theatre, so it is conveniently located in the heart of Rome and reachable either by METRO A-Barberini stop via the Spanish Steps. At the middle of the street you, at Via Sistina 22, can find a tiny jewelry store called Cotton Club. It’s right in front of the Sistina Theatre.

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La Botteguccia di Gilla | Shopping | Earings € 38.00
Via Sistina 22 | City center | +39064870698
Winter Mon – Sat 10:00 – 20:00 | Summer 10:00 – 20:00 daily

This is a historical market that has its origins in the early 1970′s. It is located near a wonderful Church: The Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano. I like coming here because of the variety of things that you can find and great deals on clothes that are made with good quality material. If you are in the market for some leather jackets at a reasonable price here is the place to go and remember to negotiate a little for a better price!

Here you can buy fishing equipment, clothes from all seasons all for really low prices.

To reach the Mercatino you can take the Metro A and get off at S.Giovanni.

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Mercatino di Via Sannio | Shopping | Belt € 5.00
Via Sannio | City center
Mon – Fri 08:00 – 13:00, Sat 08:00 – 18:00

This is the most famous flea market in Rome; it is an enormous market that extends from Portuense to Via Ippolito Nievo (a parallel of Trastevere).

Here you can find absolutely everything, from clothes to bicycles to furniture. You can find anything that you (don’t) need, from second-hand painting to antique books published in the 19th century in the about 4000 stands that it holds. Here you can actually barter for a better price too.

Make sure to go early before it gets too crowded. I like to go once a month to bargain shop on a nice Sunday morning. And you can find entertainment as well as performing artists in the street.

To reach it you can take Metro B to Marconi then the 170 bus or Metro B to Piramide and then take the 280 bus.

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Porta Portese | Shopping | Beads € 1.00
Piazzale Portuense to Viale Trastevere | Trastevere
Sun 07:00 – 13:00

Talco is one of my favorite stores in my neighborhood, I like it because I can walk there from my house but also because it is a small boutique and you tend to get more of a unique and good service which is different from the big and crowded stores of the downtown area of the city, as you can talk to the retail associate and make small talk as you decide what to buy or just to window shop.

The stores prices have a wide range but sometimes they do have nice discounts, last year I bought one of my favorite items in my wardrobe and it is a black vinyl raincoat with a hood and big pockets that I used a lot and still do during those rainy days and it still looks new. For summer I usually buy some of their tops which are classic and trendy at the same time and look great when going out.

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Talco | Shopping | Raincoat € 100
Via di Grottarossa 181 B | Cassia & Montemario | +390633264662
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 13:00 & 16:00 – 20:00

Il Papiro is a neat bookstore next to my house in the north area of Rome. I like to come here because they have a vast selection from the new bestsellers to any genre you can find.

I am an avid and fast reader so I like to come and check out the books and I always find something such as thrillers, mystery and real life stories, plus I like the feel I get when I enter the store it has a nice feel to it and very relaxed with bar stools in front of the registrar and in the back a nice little corner for children.

I also was able to buy different books for my ninety four old grandma who loves to read mystery novels and was also satisfied with the readings! The owners, which are brothers, are very friendly and helpful too if you cannot find what you are looking for they will go out of their way to get it.

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Il Papiro | Art & culture, Shopping | Mystery Novel Book € 9.40
Via Cassia 901/G | Cassia & Montemario | +390630316424
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 13:00 & 16:00 – 20:00

Monello Accessories is a tiny shop in the Appia area and it is easily reached by the subway at the Furio Camillo stop. I stumbled upon this store with a friend and as soon as I saw the items they had in the exposition window, I immediately fell in love with it.

The prices of the store are competitive especially since they are not in a too touristy side of the city. The store is very unique and has a lot of different accessories; in particular with the colors that are in fashion now the purple and the pinks but of course you will find classic colors such as black and beige.

My friend bought herself a cool black and white ring, and I went a few days later again and I got a small speedy purse and purple dangling earrings with less than 20 Euros! And I got a lot of compliments on the earrings too.

This is definitely a cute little store to go visit.

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Monello Accessories | Shopping | Dangling earrings € 5.50
via Appia Nuova 444 | Appio Tuscolano
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 20:00

This is a great place for bargain shopping.

You can stay here as long or little as you want, depending on how much you like shopping in markets.

Here you can find anything from children shoes to shirts, jeans and bags and to fruits!

A lot of the items are real name brands for really low prices, sometimes as low as € 1.00 per item.

I like starting the day here around 08:00, when it is still not packed with people and do some shopping and catching up with friends.

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Olimpico | Shopping | Shirt € 1.00
Piazza Gentile da Fabriano | Parioli & Flaminio
Fri 08:00 – 13:00

This is one of the trendiest street for shopping, I recommend just window shopping unless you can afford it!

Definitely pass through Via Condotti to go towards the Spanish steps, all the designer shops are located here from Trussardi to Prada to Armani, Bulgari, Ferragamo and Dolce & Gabbana and Jimmy Choo just to name a few. I sometimes go inside the shops and pretend that I can afford the items and pretty much day dream of owning some of the products…a woman can dream after all!

I just adore window shopping and admire the artistic way these shops display their products, and hope that one day I can go inside and purchase their items!

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Via Condotti | Shopping
Via dei Condotti | City center
Mon 16:00 – 20:00, Tue – Sat 10:00 – 20:00