Great little tea room, fabulous homemade cakes and scones and lovely mellow coffee makes this a…read moreperfect drop in spot just off the Ullswater road, 5 minutes from Rheged. Check their new website for all things alpaca!

From the owner: Originally The Alpaca Centre, we are now known as The Alpaca Clothing Company. We are a friendly…read morefamily ran business located at the gateway to the lakes. We have flourished into a popular shopping destination both in store and online. All alpaca produce is imported from Peru, the origin of the Alpaca. There is a wide range of both ladies and men's alpaca knitwear, coats, accessories, slippers and socks and so much more. You can also find trouser specialists brand Brax, Nova Leather handbags, pima cotton tops and more. We also have a small tearoom serving fresh coffee, teas and home made cakes. You can find G&S timber on site too. We have a small number of alpacas and donkeys you can see in their paddock.

Situated on the quaint area of Angel Lane in Penrith Town Centre this family run jewellers is…read moredefinitely top notch. I visited here in search of my engagement ring as Carlisle only had shops that were commercial and I wanted something a bit more special. After having a full consultation where the the owner himself talked us through the different types of settings and stones, and then what the diamond ratings equated to we went away with a lot of food for thought. So much so that we went back the next day and ordered a gorgeous platinum solitaire which was very high on the diamond scale and was going to be made particularly to my finger size which was also a half measure. No altering of another ring here as it was made just for me. It only took two weeks for my ring to be made although it felt like an eternity as I was so excited. I particularly really liked the service we recieved here. There was no pushy selling tactics and we were given all the time in the world to decide which was best. It felt very personal, not like we had just chosen a ring from a shop window as the owner even rang his stone dealer to see what was available just for me. I would definitely recommend this jeweller as they were just brilliant.

Lots of different dealers, high end to low, salvage, vintage, designer. About to open a local foods…read moregrocers and a fantastic cafe on site. I have a stall there, but spend my profits on cake and other things bought from the Yard!

Shop here for traditional men's and women's clothes. It's not cheap but I am sure you are paying…read morefor quality. Upstairs there's a lot of hats and more underwear from more exciting brands than you'd think. Good for presents for grandparents - or anyone else who might need navy blue leather gloves and a matching purse - go in and ask for anything like that and the shop assistant will go and fetch you a selection from a drawer.

A brilliant little shop tucked awway in the Devonshire Arcade right at the bottom. Although it is…read morequite small it has a huge range of gifts and candles. It also stocks a variety of more ethinic jewellery and clothes. I love to visit here just before Christmas as it is perfect for grabbing a few canndles as presents. I also love to browse their selection of candle holders and you can often find something a little bit different that looks gorgeous. They also sell incencse sticks and room fragrances in scents such as the smell of baby powder which is actually quite nice. Their novelty range is fab and they had the little bath ducks that lit up and flashed before anywhere else around here and they made fantastic unusual gifts. Although it is a little bit expensive the quality is very good.

Find unusual presents here! It looks from the outside like it is all tie-dyed and beaded (and there…read moreis some good stuff in that vein if you're buying for a nut-eating hippy (that's not my term!)) but if you go inside to poke round there's also lots of posh toilettries like neals yard and other niche brands so you can get something much more exciting and cute and stylishly packaged than from e.g. Boots.

Penrith town centre was a little sleepy at lunchtime on Sunday. I pondered our chances of finding a…read morepot of tea and a freshly baked scone or a warm bowl of homemade vegetarian soup. Then I spotted a sandwich board advertising the quaintly named sconery and cafe at the Hedgehog Bookshop. The cafe is tucked away on the ground floor which houses a fabulous selection of children's books and has only three tables to its name. It was everything I wanted it to be! On the limited menu there were two types of sweet scone (both vegan) and cheese scones (vegetarian). In fact everything on the menu with the exception of the cheese scone was vegan and the hot drinks were Fair Trade. My lovely bowl of leek and potato soup with cheese scone cost £3.50 and arrived with some olives and salad leaves on the side. The lady who served us was warm and friendly and offered us a glass of tap water. How refreshing to see a note on the menu that they did not sell bottled water indicating they would rather give customers tap water at no extra cost. Its a small trail they are blazing but one that can only help the environment! I hope it catches on. I appreciate a business with a social conscience and am inclined to return when next in Penrith because of that. Lovely wee cafe and an equally lovely well-stocked bookshop. Recommended.