I walked in to Clarke's Stationers this morning with 100% confidence that they would have…read moreeverything I needed to create my arty homemade Xmas cards. Red card- check. Glitter glue- check. Gold and silver pens- check. Will my cards look like they were made by a 5 year old? Yes, probably, but at least they will be made with love and quality stationary from Clarke's! Clarke's is great- its one of those extremely satisfying (if you're a stationary geek like me) shops, nay, emporiums, that stock EVERYTHING your little stationary-loving heart could desire. I had to make a hasty exit before I started buying completely unnecessary items like rubber stamps and embossed card sets! If you need card, coloured paper and envelopes, diaries, or arts and crafts supplies, this is the best place I've found. Downstairs they have a massive collection of pens and other standard stationary items. Upstairs they have all manner of coloured and patterned paper and card, as well as sketch books, watercolour paper and huge (A3, A2) sheets of backing card. So whether you fancy embarking on an arty project, or simply need a pritstick, Clarke's is the place. They also have a photocopying service available.

I've always loved stationary stores. Clarke's in the North Laines is a big one, with aisles upon…read moreaisles to look through. Oooh, paper. Of course, the shop offers more than just notebooks and loose sheets; there are organisers and planners, large and small calendars (including a grippy wall calendar!), binders and diaries. Arts and crafts supplies are also available - this is the first place I've seen pipe cleaners in ages. Common art supplies like coloured pencils, oil paints, canvases and here, along with craft projects like paper mache kits, knitting accessories and a variety of felt and fabric pieces for make-your-own crafty ideas. There's a copy centre on site, which is handy, and although the prices are a little higher than some chain budget stationary shops, Clarke's does offer a 15% student discount when you show your student card. I'll probably be back for term two school supplies.

Alas, Graffiti is not a store devoted to street art and spraypaint…read more It's actually a tiny stationary store that specialises in cute, cool and tasteful greeting cards, wrapping paper, journals and memo pads. They have cards with neat illustrations, black and white photos and neon signage as well as more traditional flowers, landscapes and cute hula hula girls. My personal favourite, is the kitsch range of knitted Marilyn, Elvis and James Dean cards. Oh and the naked gal in the martini glass of course!

I used to really enjoy making my own cards and I never ever bought them- it just felt so impersonal…read moreand such a waste of money. That was back when I had time for leisurely arts and crafts days. These days, I inhabit a different world and subsequently I suddenly love a good card shop! I especially like a card shop with a proper selection. There's something really satisfying about taking your time to peruse the shelves and take in the full selection. I know most people don't take great pains over the selection of a birthday card, but since I no longer have the energy to make my own but still want a personal touch, I am really particular about it. Graffiti is great for my purposes because it seems to specialize in pretty, arty cards with floral designs and illustrations of birds etc. on the front. Just my cup of tea. They also have a variety of art cards, which use prints and designs from collections at the V&A among other galleries. If you're not after a flowery, girly card- don't worry, there's plenty of others to choose from. They also sell lovely printed wrapping paper and although the prices make me flinch, I usually can't resist! All round, a much more interesting and tasteful selection of cards and stationary than you're likely to find at Clinton's!

Moleskines were once my guilty little pleasure: I would buy them just to fill them with random…read morescribblings, doodles and notes, then buy a new one and start all over again... Just because of the love of scribbling on paper. I've grown out of that a little now, entering the electronic age and all that, but still have a youthful lusting after lovely new paper and pens. When the mood strikes me, I browse through Pen and Paper to regain that part of my life, and it always puts a smile on my face. If you aren't quite as obsessed with some stationary as I am, this probably won't register, but Pen to Paper does sell some of the nicest stationary around. Moleskines, real paper, various lovely pens and pencils (proper writing utensils, mind, not biros or something), that sort of thing: an artist's paper shop, in effect. I love the idea of being able to buy bits of paper and write on them, but then this is all such nice, expensive paper... Now, I'm indebted to the electronic age now. I'm happy to be the guy how types everything these days, or makes notes on his Blackberry over buying new notebooks every couple of weeks. Still, it is nostalgic to breeze through Pen to Paper's lovely products: if you were ever a wistful poet upon the heath, this is definitely for you!

In the digital age where most people communicate through text and email, its comforting to find a…read morestore that's with-holding the tradition of writing and sending letters by hand. As the name suggests, Pen to Paper is a cosy store that sells beautiful stationary, tissue-lined envelopes, greetings cards, fountain pens and boxes of ink. It also stocks exquisite Japanese papers, address books, journals and a wide selection of lovely, pocket-size notebooks and sketch pads.

Selling a lot of prints and the kind of prints that would finish of an interior decoration from…read more'changing rooms' or similar television shows, Leoframes are located just up from the main shopping streets of the North Laine. Aside from buying a print or photo, there are also a wide range of frames on offer. The establishment also offers professional framing services and you would be able to create a bepspoke room with complimentary frames of any paintings you wish to hang. They also offer restoration services, though I guess that this service is a touch more situational. I'm not sure that the majority of Brighton's student residents will have a collection of oil paintings needing attention. The prices were not for those on a budget and this shop seems to cater for the commuter crowd with London budgets. Worth a look if you are flush or have a budget that allows for more up market decoration.

I felt quite bad stepping into Leoframes, because as soon as my feet entered inside, the owner…read morepandered downstairs like an eager puppy dog hoping for a sale, and I had no intention of buying anything, I just wanted to have a look around. What I saw was tempting though. There's a lot of great prints in here of various designs, in various sizes, which would look good on many a bedroom wall, and suit a plethora of different palates. You'll also find old and modern photos of Brighton, which are kinda cool. Prices were a little much for me, but are competitive for this type of product.

This is a small but well-run greeting card and photographic processing shop in Seven Dials,…read moreopposite the 'Good Companions' pub. They have a very good range of cards, including gently humorous ones I have not seen elsewhere, and plenty of those in which you can write your own message. I've never left empty-handed (and I'm quite picky when it comes to birthday cards). They also have a small range of stationery and post-cards. I've not used the photographic services here, but the staff always strike me as very pleasant.

Digital photography means the photo developing side of this business must surely be fairly…read moreredundant these days, but I'm sure they'll survive with the brilliant range of stationery and greetings cards they have here. It's really hard sometimes to find decent cards - they're either soppy pastels or bad jokes, but the range here covers all bases. They have lots of colourful cards with decent pictures, and some humour cards which are actually funny. Also plenty of other useful party stuff such as balloons and streamers, and a small range of standard stationery items. Staff always seem smiley and friendly

As a crafting aficionado I'm often found wandering the aisles of this brilliant fabric store on…read moreWestern Road. It's a vast cavern with pretty much everything you could need to fashion something for yourself and if you run out of ideas, don't fear, because there's also a whole section of gifts from picture frames to vases. My favourite place is the second floor though which is an Aladdin's cave of fabrics and haberdashery as well as wools as well as crafting items: beads, paper, canvases and more. I bought myself a couple of feather cushions, buttons and cotton fabric from here for less than £12 recently, just need to find the time to make them now!

I don't know the first thing about sewing or anything like that, but I often find myself in C&H…read morewhen I'm looking for some bits and pieces to add to a fancy dress costume (big fancy dress fan here) I always find the staff extremely helpful when I visit, I always ask a dozen questions when I'm there but I'm never made to feel silly about it. I believe they have started doing sewing/knitting etc classes so it's something I would definitely consider when I get the time. I'm sick of using a hot glue gun for everything!

If you can't be bothered walking across town to the main Paperchase, this small subsidiary of the…read morestationary and art supply store is tucked away on the first floor of Borders, between the Fiction department and Starbucks. There's a condensed selection of the giftware they sell in the East Street store - namely, candles, tea-cups, travel journals and recipe books - as well as a small selection of greetings cards and wrapping paper. The cards seem to have been chosen with a mainstream customer in mind so there's less camp and kitsch and more polka dots, kittens and golfers. Still, a good place to run in if you need a last minute card.

This little Paperchase store, cunningly situated in Borders, en route to the Starbucks, is a great…read moreone stop shop when you're in desperate need of inspiration for a gift idea. Well, actually gifts for girls mainly , if you'll pardon my sexism. You'll find decorative/cute/kitsch/flowery/pretty cards, stationary, diaries, stickers, decorations and random things like teas sets, sewing kits, glasses cases...

If I'm buying cards for friends or loved ones, Scribbler is usually my first port of call…read more You can find quirky, unusual, and generally very funny cards and gifts, as opposed to somewhere like Clinton's that sells your run of the mill, generic and rather boring cards. Sells some funny little gift ideas too. Reasonably priced!

Brighton Sewing Centre is situated on an out-of-the-way backwater of the North Lanes, just up from…read morethe bustle of Gardner Street. It stocks a wide variety of buttons, fastenings and other assorted haberdashery, and its prices are more reasonable than the chain sewing shops, although not quite as good as the rock-bottom Fabricland. It does have a wider selection however, and some of the buttons are designed locally. The real strength of the shop lies in the larger purchases of sewing machines. The left hand wall is entirely given over to sewing, overlocking and quilting machines, from the intermediate to high-end budget. The staff are happy to demonstrate and let you try out machines, and for a relatively large purchase, it's reassuring not to be pressured to buy anything there and then, but instead to be encouraged to try everything within your budget to get an idea of the range available, and then to be given the opportunity to go away and think about it. The shop also runs sewing classes in the place across the road, from beginner to advanced. There is an introduction to quilting, and a class where you can bring your own machine to get acquainted with it. All in all, this is a friendly, well run shop with a useful and reasonably priced selection.

I come here every now and again to buy embroidery thread to make friendship bracelets -- don't…read morelaugh or I won't make you one. I find the prices reasonable, the staff very friendly, and for the most part they have what I'm looking for though on occasion their color selection can be a bit limited (not much in the way of grays). They also have sewing machines, ribbons, fabric, and pretty much everything else you might imagine a sewing centre to have. If that's your hobby, I can't think of a better place to go in Brighton than here! The only caveat is limited hours (I think they might close as early as 5 pm?) so you're better off going during your lunch than after work... or of course waiting for the weekend.