I'm a sucker for arts & crafts and creativity in general and Craft Works ticks all the boxes. This…read moreshop is one of the most comprehensive of its kind and one of the best in Bristol if you discount the likes of Hobbycraft. From the outside you might be forgiven for thinking this is a frivolous, girly shop for bored housewives and old ladies but oh how wrong you would be! There is a large selection of sketchbooks, drawing paper, paintbrushes and Daler-Rowney paints - all essential for art students and established artists alike. The store itself is lined with cards and displays that have been created using products from the shop, such as decopache kits, rubber stamps, ink and stencils. The only thing that limits the possibilities of the products in this shop is your own imagination. Price are reasonable and there is also a framing department at the back of the shop where you can take in your masterpieces to hang with pride.

Craft Works is probably the largest shop of its kind in Bristol. Stocking everything you can…read moreimagine, (and then some), for those with handicrafts in mind. Reasonably priced with knowledgeable staff on hand to explain what everything is for, Craft Works is creativity made easy. They even host workshops in the evening. They also stock resources for those of us who can't quite decide what hobby would suit us best, or for those of us that would like to be a bit more creative but aren't exactly sure how. A full range of magazines is available with comprehensive advice on hand. And just for the record: I'm in the market for a knitted toilet roll cover with a Cindy-type doll miraculously emerging from the middle. There's a commission in for anybody who can master the skills required to make one. I'd like it in shocking pink. Get enrolling now!

Now, I'm going to say 'hand woodworking tools' to you and I'm guessing 90 per cent of you are going…read moreto click elsew.... hey! Well hi there 10 per cent of you, I can see you have perked up a little. If you know of this shop then you will be having a far-away dreamy look in your eyes right about now and if you didn't then you're checking your watch and wondering where to park nearby. Yes, a whole shop of hand tools: gauges, mallets, chisels... including lots of vintage tools for very cheap prices as well as brand new ones. The staff (I feel I should use the word 'proprietor' here) are very very helpful and alway gleeful verging on surprised that other people like to chip bits of wood from a large block of wood. There's a lot of us about, be proud.

Bristol Design is a fantastic shop. It has everything you could ever need for your DIY redesign of…read moreyour kitchen to hanging up a picture. In my case it was the latter that needed doing and I had no idea how to go about it. The staff in here were extremely helpful and were easily able to point me in the right direction as far as picture hooks go. Now that I know what I need, I would probably go to Wilkinson's as it's a lot cheaper but for something a bit more complicated then it's definitely worth a trip here.

Good shopping centre and not too many empty stores. We last went on a very rainy day but it didn't…read moretake away from the shopping experience. I love that they have little food places staggered around like Ben's Cookies (which is always an essential when shopping for the family!) Easy to get to and access. Worth the visit.

Wow! I could do some serious damage at this place! Cabot Circus is a beautifully constructed…read more"outdoor" shopping centre with every store you can imagine! We were staying across the street at the Future Inn and on the evening we arrived, we strolled over to take a quick peek at the adventures I would be exploring the next day. Much to my surprise, pleasure and happiness, there was a Pret right there as soon as we walked in! Breakfast at the hotel was on the pricey side so we knew where we'd be coming in the morning and we certainly needed to get fueled up for a day of shopping! CC has lots of high end, brand name stores and with even more shops beyond the boundaries of CC, this made for a lovely day of retail therapy. My poor husband... oh well, at least they had an Apple store for him. ;)

If (God forbid) you should find yourself stranded in Brislington, and are at a loss for things to…read moredo (as you would be), I'd recommend you visit Avon Mead Retail Park if you're looking for something resembling civilisation. Here you'll find a long line of huge shops, including The Range. For those of you unfamiliar with The Range, it sells everything from musical instruments to arts and crafts, furniture, outdoor living equipment, toys and pet care items to name just a few of its many wares. Moreover, these can be purchased at trés reasonable prices (but don't expect the greatest of quality). This branch of The Range is gigantic and pretty souless. But for practical matters and rainy days, it'll suffice.

There's apparently a whole host of these shops all over the country and yet before I came to…read moreBristol, I had never heard of them. The Range is one of those wonderful mish-mash shops which sells absolutely everything, except from perhaps vital organs, although they could diversify into that in the future. Seriously, going in here is a real treat. You can buy everything from bones for your dog to every craft item under the sun. Or there's jacuzzis, huge boxes of broken biscuits, wall canvases, dried flowers and garden gnomes. It's all stacked chaotically around so actually searching for something you need is a total mission. But if you want to go in and come out with at least 15 things you absolutely don't need then I highly recommend The Range.

You might have seen the warehouse next to the organic supermarket in St Werburgh's and wondered…read morewhat it was. Behind the doors is a fiesta of paper and fur fabric and bright bits of card. A scrap warehouse charity where people donate all sorts of bits and bobs of craft resources for local schools and youth groups to utilise. You need to sign up for a membership card to shop at Artrageous, but if you have an NUS card you can sign up. Pick up some bargains - perfect for theatre groups, art projects or even a fancy dress party! Despite not being a student, I recently helped out at a local festival, so was allowed to buy some resourses from the warehouse. It is a gigantic treasure trove of foam, plastic pots, tubes and tubs, netting, fabric, books, CDs and a whole load of oddities. I even discovered a job lot of fake Christmas trees and fake fur jackets somewhere in the depths of the place! The suggested donation for a trolley of scrap is only £13.25 - that can get you a whole lot of fun. The best thing about this colourful wonderland is that all profits from Artrageous go back to the children's charity.

There's a little corner in St Werburghs where there's a higher than normal level of wholesome…read morenutritious energy buzzing out the foundations. Downstairs is the Organic Supermarket bashing out more than enough delicious and healthy meals and food stuffs (check out previous Yelpers' reviews). Upstairs is this place, an outrageously extravagant art store. The by-line is 'art and crafts for all' and this is a claim easily reached. Once inside expect to find all the materials that you would actually use if you were an artist or craftsman. That is to say, don't expect the cellophane wrapped tools and items from a high street store - but rather the raw materials in the basic form. Big tubs of PVA glue, blank masks for painting, wire framed sculpture sets and big packets of clay and modelling putty are a few examples. Face paints, colourful chalk and internal mechanisms for various models are on hand for the serious artist. For those a little less keen there's a good kids section for musical instruments, bouncing balls and finger puppets. With a big car park and an adjoining scrap store this is a perfect one stop for all your creative and artistic needs.

There are much worse things one could be hooked on than crafts, but nonetheless it can be an…read moreaddiction and this shop is here to work with that addiction. Should you be unable to resist taking a pair of scissors to some material and fashioning a purse, for instance, or sticking some fake eyes to a pillow - I don't know - for all your crafts needs these guys can help. From basics like scissors and glues to advanced kits for dressmakers it' all down here for the taking. A wonderful little shop that takes me back to school.

The name Kathryn means 'pure' and I love a party so this store should be made from me. I love fancy…read moredress and dressing up and so the costumes on display here are not really me. There is an excellent range of Smiffy costumery here however so if you're stuck to wear something for a fancy dress party and you're not particularly inspired to come up with your own outfit, you'll surely find something here to do the trip. It has loads of balloons and decorations so if you have an occasion coming up that needs the streamers touch, I'm sure you'll find your party needs here.

As the name suggests, you can get just about everything you could possibly need for a party at this…read moreplace, except crack, of course. You'll find the usual array of balloons and decorations, as well as a pretty extensive fancy dress section - great for Halloween and student nights. What's on offer is pretty standard - don't be surprised to go out and see at least ten other people in town all wearing the same Frankenstein mask as you. Still, if you're not creatively inclined, but want to get in on some of the dress-up action, it's a good place to find something to make it look as if you've at least put a bit of effort in. It's averagely pricey for this kind of stuff, so don't expect to find any bargains, either.

I don't quite know what to make of Art Original. Is it a gallery? Is it a glorified memorabilia…read moreshop? Who can say! This hard to navigate shop is packed to the brim with celebrity inspired works, signed sports photographs and posters of local hot spots. The staff say a friendly hello upon entering but did give me a suspicious look when I lingered too long. Not a comfortable or enjoyable shopping experience.

Bit of a weird one this. It sells memorabilia, oddly enough. So, currently, there's a hell of a lot…read moreof Michael Jackson (shamoan, mutha***ker!) pictures and artists interpretations in the window, as you might expect. Therefore, there's a lot of musical icons here, with some of the framed pictures, posters and prints apparently signed by said celebs. Next up, there's various sporting heroes from today (such as Man U or Arsenal team shots to bloody Nigel Mansell!) All in all, it's a bizarre shop that charges over the odds for things that might work as the ultimate present for some people, but seems cheap and tacky to me. Meh.

Are you arty or crafty? Are you into beads or jewellery or embroidery threads or frames or paints…read moreor glitter or ribbons or lace? Then at Creativity you'll be in good company. Creativity is an independent art and craft supplies shop, and they stock everything in their tiny shop, all of the above and much much more. Anything you can't find you'll probably be able to order from their website.

Creativity is an art supply shop just off Whiteladies Road. It's got things like beads and cloth in…read moreabundance. As well as plastic stuff they've got some more exotic bits and pieces, including semi-precious stones and crystals. A good place to get a bit of alternative or DIY jewellery. An absolutely essential for for my friend that's into costume design. They've got an extensive supply of textiles and ribbons, as well as everything you'd ever need to do with knitting and needle work. Cards and stamps are the other thing they mainly do. If, like my mum, you like to make your own cards, this is a great place to come. Somewhere for the enthusiast this does its various little niches in a lot of detail.

My preconception of Athena is of it being a place you went to as a student to buy posters to put on…read moreyour wall. It does have more than merely posters there now though. A good place to go to get a small gift It stocks a range of Edward Monkton gifts however, fancy giving someone a Pig of Happiness mug? Now you know where to go to get one. As well as the usual range of posters it sells canvas. There are some nice canvases for sale in the window at the moment which is a nice change from the landscapes kitch and iconic art.

Athena, located in the Galleries, specialises in posters, prints and fun (yet useless, in the…read moremajority of cases) gifts. It's a good place to go if you're on the look out for something small for a friend's birthday. That is, after you've searched through nearby Evolution and still come out empty handed. There are a few decent prints in here as well - worth a look if you're on a mission to adorn your walls. Most of it is pretty standard stuff though - don't expect to find any new or cutting edge art. I'd recommend heading down to Niche, in Stokes Croft and looking through the gallery of local artwork there, if you want something a little more individual.