Tucked in the basement of the Loot fashion boutique, Mumbles Emporium is a great vintage shop that…read morespecialises in fab 40s and 50s furniture. Run by one of the Brighton Rumble deejays, its a tiny space packed with cool sofas, leatherette chairs, formica topped tables, designer chairs, lamps, stools and cabinets. Everything is reasonably priced and the stock changes regularly with new pieces selling quickly. Record lovers should note, they also sell gorgeous jukeboxes and boxes of old magazines, postcards and rockabilly 45s and 33s.

I wish I hadn't graduated from University, and was still sitting pretty on my student loan, because…read moreif I was, this shop would be empty. Downstairs from the shop Loot, this little beauty of 'Vintage Living' and 'Kustom Kulture' hides. It is like stumbling across an immaculate basement of some cool east end grandad who lived and breathed the Teddy Boy and Mod life, and has kept one room as a shrine to his forgotten past. On sale there is a mix of vintage clothes such as old parka's, leather jackets and other coats and anoraks from the 40s/50s era which to be honest I don't even know what they're called, but I know they look damn cool. There's also a small range of mint condition shoes, some still with their original boxes from the era. However as the shop declares, it is not only vintage clothing but 'Vintage Living', which means a whole cross section of items, from Paintings of Rockabilly star Mac Curtis, red and white American diner style stools, original DICE magazines and cans of Dax Wax to name a few. The Rockabilly scene in Brighton meets here to discuss upcoming gigs, and the owner DJs a Rockabilly night in the Tin Drum. So if your into the lifestyle or just the music, this place is brilliant to just come and hang out and chat, or come away with an original piece of clothing or 'Kustom Kulture' item. Bit pricey, but it's all quality, so fair do's.

Partytime is a very busy, slightly chaotic but somehow incredibly useful shop…read more Head here for any kind of party goods - cards, balloons, candles - anything for either a child or adult party can be found here. In particular, they have goods for particular seasonal celebrations - I finally found some halloween zombie make up here after searching many other shops without sucess - I'll come here 1st next time. A very good place for birthday cards in particular, with many under £1.

This place does what it says on the tin and then some...it really is party central! It's full of…read morethe most amazing amount of celebration tat you could ever imagine! I'm talking banners, balloons, party bags, wrapping paper, party poppers, confetti...you get the idea. They take partying pretty seriously in this joint- whatever you ask for, guaranteed they'll dig around and find it for you. Halloween? Christmas? Hanukkah? New Year? Whatever the festivity, you can get some plastic tack to help you celebrate. Enthusiasm sure is the name of the game. And it is always so packed! Who knew that the residents of London Rd were secretly busy decorating their homes with streamers and glittery birthday banners all the week long? Aside from the fact that Partytime is gaudy and a bit strange, it is also fairly useful and very cheap. I have twice recently found myself in need of coloured tissue paper, and guess who has a great selection at a price you can't argue with?

This shop must be serving a very niche market, which perhaps explains why they only open three days…read morea week. Inside it's, well, a little baffling, honestly. It's not that I dislike what they're selling particularly, but it just seems very over-priced. The vibe is brand new shabby-chic mixed with a bit of imitation retro...both of which are fine, but mixed together it all feels a bit inauthentic and plastic. On the cheaper end of things, there are some nice gift ideas...candle sticks and glass sets etc., but the bigger items- furniture, tables, mirrors and the like, seem extortionate! However, its highly possible that £230 for a painted mirror is normal- maybe I'm just suffering from residual student thriftiness. Maybe.

Just off Preston Circus by the Duke of York Cinema, Ashton's is a rather mysterious and intriguing…read moreshop. It's the kind of place that you walk past and stare in the window, checking out the eclectic goods on offer like a kid looking through a sweetshop window. It's certainly not a standard antique/gift shop - they sell a range of items, but including lots of crystal, white painted furniture, pretty but stylish ornaments, paintings...... Everything they sell seems to be light coloured and a little shiny, and there is a fair amount of tat, but also some quality to be found. My friend bought a lovely antique ironwork garden furniture set here.

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.

The first things I noticed upon entering Florentin (other than the delicious smell! It could have…read morebeen a bakery...) were the douvet slippers in a basket on the floor. I immediately wanted to put them on and curl up in front of a fireplace somewhere. They were the cosiest things I've ever seen. Other slippers - the knit variety - were close by, but the majority of things on display on the ground floor were stuffed animals in various genres. The best was the large deer head mounted on the wall - a tongue-in-cheek approach to taking the violence out of such images. The basement contained clothing - mostly skirts and dressier tops - with sale items left for the far, back room. In here were cheaper articles of clothing and a few stragglers on shelves. I was confused by the knit egg-cosies...I think mine are doing alright in the carton.

Maybe I caught this place on a good say, but I couldn't believe the value of some of the designer…read moreclothes in here! Replete with plenty of trendy items (and a no bags downstairs policy) Florentin is the quintessential, upmarket Brighton clothes store. While Dirty Harry's and To Be Worn Again are rocking the second hand world, Florentin stocks one of a kind items that are brand new and immensely stylish. If you can't get it in your size, you'll have to hang your head and sigh. The jacket I picked up was marked down from the £100+ mark to (get this) £25! I was ecstatic, as not only did it look uniquely amazing, but it smelt fantastic, and think that the fact I can't do it up its so small just makes it that bit more awesome! Anyway... enough rambling about that, Florentin stocks caters for all audiences with a mix of men and women's clothing and accessories. You can find bags and shoes as well as immense jackets, and while the slightly haphazard layout may irritate some, it makes it a great place to do some window shopping, and maybe walk away with a great buy if you're lucky.

The items at Penelope's Portmanteau are high quality, vintage bags and jewellery ... It's nice to…read morefind a shop that sticks to what it specialises in without filling in any shelf-gaps with random extras. Bags and jewellery here. That's it. The former includes glittery clutches, woolen handbags, box-style purses and leather in many colours and styles. The prices are a little steep: between £50 - £100 for most, with not many items on sale. The jewellery cases offer several discounts, though, with some prices starting at £4. These are mostly faux diamond rings and the gaudier necklaces. The necklaces of pearl, gold and real diamond are quite a bit more expensive, but still nice to look at. Earrings are separated into pieced and clip-on varieties - with plenty of both. I'm not a big accessory buyer, but I can appreciate the unique styles in Penelope's.

This fabulous little vintage fashion shop opened just over a year ago on Ship Street. You'd be…read moreforgiven for walking past it several times before realising it's there as it's a little bit tucked away despite an incredibly central location. On their website, they advertise themselves as a place where you can escape from the throwaway world of fast fashion that is here today and gone tomorrow and choose instead the timeless elegance of a quality-made, vintage item. Indeed, this gem of a fashion boutique is a world away from the 'fast fashion', throwaway world of Primark, New Look and H&M that we've all grown so accustomed to. Despite its small size, Penelope's Portmanteau is absolutely crammed with stunning broaches, costume jewellery, handbags and designer vintage gowns all laid out beautifully. With a wide range of prices, you can treat yourself to a bargain of around a fiver or splurge hundreds of pounds on one-of-a-kind designer pieces: last year, they sold off a stunning collection of Vintage Elizabeth Emanuel Couture Gowns. Fantastic for browsing and amazing for accessorising, a visit to this place comes very highly recommended for anyone who's even remotely interested in the world of fashion.

There are quite a few of these sweetie shops around the UK now and they are very popular. I believe…read morethe reason is the huge selection of sweets and confectionery available and also the fifties inspired décor. To me the décor and theme seems even older than this but either way it's very appealing and makes me think of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory! There are a great deal of imported sweets in Mr Simms, this one in Tunbridge Wells had even more than other Mr Simms that i've been to in the UK. I always find Mr Simms to be memorable and I walk away with something each time! The staff were friendly inside this store but perhaps not as nice as the staff in the Cambridge branch. A decent size but it can become busy and then it's very cramped. I love this store though and I recommend a visit!

The sign for Rag & Bone labels the shop as a jewellery boutique, but I found a random assortment of…read moretreasures inside, well beyond the jewellery theme. The shop keeper was actually doing paper mache right at the counter, which was a treat in itself. I tried to do it once, over a balloon. It's messy. Anyway, a lot of the arts and crafts were of simple materials, showing how skill can turn even basic things into art. Tissue paper garlands, hand painted envelopes and cards, a diorama and of course, paper mache creations were some of the unique items I haven't seen in any other gift boutiques recently...or ever. There was, indeed, some jewellery on display: brooches, necklaces and earrings. I definitely recommend checking out Rag and Bone for truly original home décor or gift ideas.

I like the name, the window display- this could be a cool little shop to add to the many great…read moreindependent shops that makes Brighton such an amazing place to live. I step in the door and see immediately that although the style is excellent it somehow isn't as successful as it could be. The style is Victorian Gothic meets steampunk meets contemporary arts and crafts. They have some strange and interesting original art- paintings, sketches, sculptures made out of old dolls, jewellery and ephemera. They have some cool unusual pieces of jewellery, including steampunk cuff links and cuffs. There is also a wardrobe with some pieces of vintage clothing- a mix of sixties, forties and even a few thirties pieces. All cool stuff with a definitely desirable style but the problem for me is that there are too few items! Seems a strange criticism perhaps but the sparse stock doesn't seem to fit with this particular style of eccentricity- I was hoping for abundance and lots of things to grab my eye- instead I felt like it was a temporary shop with just a small amount of stock.