Ooo-eeee! This is a cute little place! I knew it had opened as I've been following it on social…read moremedia, but I'm never normally in this part of town. However, on a foray up to the top of the town today I was delighted to stumble upon this place, and went in to have a look around. I really want to go back! It's such a simple and charming concept. You choose a piece of blank pottery, they show you how to go about painting it, then you paint it. They have a great many pieces of pottery to choose from, ranging from mugs, plates and bowls, to piggy banks, picture frames, and other fun items like robots and even skulls! You pay for the piece of pottery (and prices are very reasonable), and their paint fee is only £3. You can go on your own, or you can go as part of a group, and they have different sized rooms to accomodate different sizes of groups. They have a BYOB policy, with no corkage fee, and I can imagine having lovely social nights here. I've never painted pottery but I would dearly love to give this a go. I can imagine it would appeal to all ages - older people might love the opportunity to do something creative like this that doesn't require much physical exertion, and it's bound to appeal to kids, particularly with some of the more fun pieces of pottery, so I can see it being a lovely activity for a whole family to participate in. I also think it would be great for groups of craft minded pals, or even groups of workmates looking for something a bit different to do. I can see this really taking off at Christmas - they already have penguins, and I'm sure I spotted a snowman, and the person there told me they are likely to start doing workshops too. It would be lovely to make items as gifts, or for yourself to keep. I have my eye on a shark dish-sponge holder. I already have a frog, and there's just something funny about it. I'd love a shark so it has a wee pal.

This was the Friday night of my dreams. Chilled out, creative and there were chocolates! I had set…read moremy heart on painting a toadstool, yeah I'd been on the yelp page checking out what I wanted to paint. I am horribly indecisive and need time to make decisions. Unfortunately, there were no toadstools for me to paint - I may have let my disappointment show with fake sobbing and petted lips. In the absence of toadstools I wasn't short of alternatives, so picked a mug and a bowl. There were loads of amazing stencils to help you create a beautiful piece of art and the staff were full of hints and tips on how to achieve the best finish. I was surprised by how long it took to do the fiddly bits and layer the paint. I didn't want to rush and spoil my lovely crockery. One of the best bits of this event was seeing what the other people were painting. How creative are yelpers!!! I loved getting to see other people's ideas and now have grand plans of returning and stealing all their creativity! We were told that the pieces would be ready for collection within the week and I got a friendly phone call on the Wednesday to say my bits were ready for collection - unfortunately I've not made it in yet but I will do soon, I'm desperate to see how they've turned out. I'm also planning on taking smudge for a wee painting session. I think this is something she would really enjoy and if all goes well it means I'll get to paint a toadstool!

This is a brilliant little card shop which I almost passed by the other day. Something in the…read morewindow caught my eye so I went in to have a browse. I'm glad I did because I found some good quality greetings cards and gifts, thus solving some birthday and Christmas problems for me in one fell swoop!! The cards are gorgeous and nicely categorised. There are many super little gifts to buy including delightful cuddly toys. As you'd expect, you'll also find beautiful gift bags, tags and wrapping paper. Best of all, the lady in there is lovely, very cheery and friendly. I have put this shop on my list of places to revisit the next time I'm in the town!!

A large greetings card shop with good quality cards laid out in an eye-catching way, with the…read moredifferent categories clearly labelled. There are cards of all prices too, plus nice wrapping paper, decorative boxes, gift bags and tags. You'll also find balloons and confetti and lots of small gifts including gift cards (which can be used in other stores); small fluffy toys, pens, and miniature cakes for different occasions. There are also gifts for anniversaries or special age birthdays, from champagne glasses to picture frames.

The name is somewhat misleading. Yes, this is a gift shop, and a nice one at that. Although, I…read morewould be severely struggling to describe the merchandise in here as 'unique'. The gift range includes fairly bog standard teddy bears, helium balloons and cards. These are nice, not badly priced and will probably be suitable for any birthday token gift. Meanwhile, there are some more unusual gifts that cannot be purchased elsewhere locally such as silver photography frames, figurines and - my favourite - brightly painted money pot banks. Superb. Thus, this is a sweet little shop ideal for small gifts at decent prices. However, don't let the name fool you into thinking this is some little boutique like shops.

Hallmark Cards is a great addition to an otherwise boring Hamilton Town Centre…read more As well as selling cards (obviously) they do an extensive range of Me to You teddy bear merchandise, including mugs and picture frames. They also do a big range of gift wrapping and bags, in fact the whole back of the shop is dedicated to this. I particularly liked the little hat boxes for gifts, a really unusual and gorgeous way of presenting a gift. This branch of Hallmark also specialises in Yankee Candles, which I am a huge fan of, although they are a bit of an extravagance at upwards of 10 pounds each. Great if you are looking for a nice card for a special occasion, but just be prepared to shell out a little more for it in here.

Hello! When did this wee gem spring up?…read more It's not really wee, and it looks new - I'm guessing it's only been on Cockburn Street under a month. Old Town Context is a refreshing, traditional store on Cockburn Street, steering away from the style of the tourist traps on the Royal Mile to offer alternative gift ideas. They have some old English, French and American advert poster art, cards, stationery, gifts, mugs with pin ups on them, clocks made out of recycled glass drinks bottles - a very eclectic and classy selection. Its inspiration is clearly from bygone era's, and I was very impressed with their postcard range. They also have some cracking cards and original prints with cats on them. These cats are wearing kilts and rugby shifrts, quoting Burns and other Scottish poets within the print. It's a very odd idea but entirely up my alley. Overall a very enjoyable shop for the family. It's difficult to walk out of here without buying anything.

I am glad that my 200th review is on this hidden gem... actually it isn't that hidden, but I have a…read morefeeling that lots of people just walk right on by. In a very different and almost vintage way, it is a souvenir shop. I say that because there were lots of prints, cards, coffee mugs of the city and various British 'things', but they are not the types of souvenirs that you would find in the every single store on the Royal Mile... yeah, you know what I mean. I loved the different prints of the city, my favourite was a very art deco-ish print highlighting the castle in a yellowy-orangish hue against a dark background. They had it as a large print, a card, and a coffee mug. I am now kicking myself that I did not buy it. If you love globes or tin signs, they have loads of them! If you are looking for a different kind of souvenir for someone... or just something for yourself, stop in here because they have some really wonderful items.

It's always satisfying to find a local card and stationary shop whose prices compete with those of…read morethe post offices and supermarkets found all over the country. The Best Seller in Penicuik in one such place, although the title did mislead me into thinking this may be a book shop! I entered and (after overcoming the epiphany that this wasn't a book shop) sought a card for my Dad's birthday and was pleased to see that, unlike what usually happens in the supermarkets, there was actually a wide range of cards available to cater to all tastes. I often find that the norm these days seems to be that Dad card's offer some mildly amusing crack revolving around age or alcohol. My Dad is not a heavy drinker and so these are of no use. However, here the variety of cards ranges from hobby based ones to classical scenic ones while still offering the wise cracking ones. There is a range of qualities available resulting in this shop which are justly reflected in the price, meaning there is something on offer to every budget. There is also plenty stationary and other gifts/useful bits and bobs available, as well as party banners and helium balloons! However, the range of gifts available is somewhat limited to ornaments etc. which unfortunately prevents this from being a one stop shop.

A great place to go to for cards, office bits and pieces, very competitively priced too. Why trek…read moreinto Edinburgh when it's on the doorstep here? It's been a family business ever since I can remember and staff go the extra mile to be helpful and friendly. They are always good about posting flyers for local events in the window--a real asset to the community, not just another retail outlet!