My friend and I were going for a wee jaunt in Rawdon and we came across this delightful shop. She…read morehad just passed her driving test so I suggested a drive out to a random Leeds town and we decided to visit Rawdon - it was a total off the cuff find! The layout of the shop is most curious, being on the corner of the street almost, the shop itself opens out on the the street at both sides! This was a little disorientating from the inside, but I soon cottoned on. From one entrance you were met with a plethora of beautiful glass ware, hand made delightful wine glasses, little trinkets and key rings, beautiful cardigans, home ware tea sets and other gorgeous gift items. My favourite of this room was a lovely Indian (?) style lamp shade like a metal framed globe with different coloured gems which made up the body of it. At £55 I decided to think on it, but it was beautiful. Upstairs was a gallery of different floral prints, material prints and other really interesting art works. In the other room through to the other side of the street was a lovely hand made card section (situated in the through-fare) and then a gorgeous jewellery and toy section where we were greeted by a lovely sales lady. The shop is beautifully laid out, with exquisite and imaginative gift items from all kinds of indie designers and crafters, and it was most definitely worth stopping by. Prices range with some sale pieces, but expect to take a while as it is mesmerising!

This is a really lovely gift shop and emporium of beautiful things!…read more It is just by Rawdon Traffic lights so really easy to find. The shop stocks lots of lovely, unusual gift items for a variety of budgets. It is a wonderful place to go in for a browse around (no doubt you will find something you love) or to look for a special present. This shop is always my first port of call when looking for a mother's day present, or gifts for my other female relatives. Staff are happy to help and quick to come up with helpful suggestions if you are struggling for ideas. It can be a little expensive, but makes up for this with the convenience of it's location

What a beautiful little shop, down a cobbled street in the lovely town of Leek. This place is the…read moreperfect venue to buy cute gifts and knick knacks for anybody from 1 to 101. I have to mention the owner in this review, she is super duper sweet, and on my few visits, she is very helpful and smiley. This place not only is a lovely shop, but it also holds regular crafty workshops, from crotchet and knitting to dressmaking. These are all reasonably priced and range from beginners level to expertise. They encourage the ladies (and gents) to drink tea, eat cakes and have a natter whilst doing so. I also believe that Bibelots also has something called crafty matters, which are opportunities for people to meet up and socialise whilst making and creating in the beautiful Bibelots environment. This little shop supports the community and does it in style. I really loved the totally locally feel, and I'll be back as soon as I can.

From the owner: Bibelot is the areas only authorised Cath Kidston stockist - we carry a large range including bags…read moreand accessories, homeware, toiletries, bedding, books, stationery and umbrellas. Alongside Cath Kidston we also stock bags & accessories from Disaster Designs, toys from Maileg and much more! Bibelot are proud to support British designers and manufacturers, we stock a selection of homeware, jewellery and cards including Poppy Treffry, Tatty Devine, Love Boutique and Laura Sherratt Designs to name a few. We also stock a variety of gorgeous locally handmade items. We also have a fantastic haberdashey and craft room upstairs - we stock a large range including yarn, fabric & fat quarters, ribbon, buttons, jewellery findings, books and craft kits from names such as Rico, Rowan, Stylecraft, Tilda etc. We run a range of craft workshops including sewing and crochet, full details can be found on our website.

Brilliant little store! Full of vintage odds and ends from the early 1900s. Signs, soap, cuff…read morelinks, books, posters, bags, cups, candy, cards, ornaments, etc etc etc. Perfect shop for fans of old-school!

Highly recommend great gifts and lace friendly staff.read more

I took my Mum here recently and she adored it! On second glance, I realised that I too was finding…read moretrinkets and treats galore in every corner. Whilst it's your standard gift shop, housing all kinds of clocks, jewellery, scented candles, and the like, the items inside are actually pretty unique and interesting. I remember being particularly enamoured of their clocks, so perhaps enough hints will get me one for Christmas... ! The main event on this occasion was the jewellery. My Mum needed to pick up some gifts for the girls at work and so spent a good deal of time deciding over a few of the items that were artfully displayed on this lovely fake tree. I ended up chatting with the lady about the tree and she gave me some suggestions of where to find one, as this would solve a myriad of problems in storing my many necklaces and earrings! In the end Mum opted for two of the bracelets, sort of chunky gemstone and shiny beaded ones, and she was really pleased. The lovely lady was really patient with us whilst we mulled over the options and all in all it was a really pleasant shopping experience. One to watch for Christmas goodies!

Ilkley, darling, has a higher caliber of people, I am told, therefore their gift shops meet the…read moreneeds of these - the middle aged, the higher-middle class and the higher-earning. Bluebell Gifts is one of a few gift shops in Ilkley, a nicer shop than anything you will find towards the city of Leeds, even in the Victoria Quarter or Chapel Allerton. It sells a large range of gifts that would come under the home-ware category. Many of these are of a designer and novelty kind. There are Alessi corkscrews and salt shakers, in the shape of people; Black Ginger chopping boards in silhouettes of cats; Cath Kidston and Emma Bridgewater china that you have probably seen in someone's kitchen at some point. All of this is luxury and would make a good gift for any home-owner. They also sell scented candles, soft toys, wedding gifts, and amazingly coloured tea pot and tea cup clocks. I loved these and would have impulse-bought one if they weren't about £50!

What a delightful establishment this is! I might even go as far as to say delectable!…read more Nook & Cranny stocks a veritable cornucopia of gorgeous gifts, stationery and homewares, all utterly charming. The first thing that caught my eye (and drew me in from my journey up Bold Street) were the beautiful Cable & Cotton fairy lights displayed in the window - these stunning textured, multi coloured, orb fairy lights are just magical and certainly set the scene for the rest of the shop. There is so much to gaze or chuckle at and drool over in Nook & Cranny that I just wouldn't know where to start telling you all about it but other highlights include the bear paw oven mitts, the 'My Cuppa Tea' colour matching guide mug and the Knit Your Own Zoo kit. I was in seventh heaven. Imagine my delight when I discovered that the back of the shop (which used to be storage space) has now been turned into a cosy little cafe called Quills & Coffee. Sadly I couldn't stay to sample any of the beautiful looking cakes but I vowed there and then to visit again as soon as possible. Yet more delight...Nook & Cranny and Quills & Coffee put on occasional film screenings at the back of the store!! The next one is American Beauty on Saturday 28th March at 7pm - tickets are £10 and include free drinks and pizza and available from www.nookandcrannyshop.co.uk. Magic

This is a fantastic independent biz that I ventured into when in Liverpool a couple of weeks back…read more We actually held an event in the back part of the business and I didn't realise it existed until Liverpool CA Gemma A introduced me to it - but the space is really cavernous and it was great to temporarily see Quills coffee set up in the back. Very very cool cards and gifts throughout, I was especially impressed with the awesome range of band music posters in the back - everything from Queens of the stone age to classic hiphop ones - really worth a look if you're nearby and fancy some colourful artwork to brighten up your walls. Very friendly staff, they hopefully will do well in this prime location in Liverpool.

9-11 Westgate, Bradford…read more BD1 2QL 01274 724341 This is a fantastic shop - its based just outside the main shopping arcade (kirkgate) - just opposite the main taxi rank. This shop is good for the one off original goth/punk clothing like the tie dye stuff, etc. Obviously they are dearer than off the peg clothes like top shop, etc, but they are well worth buying as you are unlikely to see many others in them and the quality of the clothing is absolutely brilliant. They also sell accessories, bags, hair dyes (original henna and original pattchouli oil can be bought here), jewellery and bed covers. They have a huge selection of one off ornaments to buy too. They do a good range in cards and wrap paper too. The staff are due to change hands soon due to the current owner retiring, but, the current staff are very friendly and polite and treat you as if you are a very welcome customer. There is a changing room to try the clothes on and decide whether to buy.

This is a great shop with a wide selection of alternative products…read more The shop is mainly aimed at the alternative lifestyle with their gothic, vampy clothes. Wide selection of jewellery which makes perfect gifts. There is also gift cards and books, from spell books to novels. To the rear of the store is ornaments which are truly beautiful similar to the Myth and Magic ornaments you can get and much more. The prices are sometimes a little high but the majority of clothing etc are so original you dont mind paying that little extra

When Tableau first caught my eye I had two contradictory thoughts. Firstly: oh look at that nice…read morepainted iron table that would look lovely in the garden. Secondly: why is there another shop in Headingly selling seemingly pointless ornamental objects? I went in to check it out and see which initial thought would pervade. They have quite a few bits of furniture that are very attractive, expensive but original such as a white painted iron bench and a similarly crafted coat stand. Decorative things hang from the ceiling that would suffice as gifts for mothers or girl friends who like pretty, hand-crafted things and can overlook their pointlessness. There is hand-made jewelry and some interesting prints, including a Jack Vertriano print. I particularly like the tiny glass pigs for sale. This shop is a bit more sophisticated than others of its kind in Headingly/Hyde Park selling gift items but they do sell fairy lights.

Tableau is a gift shop that I'm actually willing not to whinge about! The exterior is very tasteful…read morewith a muted forest green painted front and minimalist stainless steel lettering. The large windows display their pretty wares. Upon entering it's quite difficult to categorise their products as there is such a range. Mainly decorative home ware. There are small pieces of furniture, clocks, fairy lights, plant pots, lanterns, watering cans, ornaments, bobs and bits, bits and bobs, pretty things and lovely items. What I must say is I just LOVE their greetings card selection. Small it may be but perfectly formed it certainly is. The cards are very unusual and with a vintage and quirky style. Though I always make cards for my family I found a few that would just make perfect mothers' day cards...could I really give her two? I might have to they are so pretty! Now I'm not easy to please when it comes to cards so waxing lyrical about a shop's card selection feels rather out of character! Now gift shops and I generally don't get on, but Tableau really is different with its own character and style. Definitely a place to hunt for a present for mums or female friends who like to beautify their home. What the hey...I'm a fan!

This shop offers goods of ghe highest quality. A little on the expensive side but you only get what…read moreyou pay for. Definitely no tat here. Extremely helpful staff who go the extra mile to assist in their customers requests

Magma Magma books is possibly one of the coolest shops I…read morehave been into in a long time! Why you may ask? Because it sells MOOMINS merchandise and books!! They sell all sorts of cool things here like books, magazines, swirly notebooks, cuddly toys (moomin ones!), eco friendly stuff which comes in the shape of recycled objects made into something else uselful, the mother board coasters are pretty snazzy! Like the other shops on Oldham street, its only small but the layout is perfectly set out to seem like there is so much space! I love it!

Situated on Oldham Street, but a hop and skip from the Night and Day Café lies this fantastic…read morebookshop. I've been visiting this place for ages, even if it's just to browse through the store and short list future gifts. I've recently acquired some American Film Making/Studies from there (the Steven D. Katz shot by shot/cinematic motion - books that are usually pretty hard to get hold of unless you're on the net. This is one of those places where the staff know what they're talking about and can help either find what you're looking for or influence you enough to take a punt on their own expertly led recommendations in the vast array of different books and magazines in this store (increasingly rare in the accountant led 'United Chaindom'). It's a shame many more shops were as enthusiastic and passionate as the folks behind magma...I know they can't all be this way but it's currently unfairly balanced. One large chain book store dominates now (and with unfortunately less choice, more celebrity led airport reading fodder) and with supermarkets getting in the act of the book market (albeit with a truly disturbing 'array' of 'books') we should be thankful that places like this are still open in our cities. A large section of this shop sells magazines which are more like the aforementioned coffee table books the higher echelon of mags if you will. Film, Architecture, Typography, Illustration, Photography, Graphics, Fashion, Art, Design, Cities all these creative acts and scenarios collude together in the books and magazine range. They sell a top mag called 'Specialten' which is a 'bi-monthly collection of short films, music videos and exclusive interviews' which comes with a DVD for the media. Just reminded myself to pick up the next edition as I type this... This shop (alongside one or two in London village possibly the other two Magma's as it happens) was the only such store to stock Daniel Johnstone's graphics/drawings books (and as such is referred to in the fantastic Daniel Johnstone documentary). Reanimate your creative synapses and spare at least half an hour to imbibe the glorious fractions of the arts world we don't see as much as we should. It's always a pleasure to walk into a store like this, find what you're looking for (or see something jump out at you which grabs your interest by the book ends) and after downpiping your debit/credit details into the 21st Century piggy bank walk from the shop, freshly acquired book in hand. Rifling through the pages of a new 'Ilva Table book' in a nearby boozer/café is one of life's great, small pleasures.