Petra runs Spruced Goose with passion, she sources childrenswear from all over Europe and the…read moreUnited States and offers something different to the usual childrenswear store. She makes sure that you are 100% satisfied with every purchase.

From the owner: Spruced Goose offers a unique collection of colourful and quirky clothes and gifts for children…read morefrom 0 to teens. We provide excellent customer service and ship worldwide. Browse our collection online at www.sprucedgoose.com or instore now!

Highly stylish clothing for kids. The kind of clothes I'd like to deck my own children out in if it…read moreweren't for the fact that they're a: independent and thus do not listen to my recommendations: b: my missus equally does not listen to me, especially when it comes to clothes for the children c: it wasn't so expensive. Lovely looking, well made keks, shirts and skirts for kids up to 16 years of age, highly visual and slightly hippyish looking (you'll know what I mean) it's just a shame I'd need to re mortgage just to purchase a nice sweater for the four year old. Have a look for their occasional sales and you might bag a bargain for a gift. Oilily (which sounds more like a deli) has stores across the world, but as far as I know this Manchester store is the only UK branch.

Great selection of handmade, traditional, vintage and Spanish clothes. Shoes and accessories always…read moreavailable and the customer service is phenomenal!

Whilst the idea that your beautiful children aren't enough just by themselves and now have to be…read moredraped with adequate 'baubling' to be considered true accessories, I know you kids are going to do it anyway so I'd rather you do it here where I know your safe. Funky Totz, though an ominous glimpse of how your children will spell things in the fyootcha if the Pussycat Dolls get their way, is a purveyor of some really fun fashion for your little nippers. Largely imported from the USA the range of stock will have the air's to your estate looking like Sid & Nancy in no time- bless.

Funky totz can be found inside Afflecks Palace and sels alternative clothes for babies and…read moretoddlers. If your not happy with buying your kids the same old stuff from next or mothercare here is a place you can find something really original, different and unique. If your not a parent just yet (like moi) this place is great if your wanting to spoil you niece /nephew /godchildren etc. As long as the parents of the child in mind are not completely mainstream and little number from here will get you lots of brownie points.

Everybody, look how pretty!…read more I'm writing this not as an actual market customer - more an aesthetic appreciator. I promise I'll be back to Yelp the markets properly. You know Em loves her updates, peoples. I recently attended Stockport's Vintage Village which took place in these impressive Victorian Markets, and boy, are they attractive. Handsome. Like if they were a guy, I'd be giggling like a stupid schoolgirl while they spoke to me. And I'd probably accidentally snort or something. They lent themselves incredibly well to the whole retro vibe, especially those types at the markets who were selling and crafting cute little trinkets. First of all they're covered, which is great for our inclement Manchester weather (ooh, quick warning: do not refer to Stockport as part of Manchester to a Stockportian. Ever. Even 'Greater Manchester'. They'll practically beat you about the face with a handbag and give you the evils for the rest of the day), and they have underfloor heating. Er, bonus! Food was provided by the lovely Zip's Grill, an Australian affair that offers all kinds of tasty treats from their meaty bacon and egg butties and steak wraps to mezzes, soups and salads reflective of the proprietor's Aussie Greek-Cypriot background. Oh, and they have loads of different kinds of bread too. Double bonus. The stalls I saw marked out, closed obviously at the time due to the Vintage Fair, I was very intrigued by. Books! Triple bonus! And many others to boot. Anyway, thus ends my Scrabble-esque chat about Stockport's Market Halls. Now, if I could just find a cab driver who takes me right to the door instead of abandoning me on a drizzle-ridden pedestrian road with armfuls of Yelp goodies, that'd be just dandy.

We popped here while nipping to the regular Foodie Friday in Stockport (last Friday of the month -…read more6-9pm) and the old market does seem to be having a bit of a renaissance period. Ok so I may have had slightly rose tinted specs on due to me enjoying the fine fine food on offer outside but it really is a nice spot. In the week, it's open with a good mix of shops - all sorts of market grocers, butchers and a little cafe - plus some totally random shops and some real gems like High Peak brewing Co (go here for amazing beer from all around the world - amazing x464648!) On this occasion with it being FF, you could sit inside and take a load off, buy from some of the traders and even buy beer from High Peak to drink! A winner for me and great architecture to boot! Some great pubs like the Bakers are in the Market square too if you fancy getting your whistle wet!

Ive been dreaming of Jean Genie! A little shop on trendy Beech Road in Chorlton Cum Hardy, it was…read moreconceived by two visionaries : Zoe and Vic and look how their baby is growing up!!! Antique wardrobes stuffed with jeans call out your name. Now, I have always been turned off by shops selling a lot of denim- maybe too much blue puts me in a blue mood. This is not the case at Jean Genie as my denim phobia is banished by the brightly coloured t- shirts which punctuate the room. I saw a fetching red Superman retro design which my liitle boy would have pestered me for. Well established names such as Wrangler, American Appararel,Hilfiger and Levi link hands with less mainstream brands like Junk Food to which I am a complete convert! I was in the mood for something a little different and Zoe showed me the Junk Food Alice in Wonderland t-shirts which had just arrived. How very topical and truly tempting. Sizes are quite small, I am a 10 and need a medium but there are several styles of one genre. Men's hoodies and tee's paternally protect clothing for bambinos, OMG how cute, there are t-shirts for little ones here. Zoe explained to me how they operate a bespoke t-shirt printing service and I think they are onto a winner. Starting from a reasonable £20 you can take in any design you wish, from a photo, to your 5 year old's self-portrait and Jean Genie will transform it into a t-shirt that everyone will notice. Prices increase if the design is hand drawn as opposed to pdf, and also if you want them to use a variety of colours. I left with my £32.50 and worth every penny, Alice in Wonderland top and with an idea for my fashionista daughter's birthday. I was given the shop's innovative flyer( a frisbee) which will give me 10% off my next purchase and as Arnie says...."I'll be back!"

The second Sunday of every month is one of my favourite days of each particular month. That's one…read moreSunday when I'm happy to set my alarm, get my caboose out of bed and fly on further south in Manchester to Stockport's historic Victorian Market Halls, because that's where I can find epic 70s flowery maxi dresses, Smash Hits 'Best of the 80s' annuals and trinkets galore. Welcome to the Vintage Village! I've been to a lot of vintage markets and shops in my time. Once, I even travelled all the way up to Edinburgh for a coat, I brought back over £40 worth of vinyl and a 56 year old fur from Glasgow and I've been known to scour our little Manchester boutiques for hours at a time. But what Stockport offered last month just blew me away, knocked me sideways and had me gazing around open-mouthed like I did when I was taken to Disney World at six years old. This was epic. The quality was remarkable, the prices were insanely affordable and the sheer variety on offer was stunning. I defy you not to walk from stall to stall and see at least three things per section you covet. If you were to slap something not only like this, but of this calibre (exceptional quality, eclectic variety) bang in the middle of Manchester City Centre it would be completely overrun with fifteen-year-old Noel Fielding stalkers in knee socks and oversized Urban Outfitters jumpers (not that there's anything wrong with them - I've been known to rock a woolly from UO regularly and have frequent NSFW dreams about Mr Vince Noir myself), but as it's tucked away in a sleepy town centre in the South Manc 'burbs, it attracts a much calmer, quieter, more discerning clientele. Families bring along their children and have soup and bacon butties at Zip's Grill. Couples with dogs mooch around for gifts. It's incredibly relaxed and wonderfully friendly. I lost count of the amount of conversations I struck up with stall purveyors. This is worth getting out of bed on the day of rest for. Seriously, do it! You won't regret it. And if you do, come and have a go at me. I'll probably whup you upside the head. (P.S. Zip's Grill serves some of the finest coffee I've ever had the good fortune to taste, and the food looks all kinds of fabulous. I'll definitely have a soup this Sunday.)

Vintage Village is on every second Sunday of the month in Stockport's totally brilliant market hall…read moreplace. If the truth be known, It was more my wife and sister in law who were the instigators in us going but I wanted to stretch my legs and go out for the afternoon so thought I would give it a shot! Gotta say, it was really really good and there were all sorts of stalls selling vintage clothes, records, antiques, furniture - pretty much anything from yesteryear. Nice touches were a skiffle band playing live, with a DJ playing hits from the likes of Elvis throughout and a load of vintage cars and motorbikes on display outside. Great street food was provided from the (both) excellent Lord of the Pies and Honest Crust Pizza. I'll definitely be heading there again in the coming months as it's a great day out and only a £1 entry - bargain!