I was very impressed by this little shop/art gallery which sells a beautiful range of photo frames…read moreand greetings cards. The gallery at the back of the store displays the artwork. Now my knowledge of art basically extends to I know what I like and I know what I don't like. Some of the paintings in Rowan I liked, some I thought were a bit cheesy. The prices were not on the cheap side but I suppose you pay for good quality.

The Rowan Gallery is definitely hitting the upper crust of Helensburgh's card shop offerings…read more This is partly to do with the fact that it's not technically a gift shop - there is a large room towards the back of the store selling expensive original prints by local artists! The gift shop part is extremely diverse and sells some exquisite ornaments and housey bits and bobs to please someone on their birthday. A lot of the jewellery, prints and housewares are all on a Scottish theme, but would be an altogether higher class of souvenir should your purpose in the Rowan Gallery be to seek out one of those. They sell some unusual designs, including a Warhol esque print of a Tunnocks tea cake on bags and aprons. They look amazing and is a nice touch for locals and visitors alike. A lot of their jewellery displays are dedicated shrines to the local creative contingency and there are some nice, cheap prints of Scotland on offer amongst the scented candles and fancy piggy banks. But the real treat of the gallery is being able to wander unwatched through to the back room to have a look at the local artists. There are a number of them on display here and the names change frequently. You may be able to stumble upon some high profile stuff if you come in at an opportunistic time; or find a new artist to adore and potentially adorn your house with. The majority of the paintings are unaffordable for the average consumer but failing finding an affordable masterpiece, it's still refreshing to peruse the fresh, white washed gallery and maybe pick up a gift on your way out.

I'm a crafter! I needed a hobby to get into as I've been unemployed, so, I've turned to making…read morecards and scrapbooking. It's going well so far... I always though Hobbycraft at the Fort was the go-to place for all my crafting needs. But, living in Paisley, that can be a little difficult to get to (though I'll probably just order online if I need anything now...). I did a basic google search for craft shops in Glasgow, and this was the only one that suited my needs, so off I went to Craft World! From Hillington West train station, it's a bit of a walk, but I was so excited to be going there, I didn't really care. So anyway, I get there and it's an Aladdin's Cave of wonderful crafting goodies. Christ I could spend all day and a whole lot of money in here. It has everything you could ever hope to need. Rows and rows of scrapbooking paper, embellishments, punches, cards, die cuts, things to stick stuff together, paper...I could go on. The staff are really nice and friendly too. They also have a loyalty scheme where every £5 you spend, you get a sticker and when you fill the card, you get £25 to spend in store! Believe me, it's easy to rack up lots of stickers in one visit...

Hidden gem art shop in a quaint wee lane in Glasgow's West End. Went in for some notepads and…read morepencils to organize for school and got to meet the shop dog, Marcie. Staff is very helpful and knowledgeable. Has art supplies too!

On a trip to Scotland I stopped here to do a little bit of browsing and I didn't plan to actually…read moreshop. However, lucky me! I found some needles that I wanted and a beautiful sock yarn that I didn't know I wanted. I love the surprise. And I managed to find a wee bit of space in my luggage to bring my unexpected finds back home. I made fingerless mitts with the yarn and have had more compliments than I could keep track of. Now if only I could find more of that yarn here in Los Angeles!

Lovely shop! We only had a short stop in Oban in our tour and contacted the shop to inquire about…read moreopening early since we had to leave early in the AM. There were about 12 of us finding treasures. Great fun seeing what items each were grabbing. Owner was a friendly gentleman who humored our antics. Great selection of yarn and fabric. Also lots of notions. I got some fab Harris Tweed. Thank you for the wonderful hospitality! I hope to visit again!

I am a huge fan of shopping in shops local to my travels and it doesn't get any more local than…read morethis. My boyfriend, his sister and her husband and my parents were on our way to Oban for a day out when we stopped here. My boyfriend sister and I bond over stuff like this and all things Scottish, so it was great to stop at a shop that she loves! The owner was super friendly and knows my boyfriends sister as she's shopped here on a few occasions and was very chatty to us. There are loads of amazing things on offer in this wee shop. Loads of hand crafted pottery from cups and bowls to candle stick holders and tea pots. All with different stains and glazes, each thing a little different from the next. High quality pottery and gifts can be purchased here. My boyfriend and I are fans of wooden products, and we spotted some olive wood products for sale. We use bamboo whenever possible, but we fell in love with some wooden spoons and kitchen items in this shop, so we purchased a few to add to our collection. My mom bought my boyfriend sister a bracelet and bought herself some lavender to take back to the states. My boyfriends sister bought a card and some "singing mice" as she calls them- wooden mice who look like they're singing. So adorable. I really quite enjoyed stopping in this shop and plan to make it a point to check it out whenever in the area again. Local goods are great!

One Saturday, a very long time ago, all the girls in my familia were going into the city centre for…read morea shopping day, and my wee cousin was at a party at Busy Bees. After the shopping, the eating and the constant shrieking of nonsense that is a girly shopping day, my big cousin and I went with my aunt to pick up my wee cousin from this party. See managed to talk even more than us. Her party was brilliant, so she said, and she thrust forward the flower-shaped mirror she had decorated. All her little pals had had a great time too, and what more could you ask for from a kids' party?

Craft activities for children. Paint ceramic ornaments, wooden jewellery boxes, glass clocks and…read moreloads more. Check out http://www.busybeescraftstudio.com for more info

Oh my word, this is the BEST craft shop!…read more They sell everything you could want, and really tasteful versions of it, not tacky cheap looking craft stuff. Kokosnoot's craft supplies are classy! They have over 200 types of ribbons, and beautiful buttons, and lots of craft tools. But the felt! Oh the felt! They have a great range of felt - both loose felt for needle felting and felt sheets, in lovely colours. I bought a lovely gift card too - they have a good range of beautiful designs. This is easily the best stocked craft shop I've been in - it's so much better than anywhere in Glasgow. I would actually come here from Glasgow in order to buy craft goods. It's that good.

Acorn Art is a small picture framing shop that also has a comprehensive selection of art supplies…read moreto purchase. They also have a small gallery area where you can admire or purchase the work of local artists. Unfortunately it is rather on the expensive side, and although I haven't used the framing service myself I've heard that it can be a little slow. The staff are adequate, but not especially helpful unless, of course, they think you're there to spend rather a lot of money. All in, it's a nice little shop but nothing outstanding.

I have some really warm memories of Ink Spot from when i was a kid. It was always the place i…read morelooked forward to coming to when my mum and dad took me shopping to Hamilton. I loved crafty stuff and it sold some pretty cool toys too, like the Anne Geddes Babies i used to collect. It sits apart from the main cluster of shops and the shopping centre, on the way down to the big Asda. This place is an Aladdin's Cave of stationery. Need an HB pencil? Come here. A pink Filofax with kittens on it? Second shelf on the left madam. Biro that transforms into a deckchair? Yup, you'll find one here. But be warned , you'll pay for it! It really isn't cheap, so if you only need the basics i would suggest trying somewhere else first. However if you are a crafty connoisseur, or you're looking for something very specific, Ink Spot is the place for you! (Disclaimer: A transforming deckchair Biro does not yet exist. I made that bit up. So you may get a funny look if you ask for one here.)

So I must confess - I have a bit of a stationery fetish. Nothing quite like the smell of a freshly…read moresharpened pencil or like rows of coloured pencils lined up by shade (yes yes I did and still do crave the entire set of crayola colours!!!) Anyway, this place has so many cool art supplies that even the most non-artistic, non-creative person in the world will be compelled to purchase some funky craft paper or some random modelling clay or engineering grade pencil. School projects and Brownie badge work has been aided with supplies from here and I can never resist popping in when I have a minute and I am nearby. They have, in the past few years, got a range of fancy dress costumes as well - so they are branching out somewhat from merely traditional stationery supplies. I don't know if that is a direction I am really loving, but in this economy, anything that helps local independent businesses is fine by me. This place is NOT cheap though and is its main failing. I would seriously doubt if art students would actually buy their supplies from here, If the prices were a little bit lower and the staff didn't look at you as if you were about to shop lift then I would love it even more. It is definitely a stationers as opposed to a full on specialist art store I reckon. As an art shop for true artists (although clearly I am not, and am just surmising, I would definitely give it a 3. As a place to find cool knick knacks, gifts and pens with a good motion (see told you I was obsessed!) then possibly a 4. On the whole it is a pretty shop with lots of lovely goodies and some luxurious stationery. With slightly lower prices this would be a 4 overall, bit as it stands a solid 3!