London is a shopping mecca. Foreigners flock there to spend their money on the latest fashions, homeware trends, hard to get books. And the locals seem to spend most of their weekend in the high street buying clothes, knick-knacks and DIY (do-it-yourself).

Which begs the question, why is everyone on Oxford Street dressed in jeans, t-shirts and flip-flops, or, in winter, Ugg boots? Come on people, you have access to the world’s best clothes, make the most of it.

The Marble Arch in London, England

Although money can be an issue. Visiting or living in London is an expensive past-time, but the problem is not insurmountable. Here are a few of my favourite places to shop and not spend a fortune. With a couple of splurge places thrown in. Because you can get away with jeans and flip-flops if the top is really special, or a t-shirt and jeans if your shoes and bag are a statement in themselves. And jewelery can be a bargain at markets and makes something of nothing.

Topshop: There are branches all over the place but the flagship store is in Oxford Street, near Oxford Circus. Allow plenty of time, take a bottle of water and loads of inner strength, especially on weekends. You have to visit often because the stock changes every few weeks, so if you like it, buy it – it won’t be there when you’ve mulled it over for a few days. Topshop has its own designers so it leads the trends as much as following them and things are reasonably priced. And they do the celebrity designed ranges – the most recent being Kate Moss. There’s even a maternity section for the groovy pregnant, a Tall and a Petite range, a vintage section, and a range for men: Topman. They also give space to young designers and new labels. My favourite.

H&M: A Swedish store which can be found all over Europe. It has well priced clothes, both for men and women. Really good basics and they’re right into the whole working with a designer on a cheap range concept. This November it’s a Roberto Cavalli range. Chasing the designer lines is the time to avoid the major stores like Oxford Street and go somewhere like Poland! The Stella McCartney at H&M range sold out in a few hours, I got a skirt a month later in Warsaw. Although, if I hadn’t already been there that would have hiked the price up a bit…

Selfridges: Still on Oxford Street and a bit pricier. But they have sales, especially around Christmas and the prices plummet. 10 pounds for designers skirts which were a couple of hundred. But, like anything in London, it’s a matter of enduring the moody crowds intent on getting a bargain. Selfridges has many floors and the ground floor is divided into little subshops of all the big chains, not just clothes. A good department store with windows which are a work of art themselves.

Office shoes: a great chain of shoe stores with everything from heels to boots to runners. Latest styles and good prices. They do get a bit focussed on following fashion so if you don’t like what you’re seeing on the twenty-somethings on the tube, avoid Office.

Postmistress Shoes, Covent Garden: This is pricier but I love it. Great shoes and a bit unusual. It’s in the Seven Dials area of shopping streets near Covent Garden and the whole area is worth exploring for small shops including the wonderful Kiehl’s lotions.

Markets in London are a great way to buy economically although the quality can sometimes be dodgy. But there are also stalls with handmade things which are worth finding. My favourites are Spitalfields in the East End near Liverpool Street Station – there is a great jewellery store there, artists, good food, and the novelist Jeanette Winterson owns and runs the fruit and veg shop opposite. From here walk through to Brick Lane (made famous by Monica Ali’s Man Booker Prize shortlisted novel) where there are shops and a market on Sundays. Nearby is Petticoat Lane market which specialises in clothes and Asian fabrics.

Further north is Camden Market which is really a few markets next to each other and has lots of clothes. This gets really crowded especially with young backpackers looking for black t-shirts, but there are great things in there too. And further west is Portobello Road market, famous for jewelery, open on Saturdays. Portobello Road itself is also worth a wander as are the streets around Notting Hill which house many of the small designer clothes and shoe shops. This area is definitely more expensive though.

If you have a little more to spend, or would like to buy one or two really good things rather than a bag full of pretty good things, head to Marylebone High Street, in the same area as Selfridges, just off Oxford Street and near Madame Tussaud – handy location, no? Here you’ll find lots of great little shops giving an idea of the well-heeled London life; perfumes for the home, expensive corkscrews, books for travellers, French patisseries, jewellery stores, Waitrose, a great but slightly expensive supermarket, Whistles clothes, and the Conran shop for expensive home knick-knacks. Madonna lives around here and I used to – our residences were somewhat different sizes.

A Shopping Gallery in London

Off Marylebone High Street and going through to Oxford Street is Marylebone Lane. Here you’ll find a few boutique dress shops and Tracey Neuls shoes which are beautiful if a bit of a treat. There is also VV Rouleaux which sells ribbons. I love that London is big enough to have shops this thorough and this specific. A beautiful place to dream.

And don’t forget Carnaby Street, not far from Oxford Circus. Lots of designer and quirky other shops, and of course, fashion history. Liberty is nearby, worth a look for its creaky floorboards and famous prints. And Hamleys toy shop in Regent Street, world famous and well-deserved.

When you’ve finished a day shopping, you’ll be exhausted. I recommend a good pamper and soak, although that too can be a day in itself. The best known in London is probably The Sanctuary in Covent Garden, hidden behind a small shop front in Floral Street. But I have to say I think it is overpriced and the facilities not that good. Try the new SpaLondon in Bethnal Green. It only recently reopened and they have kept the old Victorian Turkish Bath steam rooms and added saunas, a hammam and a plunge pool. Divine and about one third the price of The Sanctuary. And for locals it’s really cheap – not all of London is about having loads of cash.

If you prefer coffee to getting hot and sweaty, go to Flat White in Berwick Street, Soho. Definitely the best coffee in London and run by lovely New Zealanders and Australians. I highly recommend you have breakfast at The Wolseley on Piccadilly (great for celebrity spotting). And, if you didn’t buy too many shoes and bags and skirts and coats and feel very wealthy, have afternoon tea at the Ritz also on Piccadilly – a very London experience. And you’ll save money by not needing dinner.

–Philippa Burne

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 8th, 2007 at 9:14 am and is filed under Destinations, Europe, Suggested Itineraries, Travel Inspiration. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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