Persephone Books 

'It is hard to be hip over thirty'. No this isn’t my confession (it might as well have been), but the title of my favourite book of poems from my all time favourite book shop.

London is the greatest place to shop for books. There are books on just about anything – even a coffee table book about coffee tables.

Head for the gigantic Waterstone’s on Piccadilly for the ‘3 for 2’ deals. Or do, as I love to do and visit the charming Persephone Books, which has recently become a small chain with two outlets. And sorry guys, but this one is strictly for the girls.

Persephone Books

This independent publishing house specialises in decorative, arty, old, rare and overlooked books by female authors.

I heard about the retired publisher’s initiative from a bestseller author I once interviewed – and immediately bought the sweet 'Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day' (soon out as a movie), along with several other books all with bookmarks and covers made from iconic art patterns and designs.

Persephone Books

59 Lamb's Conduit Street London, WC1N 3NB. Tube: Russel Square or Holborn

109 Kensington Church Street London, W8 7LN. Tube: Notting Hill Gate or Kensington High Street

I will briefly mention the most reputed and hyped shoe brands Christian Louboutin and Manolo Blahnik, which are the shoes’ answer to Mozart. Shoe fashionistas flock to their temples.

Christian Louboutin is located on 23 Motcomb Street in Knightsbridge and Manolo Blahnik can be found on 49-51 Old Church Street in Chelsea. But I would rather suggest the far more charming designer, Tracy Neuls, who makes shoes with personality and humor, twisted toes and slanting heels. I went to her shop, TN29, with a colleague on research for an article on shoes and we each ended up spending all our money on a pair of ingenious red shoes. It was true love.

The shoes look like they’re straight out of a Harry Potter movie and costume designers from the film industry actually come here to borrow shoes for shoots. The shop is sometimes used for tiny theater productions at night. Tracy Neuls has two lines; one is expensive and the other more expensive!

TN 29, 29 Marylebone Lane, W1U 2NQ. Tube: Bond Street.

Extract from Karin Graabaek's book LONDON my love!, published by Gyldendal.

 

After a visit to the Columbia Flower Market, you just have to go to the Spitalfield Market. If you are pressed for time, just go for the latter. Here, I’ve sipped many a freshly crushed carrot juice with my friend, imagining that I was the one living here, shopping for tonight’s vegetarian dish.

Now that I’ve moved to London, I can go there as often as I like. However, I include this market in my book with a touch of remorse. Every time I go, modernization has taken another bite out of the soul of what used to be a creative hippie-Mecca. Instead of retro furniture and grass roots, the stands are now surrounded by glazed facades and chain stores.

Luckily, there is still expected to be room for old guitars, t-shirts with slogans and not least theme-Fridays with new artists and designers. The new market offers a gourmet theme every Thursday, Friday and Sunday. On Sundays, all the stands are open, so the hallways are packed. With or without facelifts, Spitalfield is a good starting point for an encounter with East End. And if you want to look at the bright side, the  modernization has made the whole area more accommodating.

Spitalfield Market, 105a Commercial Street, E1 6BG. Tube: Liverpool Street or Aldgate East.

By Karin Graabaek, extract from her travel guide LONDON my love!, published by Gyldendal.
 

The first time I heard a style-conscious shopper mention that she always went to the Dover Street Market, I just couldn’t figure out how I could have overlooked a whole market right in the most fashionable shopping area. I searched in vain for it too, until I realized that it is a six-story shopping mall organized as an indoor market.

In 2004, Japanese designer Rei Kawakubo created this raw and industrial place, dedicated to sophisticated, crazy, strange and absolutely fabulous design. It’s an almost bizarre experience to walk up the concrete stairs and open the door to the ”stands”.

The shop assistants walk around and look like installations or they sit in small huts located on every floor, where you can revel in new and different clothes from Raf Simons, Hede Slimane, Judy Blame and Alber Elbaz, Comme des Garcons, Lanvin and Dior and many more.

Dover Street Market, 17-18 Dover Street, W1S 4LT. Tube: Green Park.

By Karin Graabaek, extract from her travel guide LONDON my love!, published by Gyldendal.
 

Central and Mayfair

Mayfair and Central form the designer clothes center of London. You can find every designer heavyweight here. The shopping streets, Oxford Street and Bond Street, are among the world’s most famous and visited, but the entire area is so packed with shops that you just have to start from one end, if you’re going up-scale shopping. 

Stella McCartney

One of the country’s leading luxury designers, whose creations and shop you must see if you like great stuff. Only a women’s collection.

Vivienne Westwood

Luxury punk and elegance characterize Westwood’s design, which is sold all over the world. But in her London stores you can find all of her collections, from semi-couture to Red Label, which is the more affordable and usable one. Collections for both men and women.

Vivienne Westwood, 44, Conduit Street, Mayfair.

James Smith and Sons

If you need an umbrella, you can be certain to find it here. Whether it should be an ordinary black one or one with jewels on top. The old family business can almost make rainy weather a delight.  

James Smith and Sons, 53, New Bond Street.

Browns and Browns Focus

Clothes and accessories by international designer brands, like Chloé and Fendi, as well as a shoe department. Across the street is Browns Focus, which is less expensive, but slightly more casual with brands like Marc by Marc Jacobs.

Browns & Browns, Focus 23-27 South Molton Street, Mayfair

A sumptuous Mecca of retro jewelry and vintage design, which you should see for yourself. Glitter and bling and London’s largest collection of vintage dresses, according to the owners.

B Store

Colorful and untraditional clothing that you can find nowhere else. B Store stocks up-and-coming and newly graduated designers, which is reflected in the funky and quirky patterns and cuts. B Store also carries its own shoe collection.

B Store, Savile Row, Mayfair

Chelsea and Notting Hill

These areas offer exclusive designer stores for the quality-conscious clientele.

Joseph

Joseph has several stores in London and primarily offers classic business outfits of the kind that is worn by lots of urban women: Cashmere sweaters and little black dresses in numerous variations. Most stores also carry other designer brands, such as Diane von Furstenberg and Stella McCartney.  They also sell shoes – and across the street you will find Joseph’s own café and restaurant.

Joseph, 124, Draycott Avenue, Chelsea
www.joseph.co.uk

Matches

Matches has three shops in the street. The one only called Matches carries luxury brands like Prada and Burberry and Matches’ own stylish brand Freda. Matches Soy offers more casual clothing, such as Marc by Marc Jacobs, and the third shop only sells clothes from Diane von Furstenberg.

Matches, 60-64 Ledbury Road, Notting Hill
www.matchesfashion.com

Persephone Books

You can also find this splendid bookstore in the area. It is a true delight for your mind and your senses and has a wide selection of cook books, overlooked novels and interesting paperbacks.

Persepone Books, 59 Lamb’s Conduit Street, Knightbridge

Diverse

Located in Islington, which is younger and less posh than Notting Hill. The shop carries cool and edgy brands such as Luella. In the small streets behind Upper Street, you will find a lot of vintage stores, where you can make a great bargain.

East End

Spitalfields, Shoreditch and Hoxton form the heart of the city’s bohemian culture. The quirky and edgy part of London – also in regards to shopping.

The Laden Showroom

The leading showroom for the country’s young and independent designers. There are over 3000 clothing items, tightly packed in the small space. But that’s not a problem, since you can find very exciting and original pieces of clothes, which are also affordable.

The Laden Showroom, 103, Brick Lane
www.theladenshowroom.co.uk

Hurwundeki 98

From the outside, a modest-looking shop with its brown wooden façade and the name written in gray cement. But inside you will find hidden treasures, if you’re into vintage and original design. The shop spreads over two levels and the decoration is carried out in a dark atmosphere.

Absolute Vintage

A slightly hidden shop in a warehouse on a side street off Commercial Street. The place is packed with luxury vintage clothes for both men and women.  The clothes and the shoes are classified by color and size and the prices are generally below those of similar stores in the city.

Absolute Vintage, 15 Hanbury Street

Dragana Perisic

The designer Dragana Perisic is relatively new on the British fashion scene, and both her shop and her collection are beautiful, with classic feminine cuts and soft colors. The shop is only open from Wednesday through Sunday.

Dragana Perisic, 30, Cheshire Street
www.draganaperisic.com

By David Rich