A trip to London isn’t complete without a little retail therapy. Shoreditch in the east of London is a perfect area for unique finds, street style, and designer interior home furniture. It’s where the young, the hip, and the artistic shop and eat. So where to go? Yesterday I already shared a few addresses not to miss. Let’s continue!
Boxpark
At Shoreditch Highstreet you’ll find pop-up mall Boxpark. This is not the ordinary mall, but a pop-up mall that’ll only be there for five years. It is constructed of stripped, and refitted shipping containers, to create unique, low cost, low risk, ‘box shops’. Filled with a unique mix of international fashion and lifestyle brands, galleries and cafés, it’s the world’s first ‘pop-up’ mall – so named because its basic building blocks are inherently movable: they can, and will, pop up anywhere in the world. The small boxes feature hip brands, upcoming designers, and innovative products. I love e.g. Urban Ears where they sell colourful headphones, or Native union who has earpieces for your mobile.
Street art
Except for shopping, Shoreditch is also a canvas for talented street artists. The wall art gives your shopping experience that little extra London feeling.
Labour and Wait
At Labour and Wait in Redchurch street you’ll find fashion, cookware, stationery and interior design accessories all in one shop. The pieces are simple, functional and timeless.
Columbia Road
A visit to Shoreditch isn’t complete without a stroll in Columbia Road. In the weekends there is a flower market. During the week it is less bustling but just as much fun with plenty of small curiosity shops and inviting pubs behind the colourful doors and popping fronts.
My favourites were the Powder Room where you step into the late 1940s. The Powder Room is a retro hair and beauty salon that specialises in retro hair and make up like its 1949. Furnished like a cute little parlour, women in perky pink dresses will powder your face and put your hair rolls and pin curls just right. I loved all the powder puffs in the shop’s window and dispersed throughout the shop.
Choosing Keeping Stationery
At Choosing Keeping Stationery one finds quality stationery. I was especially smitten by the beautiful paper rolls. My friend Tina who introduced me to this shop wrote a splendid blog post about this shop, so I would recommend you pop over to her blog to see more beautiful photos and read an exclusive interview with the owner.
J&B
At J&B everything is handmade, quircky, girlish and fun. The two owners Jessie Chorley and Buddug Humphreys make everything by hand. The little shop is packed with their creations and it’s hard to leave empty handed. I left with their adorable Christmas wrapping paper and a few cards.
Related articles
- London shopping guide: Shoreditch part 1
- London shopping Guide: Bloomsbury
- London shopping Guide: Follow the Christmas lights
- London shopping Guide: Christmas Arcade at the Somerset House