This shop had several different selections of local yarns, plus the basics. The shop keepers were…read morevery friendly and answered my questions/chatted with me despite the very crowded store. I would come back on another visit to London.

Teeny yarn shop filled to the brim with yarn, notions, and books. I was unfamiliar with most of the…read moreyarns they carried but I picked up some sock yarn, which seems to be my project of choice when I'm traveling. This place had several other customers and a couple workers but no one interacted with me until I approached with a question. Nice area of town. Ok experience.

When I've been to London and Paris with my daughter we always hit the handbag stores. There's…read moresomething about buying handbags in Europe that makes us feel like we are getting a better deal! My Orla Kiely handbag is laminated for use when it rains. I love the bright cheerful color and the zipper inside pocket plus key fob. The print on my bag is her signature design. I highly recommend this designer's handbags. I love mine. I can't wait until Spring and Summer when I wear my bright colors. Although I use this bag any time of year. Orla Kiely, is an Irish fashion designer based in London. She began her career designing hats, and moved on to design work on handbags and a variety of other items including kitchenware and cars. She received a master's degree from the Royal College of Art. She worked with several companies before setting up her own business. She's very popular and her products are well crafted.

...Don't it always seem to go That you don't know what…read moreyou've got 'til it's gone... I never knew how much I enjoyed using a wash cloth in the shower until I moved to Europe, where they're not widely used (they're rarely in hotels and I couldn't even find any at IKEA!) While perusing the bath section at Orla Keily I spied some sweet stem jacquard "face cloths". They were £3.00 each - I bought four - and they've already provided enormous enjoyment! Plus, Orla Keily prints just can't help but make me smile! In fact, they're so soft I'm thinking about going back for towels too! And did I mention the dresses?

Fawonderfu place Just what we crafters need…read more So nice to see what u need instead of buying on net Excellent selection and first rate classes at good price All materials supplied

I visited this shop during a short stay in London, mainly because it was an independent shop and…read more(very!) easily accessed by train. As we know, indie shops can be hit or miss, since they tend to fit the owner's tastes...but I have to say, this shop had me wanting to buy ALL THE THINGS and start up many new crafts. (Restrained myself, as I had limited luggage space and Parisian craft shops on the itinerary.) Yarn and apparel fabrics were the main attractions for me--I picked up some cotton that later became a skirt, and a couple balls of bulky British yarn that are now keeping a friend's head warm in Toronto. I also added notions, markers, iron-ons, and paper goods to my craft arsenal. (I don't normally do paper stuff but how could I not buy giant cross-stitch paper??) I was super impressed by the machine parts collection--who knew that many feet existed?! I probably walked the whole store 3x to make sure I wasn't missing anything I couldn't live without. Anyway, amazing stock aside, the owner is incredibly sweet & kind. We had a nice little chat about the shop, and she graciously shared some business tips. Since that visit, I've been following her Instagram and *really* wish I had managed to take a class when I was in town. (Now I know for next time!!) The shop is bright, cheery, inviting, and beautifully pulled together. If you're in London and you or someone you love is a crafter, swing by this store. You're bound to find something(s) wonderful.

Next to the mother Cloth House based at 98 Berwick Street, more towards Oxford Street you will find…read moreall the cottons and weave of Cloth House 47. The shop is fresh and bright and always has an original display. Unlike to the other Cloth House on Berwick street, there I am always nicely welcomed. Of course the prices are nothing comparable what you could bargain for in Shepherds Bush. However, you know exactly what content the fabric is and you have a deep as well as wide selection. If you wonder what the big brown paper bags with the art deco face on it is - the brand mark of Cloth House unmistakable!

I'm not quite sure how a fabric shop can manage to be a little bit hipster, in a twee kind of way,…read morebut this place does. Berwick street is teaming with fabric shops, and this one definitely has a good range. Mostly natural fabrics, and delicious trims. You will want all of them, but, you quite possibly won't be able to afford all of them. This place is pretty expensive, it's really great for inspiration, and then making you feel sad that you can't make the really amazingly random things you've just imagined up out of the blue. The staff are lovely, and it's well lit, so you don't have to worry what colour things are going to turn out when you get them home. Stored well, and clean, it's very ideal, you just need good money to get everything that catches your eye!

I've had nothing but 5-star service here…read more On one particular occasion I was looking for a certain silk chiffon for a designer and the man behind the counter, who was dressed like an urban dandy, was nothing but a gentleman. He immediately acknowledged my presence when I walked in with a "I'll be right with you" - even though even though he was helping another person. I was then bowled over by the courteous way he assisted me with my search. He pulled everything off the shelf... despite knowing that he'd have to put it all back... told me all about fiber content, and really tried to understand what I was looking for - giving me plenty of genuine suggestions and helping me brainstorm possibilities. Even more remarkably, after all of his time and wonderful assistance, he didn't bat an eyelid when I said I merely wanted a swatch of all six fabrics with the price and fabric content - he kindly wrote out all of this information, and was very generous with the swatch sizes - always very considerate. There's also this cool system here where they keep a record of the swatches they've handed out to you ... all you have to do is leave your name and they'll keep track of what you've left with on various days - which is *super* customer friendly if you're accumulating swatches from all over the place and are trying to design the perfect piece. The atmosphere is exactly what you'd imagine the Silk Society to be... very luxurious and decadent, and they carry a myriad of silk and silk chiffons and antique silks... all rather traditional, I don't think they carry any silks with Lycra. The fabrics on offer are all of stand-out quality... and there are so many to choose from! If you're not on a strict budget, and are looking for a silk in a really specific colour, I recommend coming here because they really have such a beautiful rainbow of options. You can definitely go to Shepherd's Bush and other places and find some comparably stunning silks... but you'll also have to traipse around and sift through the grunge of it all... and you certainly won't be treated like royalty. I really feel they *want* to help their customers at this shop... they'll really bend over backwards to help you here - and that's worth something.

The first day I discovered Berwick street, I made an excursion to the Silk society boutique. It is…read morevery small, has lots of couture fabrics - some of them even behind the counter and as the name says they are specialists for Silk. The Silk Society supplies to the business trade for seamstresses as well as to the general public. You can also order large quantities with free delivery. In addition to this, they sell a range of sewing and knitting accessories. This is definitely where a student should not go - it is way overpriced and is probably more thought for people who are sewing a wedding dress or ball gown. For my taste, the fabrics are to playful and decorative. I tell you what, try Shepherds Bush for silk, I am sure you will get a better deal.

I don't know a stitch about knitting, but this too-darling shop is eye-catching enough for even…read morenovices to peruse. I came in with a friend who was inquiring about a certain pattern, and the girl working was extremely friendly and as helpful as could be - even though her advice meant we didn't end up needing to buy anything... Perhaps what makes this store especially unique is their fantastical window displays, made entirely of, you guessed it - yarn. Apparently there's a whole slew of "knitting artists" out there... and many of them are on the monthly docket of this shop to deck out the window in whimsical and unbelievably architectural cascades of yarn. Last month it was a (large!) knitted sink and toilet... this month its a wooly version of a snowman. The shop offers classes... now, I'm not exactly one to bother knitting a scarf... but a truly ambitious and artistic construction of woven fiber is a slightly different and more enticing story... for £40 I can join one of their classes for "knitters and crocheters who have visions!" Hmmm....

Reckons its a haberdashery but is mostly selling knitting stuff like it's some hallowed form of…read morereverential lost art. As a keen crafter who grew up in jumpers hand knitted and handed down by me ma I don't think it's anything special. Went in to check it out and the attendant was pretending she didn't notice us (2 people) this is hard to believe as you can almost see a red stripe round the walls where someone tried to swing a cat. When the attendant finally acknowledged us with a face like someone had dropped a stitch we had just about seen all of the meagre ammount of items on sale. I think they do 'knitting circles' in there too. In such a small space it would be the ideal way to pass on knits. Get yourself up the Roman Road nearby for bargain haberdashery and a fairly good sewing shop with a lovely chap who repairs machines.

Very cute store! They had small items like mugs, coasters, bath and beauty items, as well as…read moreclothing and accessories. I loved that there were a variety of fun and brightly colored clothing items and the scarves were beautiful. The pricing seemed reasonable and everything was high quality. I loved that the sweaters were soft and not itchy as well. The staff was friendly and were making sure items were put away and straightened. Definitely a good stop if you're waiting at the station.

I just saw Sunny K's review for another branch of Oliver Bonas...so I had to share my love for this…read moreawesome little shop! This is my go-to boutique when I am bored and waiting for a train in St Pancras. I have also been known to divert my route home so that I can peek in here (and the cute Cath Kidston shop opposite) before jumping on a bus from Kings Cross. There are sooo many pretty dresses, accessories and presents here! My only problem is that the clothes here are so cute, I can't always tell if they suit me or not! I have brought things home only to have my fashion advisor (my other half) disapprove and tell me that it isn't flattering. Oops. At least the ladies here are happy to give you a refund if you get excited and buy something that doesn't match your body shape/colouring!! I have a slightly silly (but AWESOME) pink scarf from here that is covered with tanuki!** I blooming love tanuki (racoon dogs) as they are cute and remind me of Japan...my fashion advisor didn't approve, but screw him. I still think it is awesome, and will certainly not take it back! Handy hints: - If you want to try things on, they have a teeny screen to change behind at the back of the shop- just ask to use it - If they don't have your size, there is another Oliver Bonas shop over in Kings Cross station. ** The Oliver Bonas tanuki don't have the giant mythical balls like Japanese tanuki...but they are still cute. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_raccoon_dog

I'm not a big fan of vintage, so it's unsurprising that I left without buying anything. But if you…read morereally like vintage, and you really like designer brands (Hermes, Prada, etc) there's a pretty good selection here. They tend to label the pieces with gigantic tags that includes the brand name, year, and price. Downstairs is a Bargain Basement, and I seriously felt like I was going to get murdered there due to how small the room is and how low the ceiling are. If I'd gone missing, nobody would ever know... but seriously though, there's some more interesting stuff to browse through downstairs. I saw some Salvatore Ferragamo women's shoes.

"I got you babe. I got you babe." As I walked in the door, this is what Retromania informed me…read morewith the crooning voices of Sonny and Cher. No matter how hard they tried to convince me, however, I managed to evade the fingers of 'being got' in the elusive game of shop tag. What i mean by such convoluted words is that although Retromania was fine, it failed to get my attention in any way. A bit over priced with hats between 10 and 60 pounds, a Gianni Frattini dress at 100, and a slightly stained 30's-style dress at 70, I was not enchanted just like a Snow White who didn't eat her apple. Retromania's got your run-of-the-mill vintage and your run-of-the-other-mill "is it really worth this much?" prices. On the reverse-run-of-the-mill, the shop does have a good, funky feel to it and their music selection which went from Sonny and Cher into the Beatles was unobtrusively nice. Now like Ionesco, I'll write "I'm waiting for the aqueduct to come and see me at my windmill," because that involves very non-run-of-the-mill mill situations.