Bakos Boutique is a lovely shop in Westbury on Trym, north of Bristol. They don't sell wedding…read moredresses but they do offer occasion wear for Mothers of the Bride and Bridegroom which is quite a nice touch. You can rent a hat rather than buy one, which is quite a good idea really seen as the likelihood of ever wearing it again would be slim! For me, this section is a little old fashioned but they do also offer more modern ball gowns, prom dresses and such like from a number of different labels. They have their new spring/summer collection now available so if you have a fancy occasion coming up drop in!

One of the better bijou clothing stores in Bath. You always find a collection of unique and…read moreinteresting clothes on the racks. However, be prepared to pay for that quality and uniqueness. Ground floor is for women, with a downstairs area for men. A nice place to buy yourself a clothing treat.

The other main store at Cribbs at the other end from John Lewis is a two-storey M&S with the food…read morehall, mens and xmas bumpf downstairs and the women's section upstairs. The selection is OK, but has dwindled in recent years from their more expensive or exclusive ranges back to their staple Per Una and cashmere jumpers choices. Their shoes remain, mystifyingly, some of the kinkiest in the Mall bar Kurt Geiger so even if thought of shopping in M&S makes you think of your grandmother's twin set and pearls then brave it and check out the shoes. Staff are always helpful in here, especially good as its such a big store, and will help you find things or fetch you different sizes of clothes whilst you stay in the changing room.

The M&S Deli serves reasonable food, largely because the cooking is automated. For instance, the…read moremanager explained to us that the pasta is cooked automatically by a special machine, so why we had undercooked pasta was inexplicable. Yet, it was undercooked. However, my penne and pesto was lovely and was just what I was looking for. We were told we would have to wait till 12 noon before ordering lunch (it was 11.55am), but it still arrived at about 12.25 anyway. This underlines the real reason we wouldn't return to M&S Deli: the food is reasonably tasty and reasonably priced, and the wine is good because it's straight off the M&S shelves, but the service is terrible! We were there for an hour, which was way longer than we expected. This was because of poor all-round service. While we were there, we heard at least three other complaints, with one couple actually leaving. I'm sure this isn't the sort of 'experience' M&S wants to encourage. Our waiter wasn't polite, wasn't attentive, was blasé and had dirty fingernails (yet still handled the raw Parmesan cheese). Get the staff sorted and the rest will follow.

Once I had gotten over the massive shock of Woolworths closing down I had to find another shop that…read morecould offer the same variety of household goods, food and drink, entertainment (and of course Pick & Mix selection!) Wilkinsons is the logical replacement, in reality, although I hate to admit it, they are probabley better than Woolworths. I come here for many household items, from picture frames to lightbulbs, and from tea-towls to frying pans, they have a very good all around selection at very good prices. The top floor is dedicated to entertainment, cards, pick and mix and childrens items. The downstairs is for household items.

I'm not ashamed to say that I shop here a LOT! Whether it be for loo roll or a new shelving unit…read morefor my room, Wilkinson's have it in this shop for an insanely good price. What I like about it too is that it doesn't just sell its cheaper own brands if you feel like a bit of luxury. They sell all the usual 'Fairy Liquids' and 'Flash' products at a much cheaper price than a supermarket. Very good location in the centre of Bristol and it's a really large store which divided into two floors. The upper floor is for everyday household products and the lower is a larger section for kitchen, bathroom and bedroom goods. I have recently bought a lovely set of curtains for £7.99 which easily look like they are worth £30...bargin! Usually long queues of upwards of 10minutes though.

The Corridor in Bath's city centre seems to be the place for trendy, obscure fashions. Which is why…read moreWeird Fish Clothing is a little out of place here. Filled with simple fashions for men, women and children - the only interesting thing about it is it's name. Inside, women will find unflattering branded t-shirts, unsexy fleeceds and unattractive footwear. The men's section is not quite as bad, but just as uninspiring. I wouldn't mind, but it is so pricey to shop here (around £50 for a fleece!) In fairness, this shop is more about practicality than fashion, but for these prices I'd rather have the best of both worlds.

A store that doesn't immediately spring to mind whenever you're asked to think of good surf shops…read moreto go to, but Weird Fish is actually a fairly decent place to get your baggy trousers, thin woollen jumpers and shin-length shorts for the beach. Like other stores in this guise, it's not the cheapest of places to get clothing, but I'd say this is a little easier on the wallet when compared to Quicksilver and Animal, etc. I guess, though, as Jenni says, it's just not all that inspiring in here, so you usually come away with something that you've spent a lot on and don't like all that much.

A very nice individual cafe with an excellent view of the rooftops of Bath, of course you have to…read moreclimb two flights of stairs to get there. Its decorated in bright pink so its quite girly but the men didnt seem to be out of place, the food is all freshly prepared, we had very nice toasties and milkshakes too, while we watched the pigeons going about their day on the rooftops across the street.

This is a pretty good sized Matalan near Abbey Wood in North Bristol. It has tons of fashionable,…read moreaffordable clothes for men, women and the kids, as well as a limited selection of home wares. Matalan's clothes are generally pretty cheap, but the quality is pretty low too, so it's great for kids clothes (as they grow out of them so quickly) or for things that you'll probably not want to wear next year. The place is always busy, especially when they've got a sale on, or in the run up to Christmas, so be prepared to queue for 15 mins to pay for your items when it's really busy (we've had a trolley full of stuff and left it there, as the queue was so bad once!). Parking is free, and this is not usually a problem, except for the dreaded Christmas period when the whole retail park is mobbed.

This Matalan sells, children's and adults clothes, home wares, dvds, and books. when ever I have…read moregone there it seems quite well staffed and the items are reasonably priced. It is near, Woolworths, tTJ Hughes, Pets At Home, JJB, Brantanos, Next and Mc Donalds.

A new addition to Bath's shopping district, All Saints makes a welcome change from Marks & Spencers…read moreor Jack Wills. The edgy fashion they stock here is exactly what Bath needs to drag it kicking and screaming into the 21st Century. This particular outlet stocks men and women's fashion and, even though it's only been open a few months, has some unbelievable sales. Sadly I wouldn't be able to shop here without 70% off their extremely pricey prices. But if you're looking for a statement piece of clothing and are happy to spend a little more - here's the best place to go! The only things that let it down are the staff and the sizes. The sales assistant are a little on the snobby side, so I wouldn't be inclined to ask for their help and the sizes don't tend to go up further than a size 14.

Just read your review of All Saints and could not agree more with your comments regarding its edgy…read moreside, its just what Bath has needed. Bath has become all too familiar with the traditional styles of Blazers and Shirt combinations due to its Rugby image and Public school history. This store changes that with unique cuts rarely seen in the high street. I came here for Christmas Shopping and was hugely impressed with the service. They set a stylish example and covered all grounds of customer service. I fully expected them to be snobby but they were actually extremely helpful and the gentleman on womenswear really helped me with my purchase of a coat. So much so i felt only right to respond to here and encourage Bath and its surrounding area to enter the new year with a visit there and enjoy its vibe.