The Works is like a mish mash of random, cheap books, toys, calendars and art supplies with the odd…read moretourist tat thrown in. It is stupidly cheap and that is reflected in the crap that they sell. However it does come in handy for buying cheap books or colouring pens for my nephew. There is sometimes some good cook books in here also, as well as some quite odd books but I'm sure there is a market for it. The shop is generally consumed by rather odd people who are peeing themselves with excitement over all the bargains and take their trip to The Works quite seriously. I bought a friend who was in love with Kylie Minogue the unofficial calendar from here, he wasn't too impressed.

I had always assumed this place was just some tourist shop so never really bothered looking in-…read morethat was, until I actually needed to buy some touristy stuff to take back with me to Australia. This place is a mish-mash of so many awesome things! Tourist shop- check. Discount bookstore- check. Arts and crafts shop- check. Random kitchen items like blenders and grills- check. It was just so much fun exploring this shop! I managed to nab a few gifts to take back with me and I'm seriously impressed at the discount books on offer (brought a whole bunch of children's books on special and Joe Wicks Lean in 15 for £10!) Honestly, I'm not quite sure what category this store would fall under, but since I had such a great time exploring I'm giving five stars! Highly recommended, the prices were more than reasonable and given the stock available you'll likely end up finding something you didn't realise you needed.

Small but perfectly formed, Curiouser is my favourite shop in Brunsfield because it has an awesome…read moreselection of stationery and cards, really trendy home wear, beautiful jewellery and they even have a framing service, (which I am yet to take advantage of!) I pop in quite often (I have a stationery problem) and I rarely leave empty handed. They're really great for getting in new stock and are fantastic at sourcing cool stuff I've never seen before, which makes it ideal for buying gifts (even for one's self...) This is actually their sister shop, the original shop is called Curious & Curiouser is based at the bottom of Broughton Street and it's just as great!

Hello! When did this wee gem spring up?…read more It's not really wee, and it looks new - I'm guessing it's only been on Cockburn Street under a month. Old Town Context is a refreshing, traditional store on Cockburn Street, steering away from the style of the tourist traps on the Royal Mile to offer alternative gift ideas. They have some old English, French and American advert poster art, cards, stationery, gifts, mugs with pin ups on them, clocks made out of recycled glass drinks bottles - a very eclectic and classy selection. Its inspiration is clearly from bygone era's, and I was very impressed with their postcard range. They also have some cracking cards and original prints with cats on them. These cats are wearing kilts and rugby shifrts, quoting Burns and other Scottish poets within the print. It's a very odd idea but entirely up my alley. Overall a very enjoyable shop for the family. It's difficult to walk out of here without buying anything.

I am glad that my 200th review is on this hidden gem... actually it isn't that hidden, but I have a…read morefeeling that lots of people just walk right on by. In a very different and almost vintage way, it is a souvenir shop. I say that because there were lots of prints, cards, coffee mugs of the city and various British 'things', but they are not the types of souvenirs that you would find in the every single store on the Royal Mile... yeah, you know what I mean. I loved the different prints of the city, my favourite was a very art deco-ish print highlighting the castle in a yellowy-orangish hue against a dark background. They had it as a large print, a card, and a coffee mug. I am now kicking myself that I did not buy it. If you love globes or tin signs, they have loads of them! If you are looking for a different kind of souvenir for someone... or just something for yourself, stop in here because they have some really wonderful items.

I have to admit I'd never heard of this market before today. We stumbled across it quite by chance…read moreone saturday as we were wandering through Morningside looking for somewhere to go for lunch. On the one hand, it's always great to see local retailers and designers being supported locally. And although I'm no art conoisseur there was some gorgeous stuff on display - mainly paintings and sketches of Scottish scenery - and I was surprised at how reasonably-priced some of it was. However, I did get the impression that in the huge big room of stalls and stands there were only about 3 or 4 different categories of things being sold. If you're the kind of person who loves browsing stall after stall of almost identical-looking glass jewellery or silver-plated chokers with semi-precious stones on them then you'll be in heaven here. Otherwise, you probably won't need to spend mor than 15 minutes or so here. That said, if you're in the area on the first saturday of every month then you should pop in for a browse.

I have been to this market about 3 times now and I love the idea of local crafters being able to…read moresell their wares without necessarily having a shop to do so. However, some of the sellers are well established and also sell elsewhere in town. There are some lovely homeware and gift items such as art prints, lots of jewellery, knitted crafts, clever wooden items and ttweed purses, cafetieres etc. This market is not well advertised, as like others, I came across it by chance one day. The hall location is good for all weathers and for picking up Morningside foot traffic when the sign is out. However, the downside is that there are so many good home and giftware shops in the Morningside and Bruntsfield area, that they have a lot of competition.

Great little bookshop with a great selection of books including the classics,…read more I bought a Robert Louis Stevenson book for £2.49. definitely be visiting again soon for a rummage!

I realise there are a lot of reviews for Till's Bookshop already, but I just wanted to lend my…read moresupported and say how much I enjoy it too. This second hand book store is one of the better known in Edinburgh for a good reason. When I went in the other day I was greeted by the girl behind the desk almost immediately, before I preceded to browse in a relaxed fashion (always important in a book shop) the tall, densely packed shelves. This isn't the largest second hand shop, but it does have a great selection. In the science fiction section for example I was able to find a great number of names of classic authors that I have been meaning to catch up on for some time. They also have a extensive collection of poetry, short stories, classic fiction, screenplays, history and general nonfiction. They also have a small number of comics and (decent) graphic novels. This is a really efficient and friendly book shop that has clearly thought about its stock well. A real pleasure to peruse.

This business is in the road to Edinburgh Castle that so many tourist trek to. There is nothing…read morewrong with this establishment per se. It's one of the many businesses that cater to tourists with Scottish themed merchandise, not locally made. The locals miss the prior local business. The prices were okay, but not great.

Obviously this shop is made for tourists (like me) and has some of the best real estate in…read moreEdinburgh on the Royal Mile. Even though it is touristy, it has an extensive selection of quality scarves and other wool/cashmere products. I purchased a scarf that cost something like £30 and i absolutely love it. The wool is great quality and warm but breathable and the perfect length. There is a wide range of tartan scarves at various price points. I contemplated visiting Johnstons of Elgin but their scarves are more than I'm willing to pay since I don't get to wear it more than a few times a year in Southern California. My little scarf has gone with me to the beautiful Highlands and goes with me on every trip to Scotland or colder climates now and I'm very happy with it. Service was efficient and polite as it tends to be there.

Gift shops are my Achilles' heel, and Edinburgh has a wonderful selection of them…read more Curiouser and Curiouser is full of lovely artwork and prints, gifts and other things you never knew you needed until you walked in here. They also offer a fantastic bespoke framing service. A few years ago I was looking for a very specific size and design of mirror. I asked for help on Twitter and Curiouser and Curiouser saw this and replied offering their services. I went into the shop, they made a framed mirror exactly as I wanted and of fantastic quality. If you are ever around Broughton Street area then I definitely recommend you popping in here. And maybe go to Treacle for some food after :)

Why am I only just discovering this little gem today?!…read more A stop off in Edinburgh is always great fun, and a wander along Broughton St is always great. Today the highlight of the wander was coming across this place. Filled with lots of cute and wonderful things - from books on how to knit zoo animals, greetings cards, ceramics and prints and artwork with price tags that won't break the bank. It appears to be a small family business and the staff are pretty relaxed and more than happy to chat; but the dog didn't seem all that interested in what was going on. I bought some prints for my living room, a book on print-making and a ceramic bowl for my coffee table. I could easily have purchased most of this shop. So if you're in search of a special card or gift, I can't recumbent this place any higher!

Paper Tiger is one of those shops that you go in for a look, and come out buying something you…read moreprobably don't need. Paper Tiger has been trading in Edinburgh for over twenty five years so they are obviously doing something right. They sell a wide range of unique cards, stationery, wrapping paper, notebooks, diaries, books and gifts. The stock is all top quality, and is reasonably priced too. The cards are so much more than your cheesy Hallmark cards, perfect for that special someone. The gift wrap selection is amazing, my favourite is the map of the world design. They also have a wide selection of different notebooks. Notebooks for things you didn't even know you needed a notebook for! I bought a travel journal from here and its great, its such a pretty book and of a good quality. They have a good range of travel goods. Funny little things like little packs of travel soap and travel kits. There is also a few travel books which are quite interesting. The gift selection is full of random little knick knacks which are usually quite humorous but you will probably know someone who each gift is perfect for. Its hard to describe how nice everything they sell is, its much better to go to the shop and have a browse. I challenge you not to buy something!

Don't be put off by the slightly budget-looking name sign of this shop. Inside it's pretty much…read morewall-to-wall and floor-to-ceiling with anything vaguely related to gift wrapping, stationery and gift cards that you could ever need. Almost like a version of Paperchase that doesn't take itself too seriously, yet still stocks good quality stuff. But although it's good quality, it's pretty pricey as is usually the case with specialist shops. If the person you're buying for is really into writing and would appreciate or even notice that it's good stuff. Otherwise, if it's just for a run-of-the mill birthday card you might not want to bother.