Tash tori is brilliant. Towns like Lewes so often have cutesy little shops to buy crafting items…read morewhich are overpriced, precious, and usually have one quite rude woman who just wants your cash/ you to leave. Tash tori isn't like any if those places. For a small shop it has almost everything a crafter might need in small amounts. If you ask any of the staff for suggestions about some weird project you're working on, from making a card, to colouring the face of a puppet, they'll come up with very helpful suggestions, and you can tell straight away that they aren't offering you the highest priced option for the sake of it. It's the best arts and crafts shop I've found outside of America, and certainly one of the best in the Sussex area.

This arts and crafts shop on Station Road seems to be fairly well equipped in terms of art…read morematerials; they sell various different types of paints, pastels and coloured pencils, etc. In terms of craft materials, the focus seems to be on smaller craft items, such as foam shapes or coloured beads to be used in card making. They stock a few balls of wool, some coloured papers and cards, stickers, and so on. It doesn't appear to be terribly expensive, and they also hold some events/classes there; there was a poster in the window advertising an upcoming card making demonstration.

Every Saturdays, from 7 am to 5pm, on Upper Gardner Street there is a lot of independent stalls…read morethat sell everything from secondhand books, antiques, records, clothes to street food and vegetables. Every time I go there I usually manage to find and buy a vintage cookery book. I have now four cookery books, they were published between 1911 and 1970. On Upper Gardner Street there is also a very big two storey antique shops which I really like: North Laine Antique & Fleamarket, it is the perfect place to find old fashioned plates and cups of tea for example.

The best thing about this market is it has such a variety of stalls, which makes it much more fun…read moreto walk around than if it was just fashion or organic vegetables. This street really does come alive every Saturday with sellers and prospective buyers. I sometimes wonder how these people have the energy to move larger items like bookcases and tables from place to place, especially first thing in the morning. You've got to have a passion for it is all I can say. Personally I'm a fan of perusing the vintage jewellery, the second hand books and records, the retro clothes stalls and the cakes!

This is a small museum and art gallery. It has displays that are very boring. I hate places that…read morethink they can just shove something in a glass case and then label it. There is no interaction with the history on display here. It is an old style museum that hopefully will disappear soon. The art gallery has some interesting pieces on display. But, it is on such a small scale that it really is not worth the effort! The library is on the ground floor.

The Tunbridge Wells museum on Mount Pleasant Road is quite a cool museum. Not as exciting as the…read moretypes of museum's found in London or other major cities across the UK but it is home to some rather interesting artefacts and exhibitions. It's free so you can't complain to much and it's worth checking it our for something to do because even if you're not keen on it, you won't have wasted any money. Although I have to say that the dolls and toys section was really cool! There is also a collection of natural history and some great textiles and costumes available to view. It's not at all bad and I really recommend it because, as I said before, IT'S FREEEE!!

Drove past this place so many times I lost count and always wondered what was inside! When we…read morefinally made it in I couldn't believe it, had such amazing products of antique furniture and odds and ends as well as a cafe! Had an amazing lunch and ended up leaving with some gorgeous indian throws, will certainly be back and will bring the hubby next time, apparantly they do live music too!

This is a huge building filled with unusual and slightly exotic furniture and furnishings. Whether…read moreyou're looking for a new bed or a new kitchen table you will find many beautifully crafted articles and some quite unusual ones too. If you don't want to spend that much though it is also a lovely place to buy small gifts for Christmas including jewellery, scarves, ornamental trinkets and a nice range of greeting cards. Also on site there is a small plant shop and a cafe selling a range of teas, coffees, light lunches and a delicious section of cakes which I highly recommend.

I love visiting this shop. The plethora of colours that strike you as you enter can't do anything…read morebut inspire. The staff are friendly and willing to advise you on anything from what tools are best to use to suggesting new projects to undertake. Located in The Lanes, the atmosphere in the shop is relaxed and friendly.

the beed shop is one of my favorite places to visit! the surrounding and way its set out suits the…read moreshop, and they have a variaty of different beeds to choose from at reasonable prices.

Chameleon Gallery is another small gallery in the South Lanes, although of a more poppy variety…read morethan most of the more peculiar galleries in the area. With a pop-art style, including some very nice word-art of icons like Bowie and Guevara, Chameleon will probably appeal more to the younger generation, although the prices are a bit expensive for that. Again, this gallery is a little stuck between its style and its target, a common issue with Brighton businesses. The pieces of art on display are all very modern and somehow youthful; a lot of the pieces on display are almost semi-graffitied in style, making them much more 'cool' than a lot of the stuff available in other Brighton outlets. There are some more traditional items on display too, such as landscapes and the like, but Chameleon doesn't go in for the smaller jewelry items and the like. The location is excellent, Chameleon being perched on the edge of the South Lanes, and the shop itself is pleasantly designed: long and thin, with plenty of room to view the art, although it could do with an upstairs area, or something similar: there's definitely some expansion required here, as the pieces are all a bit close together. If you're looking to buy some cooler art, Chameleon is a great place to start. There's so much art available in Brighton, I'd recommend some window shopping before purchasing, especially considering the prices at Chameleon are quite high. Still, if you see a piece you like, go for it!

Like Art At Five, Chameleon Gallery was established in 2003 and stocks a variety of work by local…read moreand national artists. Housed in a unique, two storey building in the Lanes, it's an intimate gallery with a good atmosphere and friendly staff. There's a variety of different styles threaded throughout the gallery but the main aesthetic seems to contemporary pop art. Endearingly, there's a couple of different canvases of Brighton alongside moody landscapes, portraits and depictions of iconic figures including Morrissey, Mick Jagger and the biggest chameleon of all, David Bowie. * Chameleon's website appears to be down at the moment but I'm assuming they probably take part in the Arts Council's Own Art scheme.

This charity shop across two floors has quite lot of stock; mostly clothing. The ground floor is…read morededicated to womenswear and accessories and the upstairs in menswear. The fact that it has a lot of stuff is quite good, however it is generally a bit more pricey than other charity shops. Tops come in at around £6.50, which I'd say is about 30% more than standard charity shop prices. Plus, I pulled out a shirt that I quite like the look of, to find that it was stained all down the front and still cost £6.50. What's more, there were a couple of dresses in there going for £25. In my opinion that is too much, even if they are quite nice.

Opposite the Law Courts, this shop has some great quality stock. For top shelf quality go…read moreupstairs.fantastic. Kept spotlessly clean and no musty pongs! Good fitting facilities and very helpful staff.

This shop must be serving a very niche market, which perhaps explains why they only open three days…read morea week. Inside it's, well, a little baffling, honestly. It's not that I dislike what they're selling particularly, but it just seems very over-priced. The vibe is brand new shabby-chic mixed with a bit of imitation retro...both of which are fine, but mixed together it all feels a bit inauthentic and plastic. On the cheaper end of things, there are some nice gift ideas...candle sticks and glass sets etc., but the bigger items- furniture, tables, mirrors and the like, seem extortionate! However, its highly possible that £230 for a painted mirror is normal- maybe I'm just suffering from residual student thriftiness. Maybe.

Just off Preston Circus by the Duke of York Cinema, Ashton's is a rather mysterious and intriguing…read moreshop. It's the kind of place that you walk past and stare in the window, checking out the eclectic goods on offer like a kid looking through a sweetshop window. It's certainly not a standard antique/gift shop - they sell a range of items, but including lots of crystal, white painted furniture, pretty but stylish ornaments, paintings...... Everything they sell seems to be light coloured and a little shiny, and there is a fair amount of tat, but also some quality to be found. My friend bought a lovely antique ironwork garden furniture set here.