Shops / partner post

Bristol’s Indie Gift Shops

By Bristol24/7  Friday Nov 26, 2021

Bristol city centre is unique in its melting pot of indie shops sitting alongside international mega-brands. The shopping experience is unique and distinctly…us.

We have joined forces with Bristol City Centre BID to showcase the best the city has to offer while we’re all looking for that unique gift. From Park Street to Broadmead, head out to support locals in the lead up to the festive season.

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Just a three-minute walk from the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery is the iconic Bristol Guild of Applied Art, more locally known as ‘The Guild’. This vibrant store is spread over three floors and features everything from hand-carved jewellery to food hampers to locally crafted cards, toys and kitchen paraphernalia for even the most over-equipped cooking fan. This place is Christmas in a nutshell, so brave the hill and grab yourself something special.

Sobeys

Ruby Dahl of Sobey’s

Park Street is full of quirky independent clothing shops, and another favourite of ours is the marvellous Sobeys Vintage Clothing, which specialises in fantastic vintage and reworked clothing. They revamp old garments to make cute mini rucksacks, cushions, and vibrant gifts perfect for Christmas. Head down and get into the Christmas spirit with their dazzling shopfront display of handbags, footwear, and scarves to cater for accessory lovers.

Illustrate 

Whilst you’re in the area, the new independent, environmentally-driven store Illustrate, also on Park Street, prides itself on supporting emerging talent by transforming art into fashion. It works with several creatives, including Bristol-based Ella Bryden and Matt Miller, to produce exclusively decorated products. If you are looking for delightful stocking fillers, this is the place to go with their bath soaps, sketchbooks, cherrywood phone cases and ceramic travel cups.

St Nicks Market

The Moorish Cafe is in the glass arcade at St Nick’s Market – photo: Martin Booth

Established in 1743, St Nicks Market is known city-wide as Bristol’s oldest and best loved market. The Georgian arcade is a maze of 60 dynamic and peculiar stalls selling various gifts, including fashion, accessories, books, records and food. Don’t miss Vicbricart, which sells work from a self-taught artist from Bristol working with several media including oils, watercolour pen and ink. Or check out World Fossils, with a range of geological wonders hand sourced from around the world.

Stanfords

Stanfords have been selected as one of 8 independent bookshops.

Stanfords is a Bristol staple and a must-visit in the festive period. Filled to the brim with maps, travel books and other travel accessories since it was established in 1853. If you need a present for those adventure and armchair travellers, look no further than this shop on Corn Street. Go on a rabbit hole through Bristol present with books such as ‘111 Places in Bristol That You Shouldn’t Miss’ or delve deep into the city’s past with ‘Bristol in 1480 – a Medieval Merchant City’. You also won’t miss their extraordinary map of Bristol at 1:5,000 scale, covering the entire staircase wall from the ground floor to the basement.

Vinegar Hill

Found on Queens Road is another treasure trove of carefully curated homeware and gifts, eclectic lifestyle products and stylish clothing. Decorate your home for Christmas with an LED mini lighthouse to create that cosy atmosphere or even some eye-catching petite gnomes with LED beards. Vinegar Hill has gifts for the whole family and is definitely worth a visit this Christmas.

Diana Porter

This October is special for the shop, as it marks the 25th anniversary of Diana’s ‘Sibyls’ collection of 21 pendants, each etched with a different affirmative word. The collection was originally created for her degree show and has been a cornerstone of her jewellery career ever since – photo: Bristol24/7

Finally, something to put a twinkle in anyone’s eye, a classic independent Bristol jeweller. Diana Porter was launched in 1993 by one of Bristol’s very own leading figures of British fashion design, the late, great Diana Porter. Her legacy is carried on today through her fantastic team of jewellers’ who curate timeless jewellery that can be enjoyed season after season. The store also showcases work from over 80 top jewellery designers, alongside Diana’s entire collections. Make this a Christmas to remember with the perfect jewellery gift for that special someone.

Bristol City Centre Business Improvement District is a not-for-profit organisation working to make Bristol an even better place for those who work, study, live and spend leisure time in the city. For more information, visit www.bristolcitycentrebid.co.uk 

Main photo: Diana Porter

Read more: Best places in Bristol for an after-work cocktail

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