Vintage shops in London 

Hey,

Thanks for the clarifications. Well, London has numerous shops that sell second hand stuff especially when it comes to books and clothes. Since you would like to buy books on fantasy fiction, I'm going to recommend you visit the following bookshops.

• Oxfam Bookshops: There are 110 Oxfam bookshop all across London, however, the biggest UK shops are in Glasgow and Blooms bury in London, each of which stock around 12,000 titles, but most of them have between 6,000 and 8,000 titles. 

This Oxfam is a bookstore, as the categorizing above implies. Hmmm what to say about it besides "It has books, tomes, novels, literature, reading material, bound documents..." Maybe I could say "It also has a wide selection beers on tap and wines in bottles," but then I"d be fibbing.

There is a surprising good selection of books here well organized into section. There was even one fashion book, which is unusual for secondhand bookshops. There was a good chunk of travel guides and, of course, infinite walls of fiction.

The prices are good, the money helps out those in need, what more motivation do you need? (Okay, but a free ice cream waiting at the other end, but let"s ignore that for now because there"s no such thing as a free lunch and you"d be taking money away from those who need it more.)

To identify which store you'd like to visit click here and locate all the outlets.

Church Street Bookshop : It is located on Stoke Newington Church Street, Stoke Newington. See below what the visitor to Church Street Bookshop has to say about it:
 

This second hand bookshop is excellent and unless you are unable to read it would be quite difficult to leave this shop without finding at least one book to tickle your fancy. Unless I need or want something specific I always get my books from here because it is ridiculously cheap and they have a great selection. I picked up an unread copy of Rudyard Kipling"s The Jungle Book today for 1.95 Pounds, the recommended price on the back was 7.95 pounds.

Between this place and Amazon there really is no need to step foot in Borders ever again apart from to peruse their magazines in the cafe free of charge and use the toilet. Added bonus is the man behind the counter who is a quintessential English gent and listens to classical music on radio 4, singing along like Toad of Toad Hall.

Primrose Hill Books, see what the visitors have to say about it:

Primrose Hill Books, located on Regent's Park Rd, Primrose Hill. See below, what the visitor has to say about it:

Primrose Hill Books has a great range of books, from fiction to health to kids to sci-fi, it"s got something for everyone. And is another reminder why independent retailers are SO much better than chains! Shop here! Your book will read so much better!

Books for Amnesty International, located on Convent Garden, see what the visitor has to say about it:

Books for Amnesty are a small chain of well-stocked secondhand bookshops. Through the sale of donated books they raise money for Amnesty as well as generating awareness of Amnesty"s work and campaign.
Hammersmith is home of the London shop, their books are generally in a very good condition and they stock everything from a mix of easy reading and literature, new writers from around the world, foreign language fiction and non-fiction. They have hardbacks and paperbacks ranging from 5 pounds, also interesting to check out their eclectic section of collectable books and vinyl records. The large biography section is particularly popular. They receive donations of books, dvds, and vinyl records on a daily basis, which means their stock is constantly renewed with new titles. Also bring any donation you would like to make and contribute to their cause

If you want to take back home the author signed copies (first editions) of fantasy fiction authors, you can visit Goldsboro Bookstore, located in Cecil court.

London offers a lot of vintage clothing stores and you can find the top 20 stores by clicking here.

I would like to recommend the 2 best places to shop for vintage clothing suiting your budget:

• Absolute Vintage :

This is the best vintage shop in London because its not ridicously overpriced like lots of vintage shops are. Its massive and you can spend hours getting lost in one of the many rails. Shoes and bags aplently, its definitely a great place to waste a few hours on a Saturday afternoon. Shopping is thirsty work, and there Brick Lane boozers just around the corner!

Absolute Vintage is stacked full of vintage clothes, shoes, bags, belts, hats, pretty much everything you could want from a Vintage clothes shop.

They regularly bring in new stock to try and keep up with the increasing demand for vintage clothing.

I"ve always found the staff helpful and friendly, but I know some can have a too-cool-for-school attitude and could be described as aloof at best.

As a lady with big feet, vintage shoes in size 7 are hard to come by. Absolute Vintage has an entire section devoted for those in need of big sizes, and as long as you get there before the crush at the weekend, you can often bag yourself a gem.

• Three pound shop:

A second-hand shop which I can only describe as, affectionately, a jumble sale with hangers. The story is that they buy second hand clothing in bulk, sell off the obvious pieces with value and then try and shift the surplus in this wonderful shop. Although named The Three Pound Shop (although this may be the unofficial name, I'm not aware of the real name) few items are actually three pounds, in fact they are even less, 1pounds or 2pounds. Belts, often real leather, can even be bought for as little as 50p. This is definitely a shop for a good rummage- I always find items that I love and actually wear regularly. As with all second-hand clothes I do however recommend a good wash or two.
Renowned by those in the know for its bargain logo sports jackets yet loved by those with a penchant for individuality, you can turn your nose up at it and stalk off to the garish Arndale or you can delve right in and steal yourself a bargain.
(I myself bought an emerald Van Laack blouse today for a pound- a continental brand which is sold in Harrods)

Check out this link to locate other Pound shops.

I would also like to inform you about the Oxfam store, located on Warwick way that sells second hand books and clothes as well. The nearest tube station is Victoria.

You could check this site for information on the London tube and Bus routes.

If you need any further information about where you you could possibly stay or eat or anything else do let me know and I'll be glad to help you.

Hope you find all the books you're looking for.

Until next time!

Cheers

Neha