{"id":923332,"date":"2017-12-13T23:43:27","date_gmt":"2017-12-13T20:43:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=923332"},"modified":"2017-12-13T23:43:27","modified_gmt":"2017-12-13T20:43:27","slug":"a-guide-to-londons-eclectic-markets-and-what-to-buy-at-each","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=923332","title":{"rendered":"A Guide to London\u2019s Eclectic Markets (and What to Buy at Each)"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Travel<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A Guide to London\u2019s Eclectic Markets (and What to Buy at Each)<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n
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By <\/span>Sahar Khan<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n

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Photo: Alamy<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n
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London is a city of markets. Dozens of bazaars populate the city\u2019s streets, where stalls overflow with every manner of goods and necessities. The markets are woven into the city\u2019s fabric, adding character to each neighborhood. More than just a place of business, they count as a collection of social gathering spots complete with food carts and gastropubs that cater to pre- and post-shopping appetites. Luckily at this time of year, the markets are also a holiday shopper\u2019s paradise. On the lookout for handmade ceramics for your mom? Check. An original Johnny Cash poster for a music-obsessed friend? Check. A \u201960s bubble skirt for yourself? Check. In time for the festive season, we present a breakdown of the city\u2019s must-visit markets and what to purchase at each, from the perfect stocking stuffers for hard-to-please loved ones to a big-ticket item to gift yourself.<\/p>\n

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\"Borough<\/span><\/div>\n
Borough Market<\/span>Photo: Alamy<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Borough Market<\/strong>
What to Buy: Specialty grub like organic mushroom p\u00e2t\u00e9 and artisanal cheeses
Open Monday to Saturday; open daily in December<\/em>
For those in search of gastronomic satisfaction, this ancient market\u2014it\u2019s been in operation for a whopping 1,000 years\u2014is a food lover\u2019s mecca. Find handmade biscuits (cookies, in American parlance) at Cinnamon Tree Bakery, charcuterie from South Tyrol at Alpine Deli, and fresh produce from Kent at Chegworth Valley, all located steps from London Bridge. For a taste of the exotic, try Temptings for Punjabi chutneys and pickles and Ethiopian Flavours for authentic Ethiopian cuisine. Get your gingerbread man\u2013making skills up to par for the holidays at Bread Ahead, a bakery and baking school, and impress family and friends with the perfect eggnog with ingredients from Spice Mountain. In case that goes awry, stock up on wines from the family-run Cartwright Brothers.<\/p>\n

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\"Broadway<\/span><\/div>\n
Broadway Market<\/span>Photo: Alamy<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Broadway Market<\/strong>
What to Buy: Furniture
Open Saturdays only<\/em>
Furniture and home goods are under-the-radar gems at this South Hackney mainstay known for its East End independent fashion brands and food stalls. Start off at the signless Broadway Retro, sandwiched between Pavilion Bakery and a jewelry store, where a pleasing jumble of bric-a-brac ranges from 1940s industrial lights to \u201970s teacups. At Fabrications, cushions are covered in recycled textiles. Meanwhile, at Arch 389, tucked under a Victorian arched pavilion, a collection of vendors specialize in vintage, one-of-a-kind furnishings from mid-century dressing tables to Tiffany-color glass lamps.<\/p>\n

Camden Lock Market<\/strong>
What to Buy: Music-inspired wares
Open daily<\/em>
Camden is known as London\u2019s punk heart, and its local market lives up to the neighborhood\u2019s reputation. Every weekend, about 100,000 visitors haunt the narrow halls of Camden Lock Market, housed in a former stables above Regent\u2019s Canal. Music and its accoutrements take center stage here. Discover records from Elvis and The Smiths, gramophones at antiques stores, and guitars at Camden Guitars on Fire, which also offers music lessons. In keeping with the rock \u2019n\u2019 roll lifestyle, stores like Urban Gift Gallery sell street art\u2013inspired works and clothing shops hawk tees printed with the likenesses of David Bowie and Camden daughter Amy Winehouse. For a personalized touch, grab a pair of hand-painted sneakers at Koko Art, where artists will custom-style your kicks.<\/p>\n

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\"Columbia<\/span><\/div>\n
Columbia Road Flower Market<\/span>Photo: Alamy<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Columbia Road Flower Market<\/strong>
What to Buy: Flowers of every variety
Open Sundays only<\/em>
A riot of color and fragrance greets visitors at this popular alfresco market that peddles thousands of flowers every Sunday. Stop and smell the roses, as well as hydrangeas, silverleaf, and sunflowers bright enough to put Van Gogh to shame. Prepare arrangements for your Christmas dinner centerpiece or buy a bouquet to liven up cold winter days. The turnkey market includes stores like Mason & Painter, which stocks industrial salvaged containers artfully turned into plant pots. As befits the festive season, the market is well stocked with Christmas trees and ample mistletoe to pucker up beneath.<\/p>\n

Greenwich Market<\/strong>
What to Buy: Arts and crafts
Open daily<\/em>
Originally built in 1831 as a slaughterhouse and food market, Greenwich went through an arts and crafts renaissance in the 1980s. Its 150 stalls on the banks of the Thames continue that heritage. Ryan London sells handmade, buttery-soft leather goods, while Paper Moon carries delicately cut paper art from China. Only United Kingdom\u2013crafted goods are available at Things British, while Made in Greenwich stays hyper-local with products like jewelry and glass sculptures produced in and around the area. Get into the holiday spirit with a musical performance by students from the nearby Trinity College of Music, then head to the Artist\u2019s Quarter to browse and chat with local creatives about their process.<\/p>\n

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\"Portobello<\/span><\/div>\n
Portobello Road Market<\/span>Photo: Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Portobello Road Market<\/strong>
What to Buy: Antiques
Open daily, antiques market open only on Saturdays<\/em>
Thanks to Hugh Grant\u2019s wistful meandering around its stalls in Notting Hill<\/em>, Portobello Road might be the city\u2019s most recognizable market. Although it offers a m\u00e9lange of goods, the real treats are on show Saturdays, when antique dealers set up shop on the southern end of the street. Visitors, including celebrities like Kendall Jenner, Annie Lenox, Debbie Harry, and Hugh Grant himself, can unearth a trove of historical treasures and some not-too-valuable but charming finds like a 19th-century silver mirror from the Persian city of Shiraz; antique boxing gloves and cricket bats; vintage Disney cartoon posters; and a circa-1900 opium pipe from Japan. At famed Kleanthous, baubles like a 1920s soutier<\/em> and a ruby-studded ring from 1760 dazzle the senses. No self-respecting antiques market would be without vintage fashion, and Portobello\u2019s stalls do not disappoint, with designer dresses and handbags aplenty, including a 1950s chocolate brown leather and Lucite Schiaparelli purse that came home with me.<\/p>\n

The Vintage Market<\/strong>
What to Buy: Vintage clothing
Open Thursday to Sunday<\/em>
Located on Brick Lane, this ode to vintage fashion will satisfy both anachronistic and modern-day fashionistas. The sprawling space is jam-packed with retro clothes, shoes, handbags, jewelry, and every other manner of sartorial goods. Although most of the pieces date circa-1970s through the aughts, a dig through the stacks turns up special pieces like a delicate 1930s cream taffeta gown at Frocks A Float and a \u201990s tan C\u00e9line coat with gold clasps at Miro. At The Vintage Archive, owner Marcus Maverick specializes in Victorian- and Edwardian-era womens- and menswear. A rummage through the racks turns up an 1890s British army jacket and a museum-worthy velvet emerald green Victorian blouse that retains its original whale bone stays.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n

Source URL: https:\/\/www.vogue.com\/article\/london-markets-shopping-guide<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Travel A Guide to London\u2019s Eclectic Markets (and What to Buy at Each) By Sahar Khan December 13, 2017 Photo: Alamy London is a city of markets. Dozens of bazaars populate the city\u2019s streets, where stalls overflow with every manner of goods and necessities. The markets are woven into the city\u2019s fabric, adding character to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":923334,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[50],"class_list":["post-923332","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics","tag-vogue-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/923332","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=923332"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/923332\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/923334"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=923332"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=923332"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=923332"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}