Christmas at Camden Market

The last thing you want in the run-up to Christmas is to be elbowing your way through bargain hunters. No! Save your crowd-surfing skills for night-time partying, and avoid waiting nervously for online orders to arrive on time. Instead, get all the festive goodies you need at London’s best-loved market – Camden.


From one-off fashions to crafts and jewellery, Camden Market provides a rare chance to buy straight from the designer-maker who created that object you’ve just fallen in love with. If you want something saucy for your other half, a precious treat for mum and a showstopper prezzie for your best mate, you can tick everyone off your list in a weekend morning or leisurely afternoon at colourful Camden.


From new threads at established favourites like Cyberdog to classic designs in eyewear at Arckiv and affordable vintage at Lost ’n’ Found, there’s something special to suit every taste. VA Garments creates contemporary urban tailoring for men and women, Plain Bear’s hand-printed casualwear has a cool, minimalist but fun aesthetic, and Forms is the place for unusual accessories, homeware and stationery. You’ll find true vintage gems from 1900 to 1960 at Scarlet Rage, and if it’s stylish handmade shoes you want, head to Shoe Embassy.


Camden Market is the flip side to big-brand shopping, with its own North London vibe. Take your time browsing – from paintings to make-up and mirrors to designer specs, chances are that the guy selling it has a passion for what you’re looking at. Every quarter of the market has its own personality. There’s vintage threads at the Stables Market, music, films and games around the Lock Market, streetwear and accessories at Union Street Market and the spirit of independence at every shop and stall in between.


The popular Words sells prints with quirky and cheeky Scrabble tile captions, Phototypewriter will turn your own words into art while you wait, and market stalwart Village Games is a treasure trove of toys, puzzles, magic tricks and traditional board games. The Modfather is your primary source for classic British street style, and not-for-profit collective We Make London can help you tick off your gift list with original art, jewellery, homeware and kids’ clothes.


Camden’s bar scene is perfect for kicking back once you’ve done your shopping, and there’s fabulous food to keep you going or make an evening of it. At the Global Kitchen stalls in the West Yard you can take your pick of cuisine from Japanese to mac ’n’ cheese, Camden Sweet Company sells traditional treats like mint humbugs and their own Chocolate Underground bar, with a handy tube map on the wrapper, or treat yourselves to a five star-rated gourmet ice cream at Chin Chin Laboratorists.


You can refuel in style with a juicy burger made from rare breed, aged Yorkshire beef at fully licensed Honest Burgers, and there are exciting Mexican flavours from breakfast burritos to blowout dinners – and killer margaritas – at friendly Cafe Chula. After shopping, catch up with mates over a well-chosen bottle of Belgian beer at the Lockside Lounge overlooking the Regent’s Canal, or meet up at Gilgamesh for a meal and a cocktail and stay on for their weekend Studio club. Doesn’t that sound much better than only just surviving the West End squeeze? This year you might even enjoy getting your Christmas shopping done. Find out more at www.camdenmarket.com.