Shopping

Leather bag at RelaxGarden

No-one
Owned by style-setting siblings Teresa and Nick Letchford, the brains behind hip bar DreamBagsJaguarShoes, No-one is very much part of the Hoxton scene and its range of cool labels, jeans and sneakers caters to local tastes. For autumn/winter 2006/07, the round-up includes cult favourites PPQ, Danish designer Henrik Vibskov and Norwegian-born, London-based Siv Stoldal. For denim aficionados there is a good selection from Swedish label Cheap Monday (skinny jeans, £40). The store has a friendly vibe aided by the coffee shop and personable staff.
No-one, 1 Kingsland Rd, E2 (020 7613 5314/www.no-one.co.uk) Old St tube/rail. Open Mon-Fri 11am-7pm, Sat 11am-6pm, Sun 11am-5pm. Feature continues

Per Lui
Four stores (in Uxbridge, Watford, Enfield and Luton) and a clearance shop (also in Watford) make Per Lui a shopping mecca for the fashion-conscious suburban male. It boasts outfits for most tastes: Hackett, Paul Smith, Pringle and Jeffery West shoes for the quintessential English dresser; Penguin, Lyle and Scott and a nifty range of Lacoste footwear for the geeky urbanite; and, more predictably, a healthy selection of Ted Baker, Duffer and G-Star denim.
Per Lui, The Chimes Shopping Centre, 197-198 Uxbridge High St, UB8 1LD (01895 810066/www.perlui.co.uk) Uxbridge tube. Open Mon-Wed, Fri, Sat 9am-6pm, Thur 9am-8pm, Sun 11am-5pm.

The Pineal Eye
This Japanese-run, avant-garde store has an impressive range of fashion from current and future names – but an air of superior disinterest among the staff creates an uninviting atmosphere. Try not to let this detract too much from the impressive stock. Relatively mainstream names such as Dior Homme, Raf Simons, Yohji Yamamoto, Viktor & Rolf and Comme des Garçons sit alongside Bernhard Willhelm, Lutz, Boudicca, Henrik Vibskor and Wolf. This is certainly a haunt for fashion folk, where the more established a name becomes, the less likely it is to be stocked.
The Pineal Eye, 49 Broadwick St, W1 (020 7434 2567) Piccadilly Circus tube. Open Mon-Fri 11am-7pm, Sat 12noon-7pm, Sun 1-5pm.

Precious
Owned by former Harvey Nichols and Harrods fashion buyer, Kate Evans, Precious is an elegant little boutique stocking mid-priced and designer names such as Gharani Strok and Diane von Furstenberg, plus high-end accessories from the likes of Megan Park and Mulberry. Alongside the fashion are gorgeous perfumes and scented candles from her mother’s shop: Jane Flanders – close by on Columbia Road.
Precious, 16 Artillery Passage, E1 (020 7377 6668) Liverpool St tube/rail. Open Mon-Wed 11am-6pm, Thur, Fri 11am-7pm, Sat 11am-5pm.

Press
You have to ring the bell for entry to this repository of Primrose Hill chic, but don’t let that put you off – there’s a friendly, welcoming vibe inside. The interior is larger than you might imagine, with three rooms containing covetable womenswear and accessories, such as low-key casuals by Ella Moss and Vanessa Bruno, flirty dresses by Burn ’n’ Violet, Chloé bags and shoes, Belstaff boots, Missoni scarves and Acne jeans, plus a few vintage items. Press, 3 Erskine Rd, NW3 (020 7449 0081) Chalk Farm tube. Open Mon-Wed, Fri, Sat 10am-6.30pm, Thur 10am-7pm, Sun 12noon-6pm.

RelaxGarden
Away from edgy Kingsland Road, Relax Garden lives up to its name. Buyer Eriko Nagata sources most of the stock in Japan and Italy, and also co-designs the shop’s own RelaxGarden label, which is the real highlight here. These simple, feminine separates are fantastic value – you can pick up a pretty, vintage-style top for just £35 or a jersey dress for £40. Alongside, you’ll also find a changing selection of stock from little-known labels, such as customised vintage clothing from Les Briqu’ a braque by Japanese designer Koko Yamase and semi-precious jewellery by London-based Millie & Me (£25-£80).
RelaxGarden, 40 Kingsland Rd, E2 (020 7033 1881/www.relaxgarden.com) Old Street tube/rail. Open Mon-Wed 1-7pm, Thur, Fri 1-8pm, Sat, Sun 12noon-6pm.