Great shops for women's fashion

This beautiful locale in Sant Gervasi – where white walls and tiled floors dominate – is the base of operations for Sayan. The Balinese influence is undeniable: silks, embroidery and colours abound, and there's even more to admire in the display case full of scarves at the entrance. In the shop, almost all of the fabric has the Sayan tag: Soledad designs the clothes and much of it is made in Indonesia. All is practical and perfect for urban living with a definite exotic flavour.

Elena Castaudi and Michele Gilli are the unbeatable team behind On Land, a multi-brand store that is sure to please both men and women. For her, clothes by young, Barcelona designers like Name and Who. For him, interesting options by the likes of Josep Abril, On Land and Gorni Kramer, the latter two designed by the store's owners. Suits, shirts, t-shirts and casual trousers that offer a solid foundation for your wardrobe without losing sight of the trends.

In this little shop just off Avinguda Diagonal and Via Augusta you'll find urban, feminine clothes from such well-travelled brands as the French Sessùn or Belgian Bellerose, Temps de Cérises and Des Petits Hauts.

Labienplantá is a shop that is constantly reinventing itself, starting with its front window. Although Andriana Fajeda has a weakness for Scandinavian brands, she also embraces many local designers. Different brands come and go, but of late you might find Alexandre Nedderman, the label that Alba Gràcia and Carola Alexandre share, El Colmillo de Morsa, and Borne by Elise Berger on the racks. In the accessories area, the quartz necklaces by Lo Lou and the wicker baskets by Twenty Violets stand out.

Located in a light and airy space in Eixample, this shop run by Cristina and Judith Serra stocks exclusive brands such as Marc by Marc Jacobs, Neil Barrett, Dsquared and Forte Forte. The accessories and perfumes by names like Nez à Nez and Miller Harris are just some of the most tempting items on display. Customer service here is with a personal touch, a custom inherited from the first Serra Claret store, a tailor-made dress shop that opened in Manresa in 1933.

With vintage touches to its decoration, and its display of dresses on three floors this shop feels just a bit like a dolls house. You'll find a coffee shop in one corner.

Timeless, modern, tactile and streamlined: four adjectives that define the design principles of COS, the high-end collections of clothing giant H&M. The store on Passeig de Gracia sells clothes and accessories for men and women that are marked by clean lines, Nordic and Asian influences and a subdued colour palette. Guaranteed to surprise.

Barcelona now has its first Scotch & Soda store, a place where followers of this Dutch brand can find all the basic, non-seasonal items for their wardrobe. Drawing on a wide range of influences the clothes are full of detail, though always with one eye firmly set on the vintage.

Pinc Store is the shop, workshop and creative lab of Ana Tichy, a designer who works with and reworks sewing patterns, stretches the boundaries of the textiles she uses, and also includes embroidery in her collections.

A manifest, a set of ethics, a price: none of the garments or accessories found at GreenLifeStyle break the principles of sustainability, recycling and fair trade. Another unwritten rule is support for design. We love the Milch jumpsuits, the knitted pieces from Caro-e, the colours of the Maronskis and the silhouettes from Las Racines du Ciel. Dress for winter with a hat and a knit sweater from Carolina Simón.