As I discovered I am not the only person who likes to shop in London. I am not sure if there is a topic about this. So I ask all who like to shop what their favorite shops in London are. Because of the atmosphere, the age, the things you can buy there or just because people are so friendly there...

Oh so many possibilities - I live in London, far too many too pick from.

Graff have exceptional diamonds, Brown's a fabulous range of all the major designers as well as far smaller, emerging ones. Harrods and Harvey Nichols are without doubt the best stores in London. Selfridges quite simply cannot compete! Your question is too broad, I could continue with several thousand words, but will refrain.

Have a look at the recent thread called Fashionable London Hotels. (click on my name to find it).
Joseph for clothes (they have the best trousers)
Harvey Nichols for more clothes
Smythson for stationary

London is one of the the best "shopping cities" out there, and has so many types of stores to shop in and see.

As a seasoned "POWER SHOPPER" Please provide more information so that I can pass on some specific information to you.
Are you fashion oriented, what is your lifestyle? Antique lover, vintage lover? into clothes, cashmere, traditional, etc?
Are you interested in only the "traditional direction" or are you into seeing new & different?
I love to shop in London. Unfortunately it is not the place for "opportunistic buys" these days, but the wealth of shops is fabulous.

Trendgirl, to be honest, I looove shopping, but part of the thing is the atmosphere in the shop. I always like to shop for books, stationary, handbags, shoes and clothes, but not vintage, classic with the special something...

Oh my... now here's an excuse for a long post from me! Not that I normally need one...
Some of my favourites:
VV Rouleaux - the most awesome selection of ribbons, feathers, fabric flowers...
Divertimenti for kitcheny things
Designers' Guild on the King's Road. I think Tricia Guild does amazing things with colour
Jo Malone
Fortnum and Mason
Liberty - amazing building
Harrod's - of course you just have to go see it
Accessorize - it's everywhere; the cutest, inexpensive little beaded purses
SpaceNK - I love makeup stores
Muji - from Japan - some basic clothes, lots of little thingslike organizing stuff, desk things, etc.
Paul Smith - beautiful store in Westbourne Grove area
Rachel Riley - sort of '50s style women's clothes, also kids' stuff
The Cross - all kinds of little things, designer wear, hair things, home things... $$$ and kind of out of the way by Holland Park
Aimé - things from France
Cath Kidston - flowery fabric things for the home
Egg - it's in a little mews house in Knightsbridge, hard to find.. loose cotton and silky things, like tunics and drawstring trousers... not stuff I wear but it's an experience going there.

On this next trip I want to check out e.g. Butterfly which is supposed to be like The Cross but closer to where I'll be staying.
There are a zillion more places I love but that' enough for now.

Any recommendations for women's shoe shops in London?

I can never have too many shoes...

That's a good list taggie; where and what is Butterfly?
Accessorize! I've found some great bags there. My daughters love it too.
Heidi Klein, Westbourne Grove; a one-stop shop for anything you need on holiday, from bikini to fake tan.
Shanghai Tang on Sloane Street (but you probably have this in the US?)
Butler & Wilson on South Molton Street for costume jewellery, bags, accessories.
Links of London for silver jewellery and gifts; their sweetie bracelet is great. Get one with London-themed charms for a unique souvenir. Good christening gifts too. The one on Sloane Street (close to Sloane Square) is almost next door to Jo Malone (perfumes, body lotions), then there's Pickett (scarves, cashmere, leather) and opposite you'll find Smythson for stationary.

I am no great shopper, but from notes of places off the beaten path that Fodors readers have liked I make this list

West

Portobello Road market. Weekends. Notting Hill Gate tube

R Garcia and Sons, W11. Spanish delicatessen. 248-250 Portobello Road, W11 (020-7221 6119) Notting Hill Gate tube. Tue-Sat 10am-6pm. Chorizo Iberico £1.55 per lb, Nuñez prado organic olive oil £7.50 per half litre.

Ray Harris. Designer clothes. Tue-Fri 1pm-6pm, Sat 11am-6pm 73 Westbourne Park Road W2 (020-7221 8052) Westbourne Park or Royal Oak tubes. Bags, for example, cost from around £85.

Celia Birtwell. Printed cloth. 71 Westbourne Park Road, W2 (020-7221 0877) Royal Oak tube. Mon-Fri 10am-1pm, 2pm-5pm.

John Sandoe Books, SW3. Especially art books. 10 Blacklands Terrace,
SW3 (020-7589 9473) Mon-Sat 9.30am-5.30pm, Wed 9.30am-7.30pm. Sloane Square tube.

Peter Jones, Sloane Square, SW1. Upmarket department store for bright young things

Conran store for great designs in furniture and household articles. 81 Fulham Road. Sloane Square tube

Harvey Nichols store, watching the people. Great for lunching alone in the fifth floor café. Knightsbridge

Mayfair

North West of Berkley Square
Gray's Antique Market, 58 Davies Street

North East of Berkley Square
Savile Row tailors
Sotheby s auctioneers 34-35 New Bond Street

South East
Royal Arcade and Burlington Arcade. Two Victorian arcades for expensive shopping.

South of Piccadilly (St James)
Hatchard's Bookshop, 187 Piccadilly
Fortnum and Mason, grocers to Royalty, 181 Piccadilly
Lewin s outfitters and Paxton s cheese dairy on Jermyn Street
Piccadilly Arcade
Christie s Auctioneers, 8 King Street
Lock s hatters and Lobb s shoemakers on St James Street

Heals store has I Coloniali soap the smell of which makes my knees go all wobbly. I give it to my beaux. 196 Tottenham Court Road. Goodge Street tube

Liberty store. Regent Street and Margaret Street. Oxford Circus tube

Smith's Snuff Shop, 74 Charing Cross Road, WC2. Leicester Square tube

Bloomsbury. These notes draw upon a long piece written about 2002 by Larry Lain, [email protected]/, author of London for Families and Paris for Families.

James Smith (picture here):
http://anthonyjhicks.com/ajh/picture...56D7C004D2535/. Buy an umbrella, shooting stick or cane. My wife's most recent came from them and they fitted it to her on the spot. Holborn tube
Bloomsbury

Spitalfields old market on Sundays (especially if you are into street fashion). Petticoat Lane market nearby was a let down! Liverpool Street tube

Southwark and South Bank

Hayes Galleria beside the Thames has some nice shops, etc.

Borough food market on Thursday and on Saturday morning - wonderful and a much more interesting place than Waitrose or Sainsburys to watch Londoners buy their food! They sell wonderful deli food from all over - cheeses, coffee, pork pies, fish, hot venison burgers, olives, you name it, great atmosphere even if you don't buy. There are a stand that serves chorizo sausage sandwiches the best I ever had and a cafe where you can buy the best bubble and squeak in England. It is a true London market, with Londoners and tourists.

The Bramah tea and coffee museum, Southwark Street, is a good place to find teapots and the museum is fun. London Bridge tube

Lambeth. The far end of Westminster Bridge

Downbeat & What The Butler Wore, SE1. Pop records and 60s and 70s clothes. 131 Lower Marsh, SE1 (Downbeat: 020-7928 9877; What the Butler Wore: 020-7261 1353) Waterloo tube. Mon-Sat 10.30am-5.30pm. Clothing from £20, depending on condition.

Radio Days, SE1. 1920s to 1980s vintage magazines; clothes that range from hand-sewn 1930s gowns to mass-produced 1970s flares; glasses, soda siphons, radios and other original pieces. 87 Lower Marsh, SE1 (020-7928 0800) Lambeth North tube. Mon-Sat 11am-5pm. A 1950s copy of Vogue costs around £25; old radios from £100.

Music. Fusion in Brixton.

Oxfam shops all over London. The telephone directory lists one or two in every area. I found some great souvenirs and books. Too many things in fact! Better than a flea market because they are inexpensive and everything is in great shape. This last trip, found about 30 books, 2 tea sets, 2 teapots, some beautiful scarves etc.
http://www.oxfam.org.uk/what_you_can_do/shop/index.htm, then shop finder

Paperchase store has amazing crocodile and alligator embossed paper for about two pounds a sheet that makes fabulous coverings for boxes, etc. At 197 Oxford Street, Whiteleys in Queensway, 441 Strand, 213 Tottenham Court Road, and Euston, Liverpool Street, Paddington and Waterloo stations

I have a similarly mixed bag for shopping in the suburbs: please ask for it if you are to go out there. Welcome to London.

[email protected]

Penhaligon's on Beauchamp Place (Knightsbridge) for perfume (pick me up some Artemesia while you're there--I'm out!)

Tulips - good suggestions. I left Shanghai Tang off my list but like it a lot (I'm in Canada; our selection of shops seems pretty boring to me but we always feel that way about the place we're used to I guess). The address of e.g. Butterfly is 70 new Kings Rd. SW6, in Fulham (parson's Green tube). I don't know if I'll have time to go or not. FYI there's also a Butler & Wilson on Fulham Rd. which is the one I've been to.
Hi Vorkuta! Here's a link to a thread I posted in with some shoe info - all pretty pricey. I must come across as being made of money, which I'm not!! Esp. due to the value of the Cdn $.
http://www.fodors.com/forums_reg/threadselect.jsp?fid=2
(I think the shoe selection in Vancouver is pretty dismal - so many chains).

Oh.... this is making me crazy to get to London! I keep thinking of more and more shops!

Here are some quotes from Where to Wear London about e.g. Butterfly.
"Decorated in pale blue the small shop is laid out like a cluttered boudoir with one-off skirts spread on a day-bed, tops on hangers dangling from the ceiling and vintage pieces scattered about..." It sounds divine but I often find things are kinda disappointing when I actually get there - I build stuff up in my head waaaaay too much!

For something different, the London Silver Vaults, located on Chancery Lane. Room after room of beautiful silver, old and new, along with pewter and china. It's a great place to be on a warm day, too.

For fabric gifts, Liberty is excellent: lots of nice cosmetic bags and the like. Selfridge is fun for inexpensive costume jewelry--two of my favorite necklaces came from one of their sales, the necklaces that friends have most admired.

Bendicks of Mayfair for chocolates, especially the divine bittermints.

Partridge (off Sloane Square) for gourmet delicacies and picnic things--the York ham is fabulous.

For major gifts, Fortnum and Mason, which also has a fine selection of gourmet foods and teas.

For books, Hatchards, on Piccadilly.

For chic rainwear, head straight to Burberry.

This is definitely a thread for the printer.

Ben Haines, thanks esp. for Celia Birtwell reference, I saw her show at the V&A last year, would love to look at her fabric designs even if I can't think of a project in which to use them.

A favorite of my own, as a NYer a bit stunned by the cost of things in London,
is Topshop, supposing you have the stamina for a giant airplane-hangar-like (someone else's reference}mega-store.

Though the overall impression is trendy stuff for young women (my own permanent age group is 45+), if you like the challenge of hunting around there are great things to be found suitable for a more adult wardrobe - great design at good prices.

Last year there were many little structured coats in great fabrics - tapestries, textured wool, poplin - on the Jackie-Kennedy/Julie Christie era model . Not more than $100. I'm seeing them here this year & wish I'd bought a couple in London last fall.

You can find re-iterations of the cliche that the clothes there are throwaways, but I think that is old news & not 100% true in my experience. They get noted designers to do things for them. (You could look at their website, where you'll see about 5% of what's there.)

There is a thread on here called "What to buy in London" I was looking at it the other day. It was very entertaining

Thanks for all the answers, Tulips, Taggie, TrendGirl, MelJ, Mr. Haines and all the others! Elizabeth is right, I will print this out to take it to my major shopping trip with a friend in London soon. Please, keep the ideas flowing (is this the right phrase?)...

Neals' Yard in Covent Garden.

Harrods food hall.

H&M - another huge cheap, but popular clothes store

ttt!

Geo.Trumper for mens toiletries and accesories - Curzon and Jermyn Sts. Caviar House - Piccadilly. T M Lewin - Shirts - Jermyn St and other locations for mens and womens shirts and accesories - good value/quality ratio -seems to be half price sale there every few months to generate cash flow. But what ever happened to that wonderful store Kent and Curwen on Piccadilly, where I used to buy my cricket jumpers and banker's ties. Oh and Casa Pupo down around the corner from Lower Sloan Street near Pimilico. Hope its still there.

"cricket jumpers and banker's ties"

Thank goodness that shop went.