Sea of colour: Durham’s boutiques add a little sparkle to an
otherwise average shopping experience
As every Durham student knows, the city centre is certainly not a shopping capital. With a tiny excuse for a Topshop and a limited collection in River Island, the boutiques are what gives every stylish student a great shopping escape. Although perhaps tucked away and initially ignored, Durham’s boutiques are what makes the shopping opportunities that little less devastating.
SORELLA BOUTIQUE
Perfect for every glamorous girl, Sorella boutique is packed full of all sorts of stylish clothes and accessories from a variety of boutique brands such as Kevan Jon, Chi Chi and Little Mistress. With winter swiftly approaching, Sorella’s selection of coats, fur and knitwear is definitely worth a look at. Their ball gown selection is a must-see and for any of those girls wanting to pick out a winter ball dress early, head to Sorella’s! They will even put your name and college on the dress to ensure no embarrassing identical dress experiences. Sorella’s is full of glitz, sparkles and sophisticated style and is great for a unique outfit. Beating all of the high-street shops in selling clothes that are that little bit different, take a trip to this boutique located conveniently on Elvet Bridge.
PEARS BOUTIQUE
A fairly new edition to Durham’s shopping experience is Pears Boutique. With a secret downstairs collection of ball gowns and sparkly dresses, this may also be another stop on your quest to find a ball dress! However, Pears Boutique sells luxury dress brands, like Sherri Hill and Jovani, therefore the dresses are a lot more pricey, (but definitely worth looking at…even just to admire them!) The ground floor is full of knick knacks, from candles, to cute quote wall plaques and so this shop is great for girly gifts.
It might not be the Metrocentre, but Durham does have some
good boutique shops
DING DONG VINTAGE
Being voted the number one vintage store in the UK, Ding Dong is a vintage grotto featuring clothing from 1840–1980. Flooding with fur coats, powerful prints and denim jackets (a Durham must-have), Ding Dong is perfect for those girls who like to dress old-school vintage. The shop has a huge selection of clothes from different decades and although perhaps a scramble to search through everything (the shelves are literally a treasure chest of jewels), you can definitely find a few great buys. Despite not being the cheapest of vintage stores, Ding Dong is worth a look in on your day of shopping, even if it’s just to laugh at the various frocks and frills from some sort of Victorian era…
SCARLET RIBBONS
Termed ‘the indie clothing store’, Scarlet Ribbons is packed full of vintage and retro clothing and accessories, for any quirky customers. Tucked away on Neville Street, off North Road, Scarlet Ribbons is a treasure trove. A favourite feature has to be their collection of jewellery. Despite being only a small store, it would be possible to spend hours in there.
HOTLIST BAGS
A boutique ideal for any handbag fanatics, this store features a variety of handpicked bags in a wide selection of styles. Having a range of shoulder bags, satchels, purses, rucksacks and more. At a reasonable price, depending on their material, there is no need for any bag-obsessed beauty queens to go empty handed.