Edinburgh: Unicorn Antiques

This place is stuffed with antiques in every nook and cranny (it helps if you're nimble, as it can be a squeeze). And the best part is that it's not even ridiculously expensive. There's no knowing what you might find, which adds to the fun of rummaging around in the basement shop – it used to be a dairy in Victorian days. There are often heaps of old local and world maps and postcards crying out to be framed, old-fashioned children's toys and books, mirrors, jewellery, candlesticks and all sorts of curious bric-a-brac that might just turn out to be treasure.
65 Dundas Street, Edinburgh (0131 556 7176; unicornantiques.co.uk)

Bath: Mr B's Emporium of Reading Delights

A magical bookshop spread over three floors of a Georgian house in Bath, this is the kind of place where you can quite happily lose yourself for hours. There's free tea and coffee on tap for customers, and big armchairs where you can cosy up next to the fireplace. It's no wonder Mr B's Emporium won the award for best independent bookshop in the UK two years in a row. The staff are known to be passionate bookworms, and there are often lively events going on in the evenings. You won't get any of this on Amazon.
14-15 John Street, Bath (01225 331 155; mrbsemporium.com)

Birmingham: Fragile Design

The Bullring, with its big brands, high-street chains and hordes of shoppers, is thankfully not the only place to shop in Birmingham. The Custard Factory, just a few minutes around the corner in Digbeth, offers a far cooler and more original shopping experience. Fragile Design is just one of the independent retailers you'll find here. It specialises in original mid-century modern furniture. There's a particular emphasis on design classics – sideboards, dining tables and chairs by the Scandinavian and Nordic greats, including Alvar Aalto and Arne Jacobsen – but you can also find smaller things, such as ceramics, Danish teak wood mirrors, Lucienne Day fabrics and industrial-style lighting, too.
No 3 Devonshire House, The Custard Factory, Digbeth, Birmingham (0121 224 7378; fragiledesign.com)

Brighton: Laste

The elves and the shoemaker come out to play at this unusual shoe shop. You can order bespoke shoes made in store by Laste's owner, Alex Herdman, who will help you with your design and provide you with a range of leathers. If you prefer to buy off the shelf, Herdman makes a point of sourcing independent designers who don't sell elsewhere, so practically every pair of shoes is exclusive and wonderfully unique. If they are out of your price range, Laste also stocks lots of luxurious, colourful tights and socks and affordable accessories, such as knitted hats and pretty ceramic jewellery.
6 Bond Street, Brighton (01273 777141; laste.co.uk)

Liverpool: Nook & Cranny

Stationery geeks and graphic-print fans will adore this bright, chirpy place, which sells everything from cards, notebooks, pencils and typography postcards to prints (check out their "random notes of appreciation" – little cards scribbled with happy messages). The owners choose a "print of the week", and the shop also offers a bespoke framing service. Nook & Cranny is inside the Bluecoat arts centre and believes in supporting local talent – most of the prints they sell have been designed by Liverpudlian artists, and they also stock originals by students.
The Bluecoat, School Lane, Liverpool (0151 702 5324; nookandcrannyshop.co.uk)

London: Labour and Wait

Household stuff doesn't sound sexy, but Labour and Wait makes it incredibly seductive. This store is the ideal antidote for anyone who has had enough of twee vintage domestic-goddess paraphernalia – there is not a floral oilcloth or polka-dot teapot in sight. Instead everything is clean and simple, with a touch of wartime utility-chic. OK, so a dustpan and brush might not make it to the top of the Christmas list, but among enamel dishes, bundles of candles, baskets and pressed linens there is bound to be something that fits the bill – try corkscrews, leather gloves and tin whistles for stocking fillers.
85 Redchurch Street, London E2 (020 7729 6253; labourandwait.co.uk)

Manchester: Junk

This is ethical fashion gone mad. The entire shop is kitted out in recycled and salvaged material – a cash desk made out of remoulded washing-up liquid bottles, telephone receivers turned into door handles – and aims to offer creative clothes at minimum cost to the environment. The team behind Junk takes discarded fabrics and old clothes and redesigns them into something entirely new – so almost everything is made in Manchester. For men there are shirts, tees and screen-printed jumpers; for women there's much of the same plus plenty of dresses. Junk is part of the Green Pound scheme, which supports ethical businesses in the area and helps reduce carbon footprints.
2 Dale Street, Manchester (0161 238 8517; junkshopuk.com

Wells: Junior Toys

One of the largest independent toy stores in the southwest, Junior Toys is rammed with everything from plastic playthings to wooden vintage-style games, like stacking alphabet blocks, trains and pull-along walkers. All ages are catered for here, with baby-friendly soft toys and more exciting things for older children (like a mini-velodrome cycling game). Spread over two very packed floors, it also has a popular craft section stocked with glitter, sequins, paint sets and beginner embroidery kits for children who like to make things. Upstairs there's a pottery studio where little ones can take part in hands-on workshops.
6, High Street, Wells, Somerset (01749 678145; myhigh.st/wells/junior-toys)

Bristol: Blaze

Blaze has been selling Bristol-made ceramics for almost a decade. It was here that the now-iconic carton-shaped milk jugs which grace the kitchens of designaholics everywhere were conceived. Talented artist Hanne Rysgaard works in the studio downstairs, while the shop operates as a craft co-operative – artists and designers use the gallery-style shop and workspace to make and sell their wares, and all of them join in to help run the shop floor day-to-day, which means you can chat to the designers directly. There is also handmade furniture, fashion accessories and jewellery all made and designed by local artists.
84 Colston Street, Bristol (0117 904 7067; blazestudio.co.uk)

Glasgow: Lupe Pintos

Lupe Pintos is brilliant for sourcing unusual, fun ingredients for foodies who love their food hot and fiery. The Glasgow branch of the deli (there is another in Edinburgh) is piled with bottles of smoke-dried jalapeños, dulce de leche, chocolate chilli sauces, tequila and almost every spice under the sun. There's also a range of American stuff – think canned pumpkin, marshmallows, corn bread and Tootsie rolls. The owner, ex-chef Douglas Bell, holds fancy-dress chilli cook-offs. Boxes of turrón have just arrived for Christmas, and the store will put together Mexican, Spanish and all-American themed Christmas hampers, too.
313 Great Western Road, Glasgow (0141 334 5444; lupepintos.com)