LONDON Christmas News, Dec 18, 2011

London Luxury Shops See Lean Christmas as Bankers Curb Spending San Francisco Chronicle Antique jeweler Kojis in the Royal Exchange is seeing more browsers than impulse buyers, said store manager Semih Yilmaz. "People will delay in buying and some will skip buying expensive gifts," Yilmaz said by phone. "We're the last people toget a ... See all stories on this topic »

London Luxury Shops See Lean Christmas Bloomberg Antique jeweler Kojis in the Royal Exchange is seeing more browsers than impulse buyers, said store manager Semih Yilmaz. “People will delay in buying and some will skip buying expensive gifts,” Yilmaz said by phone. “We're the last people to get a ... See all stories on this topic » Bloomberg

Store Wars: Waterstone's and WH Smith The Guardian I use this as a last minute shop, to pick up a birthday card, a holiday book I've forgotten to purchase earlier, or a Mars bar (which aren't cheap at 77p for a standard size) to cure a sweet fix. I would hazard a guess that away from Christmas a ... See all stories on this topic » The Guardian

Last-minute shopping? Buy Christmas gifts from a social enterprise The Guardian Price: £45 in store, or call the company on 0208 980 7998 (£4 delivery). Educational charity and social enterprise the Eden Project has a good selection of Christmas gifts on its website, including this sparkling silver medal award winning wine. ... See all stories on this topic » The Guardian

Opinion: London at Christmas Egyptian Gazette Christmas is now surrounded by so much media hype that many of the shopshave begun to display their Christmas range from as early as October. After three months of “jingle bells”, shoppers have had enough! The pressure on parents each year to buy ... See all stories on this topic »

Price cuts and counterfeits sap Christmas cheer CNN International (blog) At a time when stores should be passing on some of those costs, a cursory glance at shop fronts in central London confirms what many analysts have suspected for some time: The only way to get people through the door is to offer a discount. ... See all stories on this topic »

Travel Postcard: 48 hours in Oslo at Christmas time Reuters India 7 pm - Next door to the Grand, check off some holiday gift-buying at the century-old Freia cholcolate shop. 8 pm - Dine at Theatercafeen (+47 22 82 40 50), a Vienna-style cafe serving holiday fare like reindeer medallions and salted mutton.... See all stories on this topic »

For a mere £60 a year you too can go 'looting' for moist toilet tissue The Independent Some of you might be running around to do that last-minute Christmas shop this weekend (me included!... America's involvement in the second Gulf War in Iraq – whether you were in favor of it or opposed it... With only nine shopping days left until ... See all stories on this topic »

Free Festive Kids Game and Free Gift At Westfield Stratford City RealWire (press release) With over four million people living within a 45-minute drive time of the centre, which spans 1.9 million square feet, it's the ideal one-stop-Christmas-shop. For children however, being taken on a lengthy trek around the shops isn't exactly a fun ... See all stories on this topic »

Hundreds flock to North Harrow during promotional event Harrow Observer “We've got a new Turkish supermarket opening next to the chemist and an ice cream parlour and coffee shop is supposed to be opening in the new year. North Harrow isn't dead just because Safeway closed down. It's still buzzing. ... See all stories on this topic »

Bright lights, big city The Australian To the left, at Columbus Circle, the Time Warner Centre is illuminated by 12 enormous glass stars, and to the right, less than a block from The Ritz-Carlton, thestore windows on Fifth Avenue are lit up like, well, a Christmas tree. ... See all stories on this topic »

All I want for Christmas is a bargain South West Londoner Poundland opened 64 new stores this year and can boast of having an increase in turnover from the previous year. Putney resident Anna Lippel said she always sees people coming out of the new store with bags and bags of shopping. ... See all stories on this topic » South West Londoner

The cold and the beautiful The Australian Pippa Middleton, sister of Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, visited recently to get over her relationship break-up. This year, Tiffany & Co is sponsoring the rink, although the onsite shop seems to be missing a trick. It sells Tiffany jewellery and gourmet... See all stories on this topic »

Metropolitan lines: green routes The Guardian (blog) ... London Transport Musuem's own ads for Christmas Gifts from their shops. For brilliant ideas, including brilliant umbrellas, read on. Coming up Chanukah is celebrated in Trafalgar Square from Tuesday.Christmas shopping is either enjoyed or endured ... See all stories on this topic » The Guardian (blog)

LISTINGS: Children's Activities, Pre-School Activities - December 15... Sheffield Telegraph Little Explorers Art Time, drop-in art session for ages two to four toget stuck into fun, messy and exciting activities, Weston Park Museum, Friday, 10am–12 (£1.50 per participant, pay at shop). Pyjama Drama, special Christmas sessions of Snowy Days ... See all stories on this topic » Sheffield Telegraph

More Beefs and Bouquets Canada.com Offering to hold it until I was able to make it in to the store; phoning me to ensure I was able to get one - you are a definite asset to the store and made my shoppingexperience an enjoyable one); to Stephanie of Mark's Work Wearhouse (for the ... See all stories on this topic »

Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Women From London's Luxury Brands JustLuxe.com For some, Christmas shopping can be a stressful time. What do you buy for the person who has everything? Well, fear not, help is at hand. We have compiled the best of what's on offer in London this festive season. So, whether you're looking for ... See all stories on this topic » JustLuxe.com

Antwerp: low lands, high fashion Evening Standard Just before I blew my Christmas-present budget on gifts for myself, it was time to head back to the train station and home to London. Antwerp might be super-easy to get to by Eurostar, but like anything so blessed with sex appeal, it sure is hard to ... See all stories on this topic » Evening Standard

Simms' city London Loves Business What's in store for the final five? You need wait no longer… ThisChristmas, old master specialist Philip Mould has teamed up with designer Allegra Hicks for a joint exhibition which opened last week and runs until 23 December at Philip Mould's London ... See all stories on this topic » London Loves Business

RIP Russell Hoban, author of Riddley Walker, The Mouse And His Child, and the ... A.V. Club The book begins in an idyllic toy shop at Christmastime, but the mice are soon purchased and stored away, only to be brought out atChristmas. When broken and thrown away, the two set out on a journey to find their old friends from the toy shop and ... See all stories on this topic » A.V. Club

What the Dickens is going on at Christmas? The Birmingham Post The phrase ''It's a Dickens of a Christmas'' is about to embed itself in the English language like never before. Thanks to the bicentenary of the author's birth in February, the BBC will broadcast a parody called The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff on December ... See all stories on this topic »

Get advent-urous in Willesden Green Time Out London Willesden Green is trying to replicate this festive feeling by transforming the shop windows on the High Road into a life-sized advent calendar, with a work of art for each day in the run up toChristmas. All the participating shops are independent, ... See all stories on this topic » Time Out London

Bah Humbug! Are Britons turning into scrooges? IFA Magazine Re-using items such as decorations from the year before is a great way to save money. There is also nothing wrong with setting a limit or buying fewer gifts.” Prepare yourself early when Christmas shopping, the pressure of last minuteshopping will ... See all stories on this topic »

Souza is in vogue thanks to a royal appointment The Independent Some of you might be running around to do that last-minute Christmas shop this weekend (me included!... As we come to the end of 2011, which saw the overwhelming success of the female solo artist, which b... The Brazilian photographer Anthony Souza, ... See all stories on this topic »

Something for the weekend: December 16-18 The Independent (blog) By Matilda Egere-Cooper Some of you might be running around to do that last-minute Christmas shop this weekend (me included!), but in case you need a moment to exhale, we've lined up some goodies to check out, starting from a pop-up festival in East ... See all stories on this topic »

Comparing design ideas? Gwyneth Paltrow receives bag of Topshop goodies from ... Daily Mail And as a token of his affection, the Topshop mogul presented Gwyneth with bags of goodies from the shop as she left. EarlyChristmas present? Sir Philip Green was very generous with his giftsto Gwyneth Paltrow after their dinner at Mayfair's The Arts ... See all stories on this topic » Daily Mail

Visit Stratford upon Avon and Delve Into the Life of a Literary Genius ... The Open Press (press release) Peruse Stratford's picturesque and idiosyncratic boutiques and shops: great for finding that ideal Christmas gift. Choose an enthralling festive boat ride on the river Avon on 17th December and absorb yourself in the enticing landmarks of Stratford,... See all stories on this topic »

Nader Agha's holdings span Monterey County, but he's looking to conquer the world. Monterey County Weekly What Nader doesn't mention: One of those lost brothers, Majed, actually lives in Seaside and works a few paces from the Alvarado antique shop. More popularly known as “Mr. Falafel,” Majed can be found frying ground chickpeas during the weekly Oldtown ... See all stories on this topic »

Celebrate the festive season Imperial style! Imperial College London (blog) He offers some tips on how to choose and maintain the perfectChristmas tree 1. Measure the space for the tree before you goshopping and consider a smaller tree this year so the same tree can be used again next year. 2. Source your tree from a local ... See all stories on this topic » Imperial College London (blog)

Bubble wrap is forever; a banana is ephemeral San Francisco Chronicle If the store owner asks what the customer is doing, the customer can reply simply by holding up the phone and displaying the icon. Under the tree, over the top: The Rev. Robert Cromey, who cherishes the meaning of Christmas, forwards from the New York ... See all stories on this topic »

A Dead Sherlock on a Chipwrecked Mission Creative Loafing Atlanta Holman HUGO 3 stars (PG) An ingenious orphan boy (Asa Butterfield) lives in a 1930s Parisian railway station, where he tries to solves the riddles of a malfunctioning mechanical man and a mysterious toy shop owner (Ben Kingsley). ... See all stories on this topic » Creative Loafing Atlanta

Travel Picks: Top 10 Christmas markets in Europe CNBC.com LONDON - Mulled wine, snowy landscapes and shopping for handcrafted giftsbeneath the starry lights of a traditional European Christmas market are so popular at this festive time of the year that the members and editors of travel website ... See all stories on this topic »

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