The Stables Market, NW1, 020 7482 2848
Dress £55, sandals £12, hat £20
A time machine warehouse, its high rafters crammed with original pieces. Strongest are the racks of original 50s summer dresses, and wall to ceiling shelving coloured with slim, softened shoes and cowboy boots. Chaise longues draped with furs, gold framed mirrors and spotlighting soften the vast space. No other store beats Lost n Found for the sheer scale and volume of unique pieces Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
Leather and suede pencil skirt £25
Gentleman’s wool beret £10
Small tapestry bag £15
Victorian blouse £18
80s patent heels £18 Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
Navy sailor dress £45
White peep toe heels £20
Carpet bag £45
Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
20s original strapless gown £150 Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
61 Westbourne Grove, W2, 020 7221 2421
Hat £7.99
Belt £9.99
Skirt £19.99
Bathing costume £8.99
Shoes £12.99
Undoubtedly London’s hippest charity shop. This is where Elvis cranks out bass, and a scarlet-lipped sales assistant throws on crimson polka dots and leopard prints. Unlike many urban trendy vintage warehouses, Traid keeps the prices low, includes a sprinkle of designer and lacks the try-hard pretentiousness. Our favourite. Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
Floral mini skirt £8.99
Guy Laroche platforms £85
Silky sailor top £14.99
White waspie belt £9.99
Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
86 St John’s Wood High Street, NW8, 020 7449 9791
Wool coat £20
Red shoes £18
At first glance, a run-of-the-mill charity shop. Perhaps that’s why so many garments remain undiscovered. Dig beyond the spray of records and slowly browning pictures for eclectic one-offs and designer vintage. Chanel, Gucci, Stella McCartney and Armani hang on the rails alongside hats from Fortnum and Mason and crocheted scarves Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
Red kimono top, £10
Italian black leather court heels £18 Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
57 Kensington Church Street, W8, 020 7937 5274
Dress from Harrods, £35
Scarf, £12.50
A floral perfumed shop, all clean lines, pine wood and polished surfaces - more Cath Kidston than fusty charity shop. The wares are unfailingly good quality: hand-finished wools and barely-worn tailoring. There’s even a brand new range of tea pots, wrapping papers and polka-dot umbrellas. This wool dress sums up the store’s feel Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
Brick Lane and across London, 020 7375 3864
Yellow dress £45
Leather belt £12
Sunglasses £15
Rokit has two stores on Brick: the first filled with clothes so hip they’re hardly wearable beyond Old Street, the second more mainstream. In the latter the walls are stripped breeze blocks and racks of baseball caps, shapeless jeans and sweaters pile alongside unique gems: leather handbags, shifts with sailor buttons and reams of colourful silk scarves Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
Ankle-length petrol trousers, £25
Victorian shirt £14
Pointed black stilettos, £20
Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
53 St John’s Wood High Street, NW8, 020 7586 9493
Faux fur coat £35
Cotton dress £15
Court shoes £18
Classical music, spotless lacquered surfaces and wares ranging from 50p videos to barely worn Kurt Geiger loafers. Octavia refuses to choose between staunchly thrifty or cuttingly cool vintage: here, anything goes. Nearly new Monsoon cocktail dresses, still with tags and theatrical chocolate brown furs hang side by side Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
Silver Monsoon dress £50
Karen Millen patent stilettos £40
Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
115 Cheshire Street, E2
Beret £35
50s print dress £60
Cinch belt £20
Stilettos £30
80s handbag £25
This living room sized boutique crammed with vintage clothes dresses both men and women. Softened brogues and racks of rainbow shirts hang alongside swing dresses, floral cottons and lines of hats. Friendly shop assistant Jessie has a keen eye for combining unusual pieces for eclectic ensembles Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
225 Kensington Church Street, W8, 020 7727 9803
Red dress £4.99
Espadrilles £3.99
Amongst the Notting Hill warehouse scene crammed with overpriced vintage and try-hard retro, it’s easy to bypass this understated gem. Root amongst the flamboyant ball dresses, shelves of dog-eared paperbacks and loved woollen waistcoats for the genuine vintage gems. This cotton dress has stepped straight from the 80s at a fraction of the price of Topshop’s replicas Photograph: Laura Jayne/guardian.co.uk
