Claire's Accessories (Shop)

I don’t have a daughter, I would have liked one but someone, somewhere decided to punish me and ‘bless’ me with 3 sons instead. LISTEN UP……I am only joking!!!!! I love my boys to bits and wouldn’t change them for the world….!!

But not having a daughter I had no idea that places like Claire’s Accessories existed! What have I been missing? Well I know now! When the one on our nearby town opened up years ago I briefly noticed it on one of my rare visits into town, but dismissed it as another, here-today-gone-next-week junk shop!

Oh how the mighty fall!

I found myself in the town the other week, well I didn’t really ‘find’ myself there, (I am still looking and doubt now that I will ever ‘find’ myself!) and had some time to kill. Now I usually visit the Library at times like this and was indeed on my way there at this time, when I passed by a sign outside this shop that said ‘many items at half price or less NOW’. Guess who never made it as far as the Library?

So, with all good intentions of a pleasant hour or so immersed in culture (Ok the biography section then!!) forgotten, I found myself inexplicably drawn towards the shop in question. Culture was definitely not to be found here, but what I did find was just as exciting. “You fibber Kaz, it was much more exciting than the Library, go on admit it?” says a little voice inside my head. The very same one that says, “Do you really need that cream cake?” far too often!! B***** off!!

Claire’s Accessories is indeed a little oasis in the sometimes dreary town centres, aren’t there lots of them too? I half expected to have to ask Ciao to add this category. What a wonderful surprise I got when searching to discover that there are nearly 45 opinions written on the same shop!! If you are ‘pink and glittery’ and like Helen from BB (apologies there to BB haters!!!) you will just ADORE this shop! I bet Helen does!!

I would not class myself as the above, not really, but I do like ‘girly’ things and when I saw the array of all manner of ‘girly’ things in here I all but stopped myself from squealing in glee!! Which was just as well as the shop was filled with what seemed like zillions of teenage girls in school uniforms wearing the shortest of skirts I had ever seen, (Oh how conveniently we forget our own youth….)

I was particularly drawn towards the rows upon rows of beads in all colours of the rainbow. I was particularly drawn towards all the packets of false nails at the back of the shop. I was also particularly drawn to the glittery and fluffy pens sitting atop the counter. I was particularly drawn…oh you know the rest!! I just didn’t know what to look at first!

They sell earrings, bangles, beads, rings, badges and all manner of junk jewellery. I adore junk jewellery. Many an item I have managed to dress up or down just by wearing different coloured ‘beady’ bangles and the like. They also sell loads and loads of little things that little girlies would love to have in their bedrooms. I am now the happy owner of a ‘hippy chick’ purple mirror!!

The hair accessories are incredible too! I had no idea it was possible to put so many different things in your hair at the same time, as some of the teenage schoolgirls were demonstrating!! It is really quite difficult to describe everything that Claire’s accessories do sell; it is easier to say that if you were telling people where to get a particular item for a ‘girlie’ aged between 0 and 40 (!!) you would have to tell them to try here!

As I browsed the small shop, it isn’t all that big I have to say but my goodness they don’t half pack an awful lot of things into such a small area! “Oohing” and “Ahhing”, and trying very hard to limit myself to those two verbal expressions, I quickly realised that I was rapidly running out of time for my appointment..sigh:0(. So I made my choices, several bangles, two sets of false stick on mails, a Bagpuss keyring(I wonder which member on here would kill for that!!!) an orange pen with a huge sunflower on it and the aforementioned purple mirror, and headed for the checkout. I was amazed when asked for the paltry sum of £6 for all the items!!!

If I’d had time I would have doubled up on all my purchases and some!! A gal can never have too much!! But I didn’t and I hastily exited this little gem of a shop and rushed forth to my next appointment. You will be not a little surprised that I have since repaid a return visit and this time I cam away with yet more bangles, some goodies for my nieces and another packet of false nails. Darling, if you haven't got it….fake it!!!!

I can really recommend these shops for little girls and big girls, and as an almost final point, I have a very good friend who went to the Mardi Gras the other week in London and he went into Claire’s accessories to get his stuff to dress up in for the event! He bought a glitzy belt and a cowboy hat! See, its not just for ‘girlies’!!

Going by the amount of teenage girls in the shop on both times I visited (here aren’t they supposed to be at school in the middle of the day??!!) I should imagine that they will continue to be as popular as they are now, if they keep their prices as low they will have no problems attracting new customers.

And by that, Yes I do mean new, and older(!) customers who fail to be lured into a place of culture when a sign saying ‘many items half price’ is displayed outside, and proved to me much more of a temptation!!
Thank you, and ta ta for now!
Kazzie!!!