VIBE GROWN-UP EAST LONDON HIPSTER

Olive oil chocolate from Brooklyn, botanical skincare from Melbourne and technical cashmere out of Vancouver — say what you like about hipsters, they know a good gift. This Shoreditch hub combines creativity, cool brands and a community feel.

Start with the newest addition, Modern Society. Nazifa Movsoumova’s ‘general store’ hits the Christmas-shopping sweet spot, with prices from £5 (for sweary business cards) to £2,000 (a Sandy Liang shearling coat), all arranged beautifully in vintage display cabinets. What woman wouldn’t like a cashmere Breton by Anine Bing? Which interior wouldn’t benefit from a piece of Hasami Porcelain? Not forgetting the Wary Meyers colour-block soaps, Reliquia signet rings or witty stationery by Terrapin.

Grab a coffee from South London gourmands Embassy, on the ground floor, then follow your nose to Mast Brothers to pick up a slab of chocolate. Yes, it’s £7 a bar but it’s a work of art — and you’re being generous, remember. Aesop is next for paraben-free Aussie skincare in a serene store. Then on to Le Labo, a cult ‘slow perfumier’ where unisex fragrance is blended on-site and given with your name. Around the corner is Santa Maria Novella, the Florentine perfumers using methods first honed in the 13th century.

Interior-lovers should head to Monologue for marble accessories, and to Redchurch institution Labour and Wait for hardy home accessories with a vintage spin. For can’t-go-wrong menswear you have the newly opened J Crew and Sunspel, close to APC — the first hip label to set up shop here. Pit stop Barber & Parlour for a Cheeky nail job/wet shave and cold pressed juice Must-buys Skultuna candlesticks, from £60, at Modern Society; Aesop gift set, £45 Aesop, 44, Mon 11-6, Tues-Fri 11-7, Sat 10-6, Sun 11-5; aesop.com APC, 15, Mon-Fri 11-7, Sat 10-7, Sun 12-5; apc.fr Barber & Parlour, 64-66, Mon-Sat 9-11, Sun 10-11; barberandparlour.com J Crew, 58, Mon-Sat 11-7, Sun 12-6; jcrew.com Kit and Ace, 29, Mon-Sat 8-7, Sun 10-5; kitandace.com Labour and Wait, 85, 11-6; labourandwait.co.uk Le Labo, 61, Mon-Fri 10.30-7, Sat 10-6.30, Sun 11-5; lelabofragrances.com Mast Brothers, 19-29, Mon-Fri 11-7, Sat 10-7; mastbrothers.com Modern Society, 33, Mon-Sat 9.30-6.30, Sun 11-5; themodernsociety.com Monologue, 39, Tues-Sat 10.30-7, Sun 11-6, closed Mon; monologuelondon.com Santa Maria Novella, 9 Chance Street, E2, Mon-Sat 10-6, closed Sun; smnovella.it Sunspel, 5, Mon-Sat 11-7, Sun 12-5; sunspel.com