Exotic Glitter

So far, it seems that all the reviews for this business are spot on: Unless you are a magpie, you will probably run a mile upon seeing the window display of this shop.
Though if you ever manage to conquer the odds and get inside, be ready to face my next urban challenge. You have five minutes to find an item that can be described as ‘nice’. Although I’m usually a sucker for rules and reasoning, this measure of 300 seconds is a completely arbitrary figure plucked out of thin air; you certainly don’t need this much time as the one or two tasteful items tend to throb with a dull glow that can be detected from a good few metres away.
When I visited, the owner seemed very distracted and it was a a number of minutes before he acknowledged me. However, he is nice enough beyond the unfriendly first impression and made a few interesting observations about this part of town.
Enjoy, just remember that all that glitters ain’t gold.
URBAN CHALLENGE: Find something your best friend would like

Exotic Glitter has a little bit of a street market thing going on. Lots of cheap, tacky jewellery with the focus being on bright colours and sparkle rather than taste, handbags and purses that seem to be trying to imitate designer styles and rather miss the mark.
Would be great for teenage girls to spend their pocket money, or for anyone who prefers the costume jewellery look rather than more subtle pieces.
The staff aren’t very friendly. I got the feeling that the guy working in there responded to my entering the store with a «oh no, now I might actually have to do some work» type attitude, and seemed to hope that if he ignored me I would go away. Which I did.
There are a couple of nice (ish) things hidden away, but you’d have to look pretty hard to find them. Assuming that you aren’t put off at the door by all the garish colours and sequins.

Exotic Glitter could not be less exotic or glittery from the outside, and inside it’s more cheap and cheerful than anything else. With a name like this it’s kind of setting itself up for a fall.
To be fair, the stock is not expensive — but just totally at odds with the shop’s name. I’m not sure who this shop is targeting, either, because there doesn’t seem to be a common theme to all the goods on sale. There are loads of bags, chunky jewellery, hats and other accessories, but they all seem a bit mismatched. The best things about this shop are the beads they sell, and the small but pretty selection of kimonos — so it’s worth a look around, but be prepared to shop carefully!

Exotic Glitter keeps things cheap and extremely cheerful. This little shop of loveliness is bursting with colour and tinsel! Aimed at teens, students and young women, who have usually got designer tastes, but rarely the budget to match. It’s not my kind of shop, but I have bought gifts for people here. Everything is a little too over-​board for my tastes these days… the bags are too frilly and fussy, and the jewellery just a wee bit too large and in your face… but is perfect for the young women that these items are targeted at. When I was sixteen I had chandeliers hanging out of my ears and about half a metres worth of bangles up my arms, with more rings than Liberace adorning my fingers, but not now… No, nowadays I don’t wear a single ring or bracelet, although having been a jewellery designer in my day, I have plenty to choose from. I do wear earrings, but these rarely get changed, and are always petite little drops that I barely notice sleeping in… how things change!
Sadly Exotic Glitter has a lease /​for sale notice in their window at the moment.

Not really great on the jewellery front, far too sparkly and far too cheap. It would be really good if they could focus more on the exotic, as the kimonos in store are truly beautiful, but there are too few available. They also had a small selection of lace gloves, which I believe come from China, and are rather unique, so I do hope that they can get a wider variety of these in store. If you’re into making your own necklaces or bracelets, Exotic Glitter does have a good assortment of beads, charms and string. So whilst not the best of stores, Exotic Glitter does have a lot of potential, and amongst the over sparkly and garish you can come across hidden treasures (I discovered a beautiful cameo necklace).