Inside & Other Stories Amsterdam

[english]

So I’m not from Amsterdam, I don’t live in Amsterdam, but I’m a regular visitor of Amsterdam. I often visit Amsterdam for blog related stuff, but for shopping as well. Because to me there’s no better place (except from the internet) to shop. Sure, there might be other big cities with amazing shops, but I know my addresses in Amsterdam and I really like that. Obviously I love shopping, but I don’t like spending a lot of time shopping (my boyfriend probably thinks that’s one of my best features, lol) and therefore it’s very convenient to have a list of shops you want to check out. So today I’m going to share my personal top 10 list of fave stores in Amsterdam which I can really recommend you to visit if you ever are in Amsterdam (because you totally should save some time to check out the beauty of the city as well and not just the stores). These are all quite ‘affordable’ stores by the way. If you want designer clothes Amsterdam can totally serve you as well, but as I have a limited budget I’m not a frequent visitor of designer stores. So here we go: My 10 fave (affordable) stores in Amsterdam.

1. & Other Stories – Heiligeweg 26-28

I’m so happy that ‘we’ (I already speak of we, but I don’t even live in Amsterdam, lol) have an & Other Stories store in Amsterdam! I first visited this store when I was in Barcelona and it was love at first sight. They sell quite minimalistic garments and jewelry, but they also have a big beauty department. The products are great, but the minimalistic packaging is the icing on the cake. The clean scandinavian interior also makes it a very nice place to be. Did you know by the way that & Other Stories is a concept by H&M? Oh, and you can shop & Other Stories online as well!

2. Weekday – Rokin 84

Another concept by H&M. Only this one is a mix of urban and minimalistic fashion. They carry their own brand MTWTFSS (love their jeans!), but also a small selection of other cool brands like Cheap Monday, BACK, Rodebjer and Whyred. Shop online here.

3. Urban Outfitters – Kalverstraat 31-33

I freaking love Urban Outfitters. Not so much because of their clothing, but because of their Home & Gifts apartment: Money banks, jewelry stands, shot glasses, wish cards, polaroid cameras,  funny books, fashion books and so much more.  My house is filled with stuff from Urban Outfitters (a skull money bank, skull shot glasses, a skull mug and a soap try in the form of two hands). Urban Outfitters can also be found online.

4. Brandy Melville – Leidsestraat 43

To be honest I just recently discovered this L.A. lifestyle inspired store. I already knew about the existence of the store, but it never occurred to me to visit this store until earlier this week and I’m very happy I did. I can totally say that this store is now part of my Amsterdam ‘shopping routine’. They sell the most perfect casual basics and everything is so soft. Best part: It’s not even expensive. For a T-shirt you’ll pay approximately 20 euros. Not super cheap, but totally not expensive as well. Oh, and did you know they sell everything in one size? I usually don’t really believe in ‘one size fits all’, but I can totally imagine their pieces would look great on every body type: Casual loose on skinnier girls and sexy figure hugging on curvier girls.

5. Episode – Berenstraat 1

Looking for a pair of perfect vintage Levi’s 501 shorts? Episode is your place to go. Episode is not your average vintage store, because they only sell the very best meaning that not everything ‘old’ is accepted. This is one of the only vintage stores I feel at ease at, since I can’t stand the regular messy vintage stores. They even ‘remake’ clothing into for example more modern cuts. There are four Episode stores in Amsterdam, but the one I usually visit is situated in the famous ‘negen straatjes’ (nine streets).

6. MAC pro store – Heiligeweg 5

What can I say? I’m a MAC girl! I think MAC sells high end make up products for a more affordable prices than most high end make up brands. I’m not saying MAC is a cheap brand, but when you compare it to Chanel, Dior, YSL and that sort of brands it’s more affordable. You can get MAC make up at selected Douglas stores, but there are certain colors and ranges you can only get at MAC pro stores.

7. Backstage – Rozengracht 101 – 103

Backstage sells make up brands most other make up stores don’t sell, such as Ben Nye (which you may know from banana luxury powder, made famous by Kim Kardashian) and Kryolan (most famous for their TV paint sticks). The people that work there are very helpful which also makes it a great store to visit.

8. Anna + Nina – Kloveniersburgwal 44

I just discovered this store and I’ve fallen in love. This concept store sells beautiful and unique jewelry and home decoration, such as framed feathers, notebooks, mugs, bowls and pillows. It’s such a joy to walk around in this store. There are two Anna + Nina stores in Amsterdam, but I only visited the one at Kloveniersburgwal. They by the way also have an online store!

9. Zara – Kalverstraat 66

Who doesn’t love Zara? Amsterdam now has the largest Zara store in the world (a shared first place with Milan), yay! Of course you can also find Zara online.

10. H&M – Dam 4

Last but not least: H&M. You’ll find lots of H&M stores in Amsterdam, but there’s one you really have to visit: The one situated at Dam square. It’s situated in a beautiful old typical Amsterdam building and they sell my favorite line: H&M Trend. At this H&M store you will also find the home collection (all the way up). Worth a visit! Shop H&M online here.