RePsycho

This is the kind of vintage emporium in which it's possible to lose whole afternoons as you rummage through racks of incredible dresses, shirts and velvet jackets in colours you never thought possible and 1970s patterns that make your eyes go funny, and shelves of incredible aviators, braces, gloves, belts and badges, every item more mesmerising and tempting than the last. And that's before you reach the glorious, plush nook at the back of the shop where dozens of fur coats, leather jackets and bags brush against each other, giving a rustling call for you to drape them over your shoulders.

It's hard to leave RePsycho, mainly because it is, actually, quite hard to leave; it's very cramped and stuffed with stock from ceiling to floor, wall to wall, and it can become a bit of a slalom if more than two people are inside. It's also awkward getting out if you're the only person in there and you haven't bought anything. It's the kind of small boutiquey environment that's staffed by people who are intensely passionate about what they're selling, so you can't really slip out empty-handed without offering a slightly grovelling "thank you", wearing your best "I'm sorry" expression as you open the door.

Of course, as with any vintage shop, you get the best experience when you're prepared to invest time looking through all the racks and all the shelves and battling through lots of questionable stuff in order to find something gorgeous at a price you're willing to pay. RePsycho is one of those shops that can provide hours of silly fun if you take a friend and play dress-ups (and do your best to stop worrying about the shop assistant hearing you talking about how hideous some of the things are), but it's also good for intensive, solitary shopping when you're on a quest for those perfect Betty Draper-esque white court shoes.

I usually loathe vintage clothing shops. They make me feel more frumpy than a royal and further from the likes of Alexa Chung and Agyness Deyn than a square meal. However, RePsycho manages to be kooky, great value and truly a beacon of style rather than just pretentious. It is not for those who like to cruise well-ordered rails and peel pristine items off their hangers, however, as there is something of a jumble sale feel to the mess within.
But there are great bargains to be had, from cool Paddington Bear-style bags to amazing 80s garb and just lived-in enough cowboy boots. As usual I never emerge from here looking remotely cool but if you do have an eye for how to put a good outfit together, or a really cool Mod party to go to then this is the must-see haunt for you.

The clue is in the name here - recycled clothes and homeware from the fifties to the nineties. Loved by students and retro hunters alike, RePsycho is the ideal place to go if you're looking for a fancy dress costume or just something to pep up your wardrobe.

Like all good vintage shops, there's a bit of a musty smell and it's impossibly messy but that's half the fun! Get stuck in, have a rummage and you're bound to find a gem. My best buy here was a fifties fascinator which added a touch of glamour to an otherwise dull birthday outfit!

Actually three shops in one - the main ground floor is full of clothes with some great logo'd t-shirts for the boys and plenty of handbags and sparkly tops for the girls. The style is strictly 50s-90s in decade so depending on whether you are a Dita or an Agnes then you can dress up here with some individual panache.

Upstairs is basically like being in someone's loft. You pick your way round 60s foot stools and ZX Spectrums - a very funky way to fill up your student digs or vintage homestead.

Downstairs is Prime Cuts record store. A basement of vinyl including a good dance section for DJs. The place is staffed by local musicians who know the scene and flyers can be picked up here for gigs. At the back room here you can find DVDs for £6 each.

I'm a bit suspicious of vintage shops. Since recently discovering that 'vintage' just means second hand and made sometime in the last fifty years or so, I've realised that some of these shops do a good trade in selling tat for an absolute fortune.

Calling themselves a 'retro superstore' (I like that description), Re Psycho is one of the good ones though. Over three floors they have a fantastic collection of jeans, jackets, and various other things from the past five decades as well a record shop hidden away in the basement.

Most order has been imposed on the ground floor, and this is the most satisfying place to shop I think. If, like me, you're too poor to be buying leather jackets on a whim then you can window shop to your hearts delights. Plus, they've got so many there's going to have to be a sale at some point, right? Acres of jeans on offer too.

The top floors good for lucky dip, as is the basement. I can't guarantee you'll be able to find what you want if you go with something in mind, though you should be able to find something cool. Re Psycho dredges up and offers the best of the last fifty years of fashion.

A friend of mine always checks out RePyscho when he visits Bristol as he bought his most favourite t-shirt ever from here.

I love vintage clothes and if there is something uber special I am willing to pay a bit more for it. I've never found that something really special and Repyscho though. They have some nice fake fur coats in there at the moment for about 30 quid. However i couldn't help but think that the last fake fur coat I got nearly was identical except nicer and only 4 quid from a charity shop.

Much in the same way as I can't resist a charity shop, I can't resist popping in here when I pass by, just because you never know!

RePsycho is a great little shop full of vintage and retro clothes, shoes, accessories and random bits and bobs. There's also a good selection for men, which is unusual for this type of shop.


There are also some great fancy-dress items such as silly glasses and false eyelashes and moustaches.


The staff are friendly, and the background music is enough to make me want to stay there forever...

I love this shop!! I would say that this shop is stocked way better than Uncle Sam's on Park Street. Their rails are bursting at the seams with fur coats, leather jackets, vintage t-shirts, skirts, shoes, boots, and anything and everything else that is wonderfully vintage.

You really need a good rummage in here to ensure that you get to see all their items, as there is so much! Prices are average, not cheap, and maybe veering slightly towards the almost expensive side (what vintage shop isn't these days?) but still not too bad. Fur coats (some are fake, some are real) go for about £38 - £45, t-shirts £10 - £15, and dresses around £20 - £25. It's still not prices that make you lay down the cash straightaway, but if you find something amazing and timeless, it's worth the price.

Got a seventies fancy dress party to go to? Fancy adding a smooth leather jacket to your winter wardrobe at a snip of the price of the high street? Then the greatly and aptly named RePsycho, on the cooler-than-cool main strip of Gloucester road .
So the flowery shirts, platforms and flared jeans are bog-standard fayre and smell slightly musty - but that's the charm of a place like this.
I squeezed around the rails, sifted through the bags and boxes until I found a gorgeous lace dress worthy of a place in today's high street - with change from a 20 quid note. It just needed a dry clean and I was set for an exclusive party (if only I had an invite, ha ha).
To accessorise your new/old-new outfit there are record bags, boots, and a whole basket of vaguely granny-ish beads and bangles that when work in an ironic way actually look cool. There are even a stack of aged handbags in the corner - for a real injection of Dita Von Teese 1940's sex appeal.

I used to love these sorts of shops when I was at Uni as first and foremost they're cool. Very important to look cool when you're at Uni, and secondly, they're cheap because everything is second hand.

Re Psycho on Gloucester Road is a great vintage store and combining retro clothes with retro vinyl isn't quite genius but it's certainly a great idea. The vinyl section downstairs is the highlight for me as I don't care much about looking cool these days, so have no real interest in the 70's vintage clothing. Word of warning though. The stairs leading down to the music section is unbelievably steep so brace yourself.