Monkey Temple

Absolutely dippy-​hippied to the hilt, Monkey Temple isn’t what I would call high fashion, but then it doesn’t want to be. Laid back, flowing dresses and tie dye are pretty par for the course here, and it’s a nice store to have a browse in and maybe pick up some incense or jewellery.
I can handle shops like this better than all your usual ‘alternative’ Emo-​Goth type places because Earthy Hippy stores don’t get in your face, they don’t scream ‘Look at how different I am’ or feel pretentious when you’re actually inside. The staff are so laid back that they probably won’t realise you’re there, but I kinda like that because it avoids any awkward moments when he sees my River Island jeans and realises I’m clearly not here for the clothes.
I actually did buy some incense sticks and a beautiful set of bead bracelets which I wore to a wedding and they got so many nice comments! I will definitely be back, maybe even try out some tie dye next time!

Most of my friends are makeshift Monkey Temple models. Not in the sense that they’re officially modeling for Monkey Temple, but you will rarely see a hippie around Edinburgh who isn’t sporting something from Monkey Temple.
Their designs are pretty awesome, though, to be honest, sometimes they’re a BIT too strange for me. But that’s mainly because I have huge issues with overcomplicated clothes. If it’s not straightforward, I get very nervous and feel as if the clothes (yes, just a bit of inanimate cloth) are smarter than me.
I’ve spent a lot of time wandering back and forth from Monkey Temple to Joolz trying to decide who to give my money to, to eventually give up and walk home with my pocket intact. But I’m sure all y’all have more money than me, so you should stop by Monkey Temple and have a shop. If you don’t, there’s always this great box full of things for 3 pounds (2 for 5).

Monkey Temple is an independent retailer, selling Nepalese clothes and imports. It also sells various goods aimed at the «alternative» shopper, like incense and little Buddhas.
Shops like Monkey Temple are always in danger of seeming pretentious. Items like Tibetan prayer flags and bowls are marketed at the more middle class new age market rather than Edinburgh’s resident Tibetan Buddhist population. But Monkey Temple does its best to seem genuine with its Nepalese stock imported straight from the source.
It does have a great atmosphere (with nice smells and warm colours all around) with some genuinely nice trinkets on sale in a relaxed environment.
The staff are friendly too. It’s a fun shop to browse in.
The clothes themselves are bright, colourful and varied. From skirts to hoodies expect some to find some nice gems. I personally love their selection of woolen clothes! However as with all shops like it, don’t expect high street prices. It’s also worth keeping in mind that the range of stock for men is not as great.

These sorts of shops are hard to describe but easily recognisable. Possibly aimed at aging hippies and their children, Monkey Temple sells various alternative goods like clothing, incense and jewellry.
Shops like Monkey Temple are always in danger of seeming pretencious. Take the religious items for example. There are tibetan prayer flags and bowls on sale but no catholic pictures of saints. This selectivity reflects the eastern solution that alternative people (I’m going to stop using inverted commas now) take, often sicophantically. And of course the eternal irony is you have to be rich and alternative to afford half of the things
Having said all this, Monkey Temple has a great atmosphere (with nice smells and warm colours all around) with some genuinely nice things on sale in a relaxed environment. The staff are rather friendly too.