Toy and Party

As Mark said, I too am glad to see a store that is a step away from mainstream Hallmark inspired card shops.
Toy & Party pride themselves on not only selling toys, but also selling balloons and gifts for special occasions. They have a wide variety of stock, from massive, affordable cuddly toys to birthday cards, helium filled balloons and party favours.
The toys are a step up from the type you would find in a pound shop, but not quite high street quality. Saying that, they do have childhood hero Winnie The Pooh in a plush, very cuddly large size.
I probably wouldn’t get a card in here since they are slightly lower end than the lieks you would find in Clinton. However, it appeals to people on a lower budget and with the choice of ornaments and gifts, is helpful to many when they’re hunting for a birthday present.

It’s good to see that many independent card shops and stationers ply their trade on the streets of Edinburgh, despite competition from the larger national chains, like Clintons and Birthdays. Some of them are quite good, but others slip into the ‘distinctly average’ category, and Toy and Party is one of those.
You can find this shop on Leith’s Great Junction Street, one of the main thoroughfares running from the foot of Leith Walk. Inside, you’ll find a pretty non-​descript card shop, stocking a range of greetings cards for a variety of occasions and events. The ‘toy’ section is tucked away at the back of the shop, and stocks the sorts of things that you’d see in Pound Stretcher or other such bargain shops. If you’re looking for premium toys, this probably isn’t the place to go.
That said, the range of cards at low prices was not too bad, and the toys would suffice for making up a Halloween costume, or some other fancy dress occasion. Cheap and cheerful is the order of the day here.