Bazaars of Istanbul are like heritage shopping, but there is a more modern mercantile edge to it.
Turkey is known for authentic Iznik tiles, desirable leatherwear, woven silver jewellery, silken towels, extravagant textiles, ceramics, Ataturk tat, bejeweled belly-dancing outfits, embroidered boots and slippers, cobalt glass evil eyes, soap and perfumes of Arabia.
For antiques, one can trust A la Turca at Faikpasa 4, a labyrinthine four-floored Ottoman house filled with furniture, carpets and exotic objects of art, all of which are for sale, in the Cukurcuma district, an area of atmospheric winding streets and bric-a-brac emporia north of the Golden Horn.
There are laws to prevent exporting antique Iznik but this distinctive kind of ceramic is still produced using a process that remains bewilderingly labor-intensive.
The quartz that gives glaze its depth and translucence may no longer be ground by hand, but even so, it takes 72 days from the hand-mixing of jewel-colored pigments to the final firing.
Kanyon mall in the up market north-lying Levent district is the latest in Turkish designer home ware, jewellery and fashion.
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