BOOKS

What type of books do you stock?

Queer books! We stock fiction, young adult, children’s books, picture books, graphic novels, poetry, queer theory, biographies, art books, and more, as long as it’s queer! When we say queer, we mean books that are LGBTQIA+ in content, themes or characters, are written by LGBTQIA+ authors, or are likely to be of interest to the queer community. We are small shop, both in terms of space and resources, so we don’t have every queer book ever, but we spend a lot of time researching what’s out there and do our best to stock a strong range of classics, lesser known titles, new releases and bestsellers.

Can I order something in if you don’t have it?

Absolutely! We have relationships with a lot of publishers and wholesalers, so if a title is in print in the UK we can normally order it in. We do our ordering on a weekly basis, so normally we will have your book in the shop the following week.

Can I order books online/to be delivered?

Actually yes! You can use our Bookshop.org storefront to purchase books online and have them delivered to you, and we receive 30% of the sale! To visit our Bookshop.org store click here

Can I borrow books?

We have a library shelf which consists of books that have been donated to the shop – the vast majority of these can be borrowed. There is no time limit or late fees, but we will ask for your name and phone number so we can remind you to return it if it’s been a really long time. You can also pick up any book in the shop and sit and read for as long as you like without purchasing it, as long as it’s undamaged when you put it back on the shelf.

Do you take donations for the library?

We do! As long as they have queer content, are of interest to the queer community or written by queer authors, we’ll put them on the shelf. You can drop them in at any time the shop is open to the public.

Will you stock my book?

We love supporting local authors and would love to stock every book that we hear about, but unfortunately space in the shop is limited. For us to consider stocking your book, please send us an email telling us about yourself, the book, and the terms of supply and distribution. If your book is available through a traditional publisher or wholesaler, please let us know which as we may already have a relationship with them. You are also welcome to send us, or drop in a proof of the book, but please note we will not make a decision in person on whether to stock the book. For more information on how to get your book into bookshops, you can check out this guide from the Booksellers Association

HAIR

Who does the haircuts?

Our barber, Fern, does the haircuts! They are a trained barber, and having been cutting hair for a couple of years now.

What type of haircuts can they do?

They are trained in short to medium hair, so can do anything from buzz cuts to mullets easily. For longer and more traditionally feminine hairstyles they do have some experience but it is best to check with them before making an appointment if they are the best person to cut your hair or if they would recommend visiting a hairdresser.

Can they bleach/dye my hair?

At present, no, the setup of the shop does not allow for it.

How much do haircuts costs?

Haircuts operate on a “pay what you can” system. You can pay as little as nothing, or as much as you like. The reason for this is that we believe everyone deserves to feel confident in how they look, and hair is a big part of this. We have “suggested minimum prices” in the shop, which change depending on costs, and all this means are that these are the minimum amounts someone would need to pay so that we are making money on the haircut. If you are in a position where you can pay more than the suggested minimum we would be extremely grateful if you could do so, as people who pay more subsidise people who are unable to pay as much or at all.

How do I make an appointment?

Fern is now taking appointments online only. You can book with them through Booksy. If you have any trouble, you can contact Fern through our Facebook or Instagram pages, or on their own Instagram @scissorbutch.

COFFEE

Are you also a coffee shop?

We are! We sell tea, coffee, and hot chocolate, but not iced drinks, and we don’t serve food. We usually have oat and soya milk as alternatives and we don’t charge extra for them. Sometimes we have decaf, and sometimes we have herbal teas, feel free to ask! You are welcome to bring food with you to eat in the shop, but we can’t reheat anything for you for health and safety reasons.

MISC

Do you run events? Can I run an event from Paperxclips?

We run a range of events throughout the year, both one-offs and recurring events. Some of these we organise ourselves, others are external groups that want a cozy location to run their event from. In the past we’ve done paranormal investigations, life drawing, book launches, author events, knitting groups, comedy shows, film screenings and more. If you or your organisation wants to run an event from Paperxclips, please get in touch to discuss the specifics – we make the space available as much as possible for as cheap as possible. For small groups that don’t mind the shop being open around them (like a knitting group), there is no charge. If you require the shop to be closed to the public during the event, or to have an event outside of our usual opening hours, the shop can be hired on a sliding scale from £0-20 an hour, or for free if your attendees buy enough coffee and books during the event (usually £50).

What’s the parking situation?

Blackstaff Mill has a carpark at the front of the building. There is no charge for parking but the carpark can fill up during busy times, and there’s no guaranteed parking spots for Paperxclips customers.

What’s the nearest bus stop?

The nearest bus stop is Iris Street, which is across the road from Blackstaff Mill, and the nearest Glider stop is Clonard, which is about an 8-minute walk if you walk the same speed as Fern.

Will you sell my art?

We love queer art and are always eager to sell more of it in the shop. Whether we can stock your work may depend on if we have a lot of similar work for sale, as space for art and merch is limited. If we can’t stock your work now, we may be able to in the future. We sell external artists work on consignment only, barring very special circumstances. The amount of stock we will display in the shop depends on the type of work you produce, but generally we prefer to have a representative sample of your work, rather than keeping dozens of items behind the counter. The commission we charge for sales is negotiable, but the standard amount is 20%. If your work isn’t selling as well as you hoped, you are welcome at any time to collect it and try somewhere else. We may from time to time rotate some artists out to make space for artists in similar fields.

Are you hiring? 

As it stands right now, we are not in a position to hire anybody. The shop is a labour of love for the two of us, and we do not take a salary at present, in order to give the shop the best opportunity to survive. We hope in the future we’ll be able to hire staff to sell books, make coffee, and cut hair or provide other services so if this interests you, keep an eye on our social media.

Can I bring my dog?

As long as they are polite and don’t make a mess then absolutely!