Some people are brand driven and iittala is a brand that has been around for a long time. Known for…read moreits glass cups, bowls, plates, vases, birds, unique designs and decorative kitchen ware this is a one stop shop for home & kitchen stuff. For a decade I have been visiting this location, slowly acquiring birds. When trying to decide which bird to purchase an associate pulled out several from the case and several not on display. This was very kind and tempting! Value is what you make it. This store also carries full line of Fiskars products. New for me was the cast iron cookware. We enjoyed our visit very much.

This is the place to be for fans of Finnish design. At the old Arabia factory in Arabia (yes, the…read morearea is named after the company) you find outlet stores of the most important and well known Finnish design brands. Since iittala, Fiskars, Arabia and Hackmann belong to the same company you can find all their products in the shop right at the entrance of the building. They have quite good offers. Also take a look at the shelf with the second class products. They have small mistakes (that you can barely see) and are reduced dramatically. If you don't find anything here, continue to one of the other shops that are in the building. Browse through the Pentik shop. Next to the café in the middle of the center you find a shop where you can take a look at design products from smaller brands. This place is worth a visit. You also easily get there with public transport with tram line 6 or bus number 71. The center is open every day from 10 and stays open till 20.00 during the week and till 16.00 on the weekend.

Why people still shop at Ikea when there is an abundance of Hemtex shops is beyond me. My favorite…read morehome store chain after Pentek, this location is always having great specials on everything from pillow cases to bath towels. Speaking of bath towels, theirs' are my favorite- even more than my beloved Frette. They dry soft even on the god-awful racks I'm stuck using in Finland (vs my best friend, the clothes-dryer in the US). Impossible to walk in without buying something- and at their very, very reasonable (for Helsinki and beyond) prices mean a very light impact on your pocketbook. Unless you're me. Then you'll just buy everything and figure out where it all goes later. Nice, helpful staff, who are always patient with my less than stellar command of the Finnish language, and cute uniform tops to boot. This is a great place for a hostess gift or housewarming present!

Design products are a great souvenir when you come to Finland for a visit. A perfect place for that…read moreis Brands Scandinavia. It is located in the main station. The small shop has a surprisingly good collection of products from Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark. Browse through the shelves and you will definitely find a good gift for your family or friends. Brands Scandinavia is open daily. For more information check their website.

In my perspective, the salesperson was unfriendly. I complained twice about the defective product…read more(obvious manufacturing flaw) but he resisted to exchange it. He told me in Finland it does not work like that, which is not true. In the end, through the importer, I negotiated to replace the product by Pino, but I never got it replaced even after 8 months from the purchasing date.