I've been to a lot of home and living shops in my time, and this one is a stand out. Why? Because…read moreit's interior is unlike all the others; it's laid out just like a house...well a very strange house at that. I mean, who has a bed in the middle of their lounge room? Anyway, oddly positioned bed aside, the place itself is beautifully fitted out with a simple beige colour scheme. There's an emphasis on furniture; wooden stools, wicker chairs, wooden benches and drawers as well as the usual suspects; candles, cushions, lamps, cutlery and ceramic crockery. Just be prepared to part with a fair bit of dosh - prices are a little on the high side.

I find Paddington to be a bit like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates when it comes to shops; you…read morenever know what you're going to get. Some places are full of gorgeous things that don't make my eyes widen at the extraordinary prices, while others are also full of gorgeous things, but with terrifying price tags. Both of these options are scattered throughout the suburb, so when you walk into a little boutique, it's always a bit of a gamble. Looking at Villa & Home from the outside it seems a fairly safe bet that this place falls into the latter category. It has to be the smallest homewares store I've ever seen. At first I thought it was quite narrow, but that it extended a fair way into the building. It turned out there's a mirror on the back wall, so the shop is not as big as I was first optically tricked into believing - an ominous sign that it was going to be pretty pricey. My theory was proven correct; they had umbrellas in there for over $200. Obviously what they sell is high quality, designer stuff, but it didn't look too exciting to me. And in stereotypical hoity-toity fashion, the majority of their products were beige or cream coloured. If you're willing to spend hundreds of dollars to look stylish as you hurry about in the rain, go for it.

Walking into St. Barts is like walking into a beachside villa in the south of France. It's more of…read morea lifestyle store than an interior design shop, with racks of women's clothing as well as gifts and home wares. The shop itself is gorgeous, with young and beautiful staff to match. There's a mixture of things to browse from armchairs, to jeweled sandals, to fabrics, to ornaments and statement pieces for the home. Given that it's located on ritzy James Street, I assumed that the prices would be higher, but they're actually quite reasonable. I would very happily add many a St Barts piece to my home and will be back soon to see what else they have to offer. The shop is brand new and has yet to build a hype surrounding its existence. From what I saw in store, it will only be a matter of time before St Barts has a steady following.

Ooo! This place is new. I get very excited when a new shop opens in one of the shopping precincts I…read morefrequent. A new shop always seems so promising and adds a nice freshness to shopping areas that you already know inside out. I actually just came across St Barts on the weekend when I was on my way to Harveys and couldn't resist a peek. St Barts sells clothes, accessories, and homewares and their style seems quite eclectic. They had some lovely cushions and cute accessories, and I got the impression that they're still in the process of fully stocking their shop so I'll look forward to poking my nose back in there in a few weeks to see what it's like when they get fully into the swing of things. The prices are a little bit lower than I would have expected based on St Barts's location and exterior so that was a nice surprise. I exchanged a quick hello with the sales assistant and then she left me to browse which I always appreciate, especially in areas like James street where a lot of the stores seem to employ hoverers. It is interesting to see a few fresh storefronts on James street and this is one of them. St Barts is only young yet, and I'm excited to see what it'll grow into!

Brisbane Wholesale City is a Chinese company who have taken over the Old Myer Building in…read moreCoorparoo. The entirety of the building has been filled with wholesale furniture. If you're looking for some new furniture but you're on a budget, you should drop by here. They've got an incredible range of furniture. There's minimalist, low set furniture, classical lounge suits, over the top, orange and white round leather beds and such. Then there's the indoor and outdoor settings and kids playsets. If you've ever wanted one of those reclining sofas (like Kate Winslet laid on when Leo drew her in Titanic, ahem) you can find them here. The cane furniture pieces are unusual, and really quite unique. Basically, most people would be able to find something to their liking here. Some items are only sold as sets, others are available individually (you would have to enquire about a specific piece). The salespeople are very helpful and friendly. Because it's a wholesale store, it's cheap too! As a side note, you will get what you paid for here. Read between the lines. Furniture shopping is great fun. Try out every bed, mime eating a meal at every dinner table, cuddle into all the couches. It's your right to do as a shopper. Try before you buy, right? As I said, come here if you're looking for budget furniture.

Let's imagine Pinterest in real life. Freedom is a real life Pinterest board full of aspirational…read morehomewares, decorative pieces, furniture and more. It's all priced reasonably and quality varies depending on what you're buying. I rarely walk out of Freedom without a few more "wish list" items and I always leave with ideas racing through my head for home decoration. It's just the effect they have on me. This particular store is conveniently located in amongst a Home Maker Centre, meaning, it's surrounded by equally alluring stores like Domayne and Dare. It's a devilish trio. There's ample parking underneath with a 3 hour free parking limit while you shop. I guess that's their RSS: Responsible Service of Shopping. I've always found the staff at this store to be more than helpful. Last weekend we got a quote on a basic bed for our guest room and I was impressed that a few days later I received a follow up call to check-in on "our thought process." There's really quite the range from the super on-trend and seasonal pieces to more classic "ready to stand the test of time" ranges. Whatever your fancy or style, you'll find something within this real life Pinterest board.

Good stuff for the price, but after having waited 12 weeks and still no table delivered, I'm fed…read moreup. I call every week and get the same response that they simply don;t know when it will be in. What kind of logistics are the running?! Pathetic really.

If you live in Brisbane, the advantage of Replica Furniture as opposed to other companies that…read moreoffer replica designer furniture is that they are based in Brisbane so most items you can buy in-store and take home with you straight away as opposed to paying / waiting for your item to be shipped. They are very competitively priced and exact replica's of the real items of equal quality.

From the owner: At Replica Furniture we are committed to providing our customers with premium replica furniture and…read morelighting inspired by classic designs of the 20th Century. We import directly from our manufacturers, this means that we offer exceptional wholesale pricing on all of our premium products. At Replica Furniture we select and work closely with quality manufacturers. In addition we operate a rigorous, Australian based, quality control program. We hold all our product range in stock and there is generally, no wait time for our products.

This is one of the most beautiful homeware stores I've ever stepped foot in. It is huge and packed…read morefrom floor to ceiling with products. There's clothing, jewellery, elegant stuff for the bathroom, pretty cushions, bags, candles, clocks, vases - the range is immense. The layout of the store is great, with one large room on the ground floor. Up some stairs and you reach a balcony housing a thousand different temptations for your nose, as candles and the many other modern inventions for making you want to eat air huddle along shelves. Once you drag your nostrils away from this section you find yourself facing a long corridor lined with towering shelves holding soap dispensers, towels and much more. Along here a way and you'll come to a tiny room full of cushions in every colour of the soft, cuddly rainbow. It was a lovely place to explore - if you have Houdini-like children I probably wouldn't bring them here.

This is kinda like a "general store" of fabulousness…read more Want a cute Xmas card with a cute tin star on the front? Or perhaps a sweet dress from Fleur Wood? How about a bathrobe so soft you feel like you're enveloped in a cloud when you try it on? Or Xmas decorations, homewares, handbags, toys? I could have pottered around Olive for hours - it's quite literally crammed to the rafters with bits'n'bobs. Not all of them cheap, but if you're a fan of poking around, so to speak, you'll love it here. As is so often the case with me, I spied with my little eye, something beginning with S (for sparkly) so I spent an age at the jewellery counter, trying on all sorts of bling. I was particularly liking the Kardashian range of jewellery which is actually super cool (who knew?) and the shop assistant told me that I probably like it because it's apparently designed by the same people who do Nicole Richie's jewellery line, House of Harlow 1960 (which, in fact, Olive sells too). I reckon there's a little bit of everything to keep most people happy in here.