I recently visited the Design Store in Wairau Park looking for some stylish pieces to spruce up the…read moreliving area. This fabulous contemporary furniture and accessories store has really top quality furniture and items that make your home look a million dollars. If you can spare a bit of change the items at the Design Store do not come cheap, it's the price you pay for elegance and character. Stunning mirrors, paintings, leather couches, ottomans, coffee tables. You name it; they can spruce up any home or office. Sometimes, like me you're just looking for that signature piece to place on a table and emphasize colour, I found exactly what I was looking for in the form of a lime green bamboo place mat! Just perfect and matched up with the colour theme throughout the house. The staff are very approachable, which is wonderful as sometimes in expensive stores you can feel a bit ignored. They will give you tips and choices if you explain exactly what you're after. If just browsing however, you can do so with leisure.

I very often pop in here for a wander. There is a shitload of stuff to look at and it can take a…read morewhile to make your way around the entire store to take in all the cool stuff in it's entirety. Because of this I'm very thankful that the staff aren't the kind to be breathing down your neck and constantly asking if you need a hand! There's a wide range of home decor things in here. mirrors, candles, kitchen things, furniture. A bit of everything really. If you're buying you mother or your grandmother or your aunt a present pop in here and there will almost certainly be something appropriate. Some things can be a bit pricey but there are other smaller things to take away too. Pretty much something to please whoever I'd say.

Walking into this store off the street, I was immediately assaulted by an amalgamation of bright…read morecolors and neons, wood and rustic pieces of furniture and home-wares that really tickled my fancy, I must say. If I had a sunny little villa in the Bahamas or something, this is the stuff I would like to fill it with, as it was I already have a few wish list pieces for my inner city apartment. There is this hot pink paper mâché stags head that I may have just given my heart too! I am such a hussy, whenever the next great little furniture store comes along, I just can't help myself. While the prices in here are a little out of my price range, it is the perfect antidote for a little daytime dreaming! Not just furniture there are also island like clothing items, tog coverups and poncho like things ( alright I'm not really sure what they are) and awesome accessories, like a skull bracelet I saw, and a matching neon necklace, which weren't actually as expensive as the other things in the shop (think like $39ish)

Bright pink table, hot pink stool, coloured skull ornaments and candles. That's what I saw from…read moreoutside and that's why I shot straight in! This is such a funky furniture shop I think if you decked your whole house out with purchases from here your place would be magazine photo shoot worthy! The furniture wasn't really in my price range I was disappointed to discover. But I will keep the shop in mind and I know I will be in for the odd piece when I can afford it! There were also some funky clothes down the back. I got particularly excited by a gorgeous full length playsuit before I discovered its sale price was still in the hundreds. What a pity... I was eager to see myself wearing it!

It was nice to see such a lovely little shop pop up in Birkenhead, since, let's face it, the…read moreshopping area itself is a bit down-at-heel. Crave and a few other little cutesy boutiques are giving this shopping centre a new spark of life, which is fantastic. From the outside the shop is very enticing, with a great mix of funky homewares and a few gift items thrown in the mix. My personal opinion is this shop is a bit over-priced though. I picked up a few items to see the price tag and almost immediately set them back down again. As cute as a box of stripey paper straws is, I'm not paying $12.50 for it. Perhaps if they got in a few reasonably priced options I'd be back.

Crave is a top quality home and gift store that is a new comer to the classic Birkenhead shops…read more Located at the corner of Mokoia Rd in Birkenhead, you will be in for a delightful shopping experience at this stylish boutique. They are award winning as of 2012 receiving a retail excellence award- so enough stated really. If you wondering what to buy a friend or family member who seems to have everything and anything. You might be lucky in finding a few special pieces in this original gift and home store. Stylish cushions and jewellery are my fave's here, because they have flair and style and standout with oomph! The staff are friendly and will help with your needs, all you need to do is call out. If you have found that perfect pressie they will also wrap it up to look gorgeous darling! A real shopping experience with class and sophistication.

Arazzo is Mum & I's go to for gifts. They stock a beautiful range of candles, gorgeous body…read morelotions, silk scarves, jewellery, cookbooks and more. But the best thing about this small shop is that they turn over their stock at lightning speed, which means for a regular like me there's always something new to fawn over. It's obviously as popular with the other Milford locs as it is with our family. The other fabulous thing about Arazzo is that, compared to many other independent home decor stores, it's affordable. I love candles and so they have become somewhat of a price indicator for me and at $40 (they have quite a range), Arazzo's are an absolute steal! Try their beautiful handmade ones from Devonport. I forget the brand name but they come in a stylish black and white box and are stunning. They also currently have some fabulous christmas decorations, which the owner tell me are flying out the door. Cute wee reindeer and fairy lights galore - it certainly put me in a festive mood!

I find the the Bunnings Warehouse staff really helpful when you go in with a DIY problem. From…read morepainting to gardening they have guys (mostly) who are willing to give you the time to sort out a solution. I really like their garden section - not just for plants but also a really good range of pots, mixes and things like stones etc.

I love Bunnings. Do you remember, as a kid, that fresh paper smell whenever you got a new…read morestationary order at school? I get that feeling whenever i step into Bunnings. First of all unless you're a die hard expert, you do a cursory exploration of no more than five minutes before asking someone. Yes it's a practically a man cave and asking for directions is against a creed, but in this case it will get you to the goodies faster. The staff are so helpful, you can interrupt anyone and they just smile at you and don't show the levels of frustration associated with constant interruptions. I had to return something recently and it took around 20 seconds to arrange. Bunnings in Glenfield has great parking and is really well located, the place is clean and they almost always have a mass of checkout staff to ensure you can use more of your day. If you're looking for DIY this is the place

I really enjoy popping in from time to time, and checking what is new on the shelves at this cute…read moregift store on Mokoia Rd. Can be overlooked as the store, is located between takeaway food stores, and a skate clothing outlet shop. Venture in to find an amazing range of choice. All the gifts have an artistic flair to them I believe which is amazing. I arrived not knowing what I wanted to buy, and found two presents within minutes- that is not hard to do here. Walk out the back of the store and there is an outside section that sells outdoor/garden gifts- a favorite area of mine. A creative option of gifts here before the store across the way.

Art of Gifts is a gorgeous collection of art and gifts... predictably. There's so much to feast…read moreyour eyes on it's a bit much to take in in one go. What caught my attention first was the stash of wallets on the shelf to the left of the entrance. They were leather and came in all sorts of colours and styles and patterns. For what they were they were quite affordable. I was hooked by a $19 coin purse! Wondering around the rest of the store you see lots of home décor stuff and quite a bit of Kiwiana. The best is outside the back. It's quite easy to think you're done after doing a quick circuit inside but if you potter up into the outdoors you will see a beautiful garden with great little things to make your own garden look just as beautiful. I was mentally taking note of everything I wanted so I could come back on payday and spend up large.

So glad Nest has re-opened and whats more, in my neighbourhood. Great move Department Store! I do…read morefeel obliged to let you know however, that this is a "pop-up" store so who knows how long it will be there...in other words, get in quick! I guess you'd put Next in the homewares category - beautiful crockery, S&P shakers, wooden platters. I bought my mum a large soft blue bowl for Christmas and she loved it! Perfect for salads and sharing plates. They also have these gorgeous turkish towels in store at the moment and a hanging outdoor chair that is at the top of my wishlist!

Want to buy a gift for somebody and have absolutely no idea what to get them? Flying Saucers could…read morehold the answer. Every time I walk into this shop I find something that I could not have imagined there was a use for, but not in the way of the $2 shop, something kind of cool and funky that people won't look at you funny if you give it to them. There are also always the old staples like smellies, jewellery etc. The only thing is that everything costs about double what you think it will. If you spend $40, the gift recipient is likely to think you spend $20; $100 and they will likely think $50 etc. So it will be an expensive gift-giving excersize.