The guy and I are once again shopping for furniture. This time, we're hoping to purchase two rooms…read moreworth in one go. So, after hearing an advert on the radio about Sterling Furniture, we decided to stop by on our way back in to Glasgow. This place is huge. To be fair, it's more than just a furniture shop, as it has a cafe, a fabric area, a home goods area with kitchen things, bathroom things, etc. and also a huge Christmas area, which I did my best to keep away from. First things first, because they're all about when you walk in, sofas! We are looking for two couches. Possibly a 4 seater and a three seater or maybe just a three seater and a two seater. We haven't really decided just yet, but we have the room for both, we just need to find something that we absolutely love. Unfortunately, we didn't find anything we loved, but a few possible contenders as 'other options'. We did, however, find a bedroom set that we absolutely fell in love with. An all hard wood sleigh bed, with matching side tables and two large chest of drawers. Goodness, it's gorgeous and grand and very adult looking. We basically closed the book on looking for anything further. I love how you're able to sit on beds, and open drawers (I am very picky about drawers, they MUST have dovetail joints, otherwise, it won't be purchased). Everything in this showroom is of high quality and meets our particular standards. The prices match the quality, and they're not the cheapest here at Sterling, but knowing that we'll be loving this set for many many years to come helps the blow of the cost. Another good thing about Stirling, right now they're having a massive sale and 0% interest free financing options, which is great! We left on cloud nine, knowing that we made the right decision about the pieces we want to purchase- only thing we needed to do was to go home and measure to make sure everything will fit. Huzzah, it will! The staff here are super helpful, always asking if everything is ok or if we had any questions. I really liked that they were helpful but not in an overbearing way. We still have our spare bedroom to furnish (swap out what we have for new stuff), so I'm sure we'll be back soon enough!

From the owner: As we've grown we've become more than just furniture. We have everything you need for your house,…read morehome and even garden. From home interiors and linens, to cookware, bathroom accessories and lighting, our extensive range of homewares is difficult to rival. At Sterling it's easier and more affordable than you think to give your home a fresh new look. You can also now re-energise with a refreshing coffee or lovely lunch in our cafés or a relaxing meal in our Butterfly Inn restaurant at Tillicoultry.

DFS A day in the…read morelife of the sales team, read this like you're in Peep Show.... Salesman: (Thinks to himself) Fake tan? Check. Cheap suit? Check. Toothy grin? Check. Recession defying sales targets? Check. Underlying sense of despair? Check. Ready for work. Time to hit the shop floor. Salesman: (Spots punter and thinks to self: "Here he comes, this has got to be it. Come on pal, you know you want a sofa, I'll even chuck in a free poof. Just buy something. Please.") Says: Hello sir, my name is Davey, welcome to DFS. You've chosen the right day to come, we have many items on offer for you today, made to the highest standards with the finest materials. What is it you're looking for today sir?" Customer: (Thinks: "Christ, just fuck off, I'm just in the door.") Says: "Oh hi there, cheers for that pal. I'm just going to look about just now." Salesman: (Thinks: "Bastard. What does it take? You didnae just come out here to look around, WE'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF FUCKING NOWHERE. Put your hand in yer wallet ya dick and buy something.") Says: "That's ok, anything you're after in particular?" Customer: (Takes a deep breath and sighs, his shopping experience irreparably soiled.) Says: "Erm, not just now, I'm just looking at prices and things." Salesman; (Thinks- "For fuck's sake, just fucking buy something ya tight bastard, ma bairns haven't eaten in a week and I've got a nose-up on the cards this Saturday night.") Says-"No problem sir, if you see anything you like or have any questions, just ask. My name is Davey and it's my job to help." Customer: (Looks Davey up and down, then observes the bead of sweat on Davey's brow, revealing his underlying desperate need to make a sale. He gives a smile. Customer thinks to himself: "Not yet Davey. I'm going to make you beg before you see my readies. I own you. I FUCKING own you.") Says- "Oh right, cheers for that pal, I'm just going to look about just now." (Turns and walks away, grinning. Thinks: "See you soon Davey. Time for you to earn that 0.1% commission. Time for you to bend over and touch your toes.") In summary, not bad service, although these guys all remind me of the salesman from the Simpsons who can't sell anything and is constantly a nervous wreck. 6 weeks delivery time on a sofa seems a bit excessive though.

Oh dear, just along the road from Stirling Furniture is this lovely massive showroom of nothing but…read moresofas. Since we're in the market for new living room furniture, we decided to pop in and see what they had to offer. Loads of low- medium end range sofas for very reasonable prices. A few felt nice, but when thinking in the long term, we decided they wouldn't be contenders for what we're looking for. Loads of them would be perfect for a Uni flat or even a started flat, but not anything we're looking for. Even still, there are plenty of ideas here for people with all sorts of budgets. Since this is half of a major adult purchase for my guy and I, we really want to make sure what we buy we love and will be able to keep it for many years to come. We walked around this massive showroom probably about 10 times, hmming and haaing over different styles and patterns. I walked up to one and actually pointed out a tartan fabric cuddle chair (as they're so aptly named- a very snug fit for two people) and in a half joking way, suggested we buy it. What I didn't realise was that my guy had already decided that he was in love with the sofa in this set. Being a bit out of budget (our budget being almost as much as this one sofa), I took a picture of it to remind us of which one we loved and we moved on. It didn't take us very long to decide that we found what we were looking for and hurried back to the couch we fell in love with and had a sit down. We left feeling a little underwhelmed with service here, but I'm sure that speaks very little of how they really are. Every sales person we saw was completing a sale with happy customers, sitting on their future sofas. It was great to see, and meant that DFS must be doing something right. We weren't able to flag down anyone to help us, but we were able to go home and research sizes and measure and decided that the sofa we found comes in three different sizes- two of which we will be getting! I highly recommend this showroom for your sofa needs, there really is something here for every budget (and payment plans to boot).

This gorgeous homewares shop opened about 5 months ago but somehow I'd completely missed it in this…read moretime. It's got some really lovely bits and pieces - Glasgow road signs, vintage map wall art, luggage cases, Shetland wool blankets, chandeliers, furniture as well as wee decorative pieces. One of my favourite finds was a glass pineapple that has a silver coating and now sits on my lounge room table. I didn't realise but they also have a shop through in Edinburgh and an online store. With fantastic customer service and great, unusual pieces, I'll definitely be popping in more often.

The window displays are so beautiful here, it almost put me off because I was scared my…read more'clumsiness' would mean I would knock everything over! Anyway, needed a mother's day gift and I'm glad I went in. I was focussing on the unique candle scents, rhubarb and ginger or fig to name but a few, for the gift. These were so delicious I came away with one for mum and one for me. Other things that caught my eye were the range of blankets/throws and room diffusers. Staff here are extremely helpful and friendly (none of the pouncing/smothering approach some people go for) and a pleasure to do business with. If you need something lovely...time and tide. (Even if you are clumsy!)

The store is fine and all the staff there were helpful. However the courier service they use is…read moreterrible. I kept on getting multiple messages saying the delivery dates had changed, then if they delivered a package it would just be left on my doorstep for anyone to take. I have also ordered 2 couches (2 seater & 3 seater) which were meant to arrive already, when they did arrive on the weekend it was just the 2 seater and they have no record of the 3 seater. Now I have to follow up and try find where my couches are.This is unacceptable! All of this was ordered online in your store.

I can't believe I only discovered this place on Christmas Eve 2015, but it will certainly be a…read moreChristmas Eve I don't forget quickly... Parking up, it doesn't look that impressive, but when you pass through the doors (of what I assume used to be a gigantic Homebase) you are blown away by the sheer awesome scale of the place. You can literally buy everything here, from greetings cards and stationary, to salted nuts and crisps, white goods and domestic electronics, and a huge selection of pet supplies. Top tip if you are visiting for the first time, either set yourself a budget or come with some specific things you want to purchase otherwise you might find yourself with a trolley, a huge bill and a very random selection of well-priced but potentially non-essential goods!

Located within the Palace Grounds Retail Park Reids is very nicely laid out though there isn't a…read moregreat deal of space to get between the displays for wheelchair users. Most suites are leather in line with recent demand, though there are some material suites which are tastefully designed. There are various bits and pieces of furniture which are set out also in display such as dining furniture, living room furniture etc but at the back of the store is a section where there are various great quality beds. Staff here are attentive and friendly, they will also do their best to provide as much information on whatever products the customer is interested in. At no point did I feel as though I was being pushed into buying something for the sake of a sale.

This is a quaint little shop on Clarkston Road. It's dedicated to - you've guessed it - creations…read moreof fabric. Thus, meaning, of course, that they have an array of fabric and fabric decorations. This allows you to buy any quantity of fabric and make your own wonderful creations or simply have a browse through their pre-made stuff and instantly pick up something pretty. All the items are fairly decently priced and clearly displayed. Whilst, the staff are extremely welcoming and offer excellent personal customer service, Great little place for all art and craft lovers and DIY decorators alike.

As Laura has mentioned this little shop stocks a whole host of various different fabrics so you can…read moreput your own stamp on your home. I popped in here a few years ago with my friend who's a whiz at making things, she had some old tatty cushions that she wanted to spruce up and rather than throw them out she came here for some fabric. The shop owner was friendly and she got a really pretty pink and cream swirly design and it was a problem that she wasn't buying rolls and rolls of it, the shop owner was happy to cut as much as she needed. I'm not sure what the going rate for fabrics are, I'm a bit ignorant when it comes to that but the price seemed very reasonable for the amount she got and the cushions look great! They have loads of different designs to sift through and the staff are very friendly and knowledgeable, it has that really nice crafty/hobby shop feel too it which will now doubt give you some inspiration for your fabric-related project.