Homesense has a real hotch potch (proper phrase?) of household furniture and items available to…read morebuy; from the extremely tacky to the rather tasteful you never quite know what you're going to find. I was particularly impressed by their bedding selection; they had duvets by brands such Cath Kidston and Designers Guild selling for around only £30, which is quite incredible (though absolutely infuriating for me as I've just spent a fortune on Designers Guild bedding from the brands website). Additionally they had a massive selection of photo frames, in wide range of varieties, in my opinion these would make great gifts for those it's trick to by for. I wasn't to keen on the actual furniture available in Homesense (mainly just small chairs). The quality just did not appear quite good enough, and many of the pieces looked rather tacky. I was surprised to find that they also sell a small range of specialty foods. Nothing to grand, mainly pasta, olive oil, and Italian biscuits, but they're brands that you won't find in your local supermarket. I've really only touched the tip of the ice berg, Homesense just sells so much! It rather reminds me of TK Maxx, you need time and patience, but you could come away with some real bargains!

Incredibly well hidden away, a real little treasure. Outside they sell very traditional garden…read morefurniture, such as bird baths, picnic tables, and a rather unusual garden shed. Inside the Potting shed sells many little household items and gifts which are pretty, practical, or a combination of both. I personally fell in love with the vintage ladybird learn to sew kits and little boys will love all the Beano goodies. I can't further express how easy it is to miss this place, If it hadn't been recommended it would have been so easy to miss. REALLY worth checking out, whether you live (it's worth the journey).

Went here a two weeks ago as a treat for my daughter who had been very unwell , we really enjoyed…read morelooking around the lovely things for sale but decided to go for a coffee and was very surprised at how unfriendly the staff were there wasn't one smile amongst them all despite me smiling at them i found them to be rude and unwelcoming and won't be going there ever again very disappointing indeed.

This is the South-West's largest purpose-built garden centre, and is now a tourist and leisure…read moredestination in its own right. It was voted UK Garden Centre of the Year in 2007 by the Garden Centre & Retail Association. It was recently taken over by the Wyevale group. They sell everything imaginable in the gardening sphere, and secured a real coup by being the first garden centre in the UK to be permitted to sell the Wollemi Pine to the public. (For non-botanists, this is a rare pine thought to be extinct, but rediscovered in Australia in 1994: fewer than 100 adult trees survive in the wild, so it is being propagated around the world). This reflects their reputation as a high-quality plant nursery, and is about as high a commendation as you could get. The retail section also sells a wide range of other gardening and outdoor merchandise, from books, cards, ornaments, scented candles and crockery to pets and pet supplies, garden furniture, hot tubs, outbuildings and machinery. There's also a cafe-restaurant, and an extensive play area for children, which includes a large mock-up of a pirate ship. As you'd expect (given its location on the A38, close to to junction 22 of the M5), there's extensive car parking, but the centre also provides a free bus on Thursdays from Cheddar via Weston-super-Mare - details on the web-site.

Plesantly surprised the food was very good and I would come here again. The portions were a good…read moresize and it is a lovely atmosphere.

Home Zone is all about interior design for the kind of person that knows what they are looking for,…read moreand doesn't need to leave it all to a designer, (although I bet that interior designers use Home Zone just as much as we do, for both inspiration and ideas, as well as purchasing their products and services). Home Zone have only been around for five years, but have established themselves really quickly, and are generally considered to offer us a benchmark of what is both tasteful and innovative. In addition, Directors Jayne Bishop and Sean Kerr offer a full and attentive service, which has also gone a long way to augment their standing. Specialising in made to measure curtains and soft-furnishings, upholstery, blinds, and tracking with a comprehensive measuring and fitting service, they draw on their combined 40 years of experience, which puts them in the enviable position of being able to work with trusted people that they have had regular dealings with over the years. These days they have a dedicated, highly experienced team of sewers, upholsterers and fitters who work alongside them, as well as a network of crafts people who can be commissioned to make accessories when required. Some of the beautiful things that the crafts people make are amazing, and prove that everything is possible! Using every material imaginable, and every technique available, they are able to produce practically anything you could dream of for the house and home. Home Zone can do conventional as easy as falling off a log, but where they excel is when they are pushing creative boundaries and coming up with unique solutions for clients that have a real appreciation of what is possible.

From the owner: We are a small, local, team of specialist curtain makers, upholsterers and fitters and we offer a…read morefabulous service, providing you with made to measure soft-furnishings, upholstery, blinds, shutters and tracking along with a comprehensive measuring and fitting service, to make the whole process a bit easier for you!

This place has a fantastic stock of original antique and reproduction fireplaces, including both…read morethe inserts and the surrounds - plus wood-burners. I found this shop when I was looking for a Victorian fireplace for my previous flat, and it was just the job: they had a fireplace with a cast iron shelf, so no need for a surround - exactly what I needed to bring my lounge back to its original glory. If you don't find exactly what you want, however, they can custom build surrounds to match your exact requirements, and they also offer a repair and restoration service if you have an original fireplace in need of some TLC. They offer a (fairly pricey) fitting service, which is convenient if like me you're no handy DIY expert.

Some fireplace places make you feel like a proper doofus every time you ask a question. Not Period…read moreFireplaces. What a friendly, genuine, helpful bunch. We're about to get a hearth, surround and woodburner from them, and use their installation service, plus get a small bedroom fireplace repaired and restored, and it's been a joy dealing with them so far - will update once all work complete. Update, Sep 2013. All the above work was completed to our total satisfaction and we've also had them restore a second cast iron fireplace - back to black, with a slight repair and replacement bars, it looks as good as new. Great service from a highly recommended company.

We have had many different repairs made around the house and garden by this wonderful organisation…read more They were established to help elderly and disabled members of the community who are not able to do the work themselves. They are very professional and the work is always of the highest standard and so reasonably priced, too. Over the past few years we have met most members of the team and they are all so friendly, courteous and helpful. No job is too small even those little things like putting up curtain runners and coat hooks which most builders will not take on. Highly recommended.

Such an astonishing showroom!! The fireplaces they have in stock are beautiful and the staff are…read moreextremely knowledgeable and prepared to answer any questions. Would definitely recommend them to everyone!

From the owner: Retailers and importers of unique handmade Indian furniture. Ranging in designs from Retro and…read morevintage through to Industrial. Manufactured in a variety of materials to include Mango wood, Teak wood and raw industrial Steel. Simply lush furniture

A truly enormous garden centre on the eastern outskirts of Cardiff, conveniently situated adjacent…read moreto junction 29 of the A48M where it meets the old A48 Newport Road. It's a popular shopping destination in its own right, and is actually part of the large UK-wide Wyevale chain. As well as an enormous range of plants, seeds, gardening tools and gardening supplies, it sells all sorts of gardening-related merchandise, such as garden buildings, garden furniture, pet supplies, books, ornaments, greeting cards, toys, clothing etc. Their prices aren't the cheapest, but it's all in one place and the quality is not bad (and it is getting very hard to find independent high-quality traditional nurseries, these days). Many of the staff are not that expert in the plants, though - certainly not compared with the horticultural or botanical expertise that resides in parts of the British gardening fraternity. That said, they always seem to be pretty friendly and willing to help, and the whole experience is rather less intimidating than it can be in some traditional nurseries. For those living in hope of a dry summer, there is an extensive range of barbecues and barbecue supplies. (Note: worth getting in stocks of charcoal, as there is always a run on supplies at the first sign of Bank Holiday sun). They also have a hire service for a very extensive range of garden and building machinery, if buying your own rotovator or mini-digger seems something of an indulgence. Perfect for the would-be 'Bob the Builder' (or 'Bob y Bildar'). There's a decent sized cafe, which is quite pleasant outside the week-end peak times, although there's no escaping the warehouse 'architecture'. It's very popular with pensioners during the week. At week-ends, the whole place is packed by families on an afternoon out, which makes for a slightly more stressful shopping experience. The centre has toilets and is designed to be accessible for wheel-chair users. The Wyevale website is quite interesting for the novice gardener, with a 'plant finder' facility, which tells you what you can grow in the soil and aspect of your garden.

Blooms is a massive garden centre that's easy to get to from either Cardiff or Newport, with…read morehelpful staff (though not all of them perhaps 'experts') and a huge array of plants, garden furniture and ornaments, and gardening tools and accessories. The centre is also home to a decent little book shop and a café, and it sells jewellery, clothes, pet-related products, farm-style foods and even fresh Welsh meat, jams and chutneys! Blooms even offer an equipment hire service, so you can hire garden and building machinery rather than go out and buy it if you only need it for a one-off occasion. Some of the stock can be a bit on the expensive side, but I think most big nurseries are the same, and at least you can browse around lots of different departments under one roof here.

First confusion is the sign says Staple Hill Carpets - that's moved up the road. The sheer amount…read moreof stuff that isn't carpet outside the shop should give you a hint that it is no longer stocking carpets. Second confusion, yes they have moved from one side of the road to the complete opposite side! Third confusion - surely they can't stock EVERYthing? Well yes, yes they can. Lightbulb with a vintage fitting in green? No problem sir. Skirting board tacks hand made by virgins in Argentina? Third aisle at the back. One of those squeaky balls my dog lost in the park and now he won't play with anything else? You mean this one? *squeak*

I'm a bit of a novice to say the least when it comes to DIY. Since moving to the area I've used…read moreStaple Hill Stores twice. Although on both occasions I knew I had a DIY problem I needed to fix, I didn't really have a clue what I was going on about and it probably sounded like I was asking for various 'thingies' in broken English. However both times the shopkeepers have been really helpful and pointed be in the right direction straight away, the items purchased were fit for purpose and good value. On the last visit I wasn't to sure which colour thingy to go for and the shopkeeper advised me to take the ones I thought were right and bring them back and exchange for a different colour if need be. Just the sort of friendly service you want from a local hardware store! I'll definitely be returning if I need to purchase any other thingies.