I've always come in ehre with my mum as it is a shop for women in her agve group. But I secretly am…read morein love with this store and always find something that I really, really need. Ok, really, really want, but you know what I mean. It's really classic, chic, and has everything from shoes, to homeware, to dresses, to gloves. There's so much nice stuff in the store and would be the perfect place to head if you've got your mum's birthday coming up or Mother's Day. My favourite thing to look at there is their knitwear range. I'm one of those people who go around feeling the clothes. Weird I know. But here you can totally tell the difference between a chain store. They feel like they're so well made and are of a good quality. Why not take your mum there. Sure it may be just for her at first, but I'm sure you'll find something for yourself too.

Fantastic shop and amazing service! I had never heard of this brand and seldom go to Albany so…read moreimagine my delight to spend at least an hour in there with a brilliant sales attendant bringing me mix and matches and all sorts of gorgeous clothes. I had to buy a fair few items for a new job and she was right on the money helping me out. I love experiences shopping like this. Well done Blue Illusion... I will definitely be back!

If you need to buy gifts for anyone, then this is the place to go. You can browse around, and there…read moreis nobody looking over your shoulder. The store is laid out for a quick stock turn around, leaving one item on show and the rest packed in boxes ready to become much loved gifts. I have yet to enter this store and not find a suitable gift for anyone and everyone. They stock vases, bowls and home decor pieces. During the Christmas period, they were selling the most beautiful decorations you could find, and they were cheap as chips. Initially I thought they were just opening up to cash in on the Christmas gift rush, but this outlet store's popularity is making them it the one stop gift shop on the Shore. The lady that served me offered to wrap my gift, a service that adds to the five stars they've already achieved.

If I had to name my happy place, I think Living and Giving would be fairly high on the list. I…read morecould spend hours in this store pondering over the amazing products they have in there. There's so much I could happily get my credit card out and splurge on. Yes, it is a little bit more expensive than your average Briscoes but that's what I like about it. It's high quality, different but classic products that I know will one day be in my children's flats - it's that good. There's also loads of gift ideas in there. I did most of my Christmas shopping there because there's something for everyone. And they gift wrap, win! The staff are always really onto it and helpful if you're stuck with what to get. And every now and again (if you're lucky) they do a huge sale.

The filming of corporate videos is normally an easy thing to do, you take your camera, film the…read moretalking bits and get enough pictures to cover the talking bits. You then edit it, and deliver a finished product. Okay a bit more than that, but you get the drift. With most work edited, mixed and delivered on computer, this is becoming a job for everyone. All you need is your own gear; you don't even need tapes, everything is digital. You do need a small number of things like tape, clips and things like cable ties. This can all be bought at a dedicated film and TV store, or at most photo shops. For basic elements you will pay up to ten times more than normal, just because it is for TV production purposes. This is why I do all my shopping for TV gear at J.A. Russell. They charge a low price for everything, so I get my cable ties, gaffer tape and globes at next to nothing, and with tight budgets at play, the bottom line makes a huge difference. The staff are well informed, and they stock more things than you even thought necessary, plus there's saving for bulk buying.

The store sign says Japanese souvenirs and gifts but there's definitely more to this store than…read morethat. I am a huge trinket and ornament person and if I had infinite funds to spend on junk my house would be filled with... well, crap. Cool crap that is. The kind of dinky stuff you find in this shop. Quaint little ornaments, cool wall hangings and some cool Kiwiana stuff. The prices are pretty inexpensive. I know there are some places where you pay an arm and a leg for some plain wood thing to hang on the wall but here everything seems pretty tame. Besides that though there's nothing particularly special about this place but it's definitely worth a nosy if you're wondering past.

Great gift shop with so much packed in to this small store. The owners are friendly & willing to…read moreorder in stock if you have something special in mind. Lots of handcrafted knicknacks, signs, ornaments, along with all the typical kiwi souveniers. Definitely give this place a go if you need ideas for gifts.

I normally do my hardware shopping at Bunnings or Mitre 10, not because I have a great affinity for…read morethese stores, but mostly because I don't know where else to go. With a pending repair job to my shed, I realised I needed to buy white screws (do you even get white screws), so off to Bunnings I went... As I drove down Constellation Drive, I noticed Hylton Parker Fasteners on the side of the road, so i thought maybe they can help. And they could, and they did. Simon, the highly visible salesman, offered me his full attention, and managed to run me through the various options available. He explained that they are normally geared for the trade, but are happy to service walk in customers. I was impressed with the level of service, and the informative approach Simon took to the sales process. I will return, even though I only ever do handy man work every second year.

I had a squiz at this garden centre when I stopped to get a coffee at Cigana which is just 50…read moremetres away from it. I'm not much of a gardener but I do appreciate a good stroll around a good garden centre. There's always a bit of a serenity about it. And this is exactly what the Sunhill Garden Centre is like. As soon as I walked in the shop assistant asked me how I was going and if I needed anything. The other staff member was busy helping a man with the best plants for his garden. She obviously was so knowledgeable plants and had so much information for him. There were loads of different plants and a cute gift shop too. I really love my fresh herbs and I was delighted to see they sell three herb punnets for $10! That's so cheap and they smelt amazing. Basil pasta here I come!

For being located on such a busy road, Sunhill Garden Centre is surprisingly peaceful. Perhaps it…read moreis the tree-bound setting combined with the trickle of the water features that distracts you from the sound of traffic, I don't know. But what I do know is that Sunhill Garden Center has a really great wide range of plants, from perennials and succulents to dwarf shrubs and citrus, which are all clearly labelled and well organised in the garden out the back. You can also pick up Oakdale Organics vegetable and herb seedlings starting from 3.99 each or 3 for 10, which seems to be a good deal. Inside you will find all sorts of gardening supplies and also plenty of gifts, such as potted plants, ornaments and various gardening accessories. And if you have a little one with you, then Sunhill has arranged for that too, with a small playground at the back overlooking the Apirana Reserve.

I love Freedom Furniture, becouse I feel like it is the closet I will ever get to IKEA and its…read moreofferings and prices. Auckland has a lot of furniture stores around, and many are great but Freedom Furniture is perfect for several reasons. They have great products in general which is awesome, but they also have a lot of make it yourself products which I love so much. They have a great selection of items in this store as well, due to its massive floor space. You can move from looking at kitchen items to bedroom items and so forth, it is awesome. The prices are also what helps in liking this space. We were there just yesterday, and were able to look at a few furniture stores which offered very similar products, and Freedom Furniture had by far the best price range overall.

My home is decorated in what can best be described as a collision between old farmhouse and modern…read more I love antique Kauri tables, Yellowwood bookshelves and oak chests. I love pop art on the walls and display cases to show off items I've acquired from my world travels. What I don't like is mass-produced boring furniture. With my eclectic style, you would not really see me as being a regular Freedom Furniture shopper, and you would be correct. It's not that they sell bad stuff, or items sans style - it is just that they don't come with a story. For my office however, I needed a place for people to sit, a place where they could see presentations, and a place that will put them at ease. I needed a place filled with Freedom Furniture's furniture. The staff was helpful and the furniture just what I wanted, so while it is not suited for my own home, it was perfect for the office.

This outfit was fantastic. I ordered one of their products online and figured it would take 2-3…read moredays to arrive. They went the extra mile and delivered it that night (personally). Not suggesting they do this all the time, but I really appreciated the extra effort they went to - if this is anything to go by I can highly recommend them. Brad