Viva La Shoe When this place opened in Saintfield, there was…read moresomewhat of a stir: a place selling only shoes and bags for women, in our little village? Sex and the City and Saintfield has never caught themselves in alignment before and the women of Saintfield wouldn't stoop to such debauchery! Fortunately the initial suspicions have died down and the shop is just used and looked at as a regular on the Saintfield main street now. My girlfriend will come in here sometimes when she needs a bit of nice jewellery or shoes for a particular scenario, and the staff have always been very nice and the prices competitive compared to the high street,. The selection of everything is moderate, but there is an emphasis of quality over quantity. There a good range of hair and body accessories, so the store offers a good bit, but it feels a bit sparse on the inside at times, and could do with expanding its ranges and redecorating to make it feel warmer!

There seems to be at least two different antique shops at this address, so I'm slightly baffled as…read moreto which is which. The sign says Agar Antiques, but the business cards in the downstairs room say Drummondreid, as does the opening hours sign on the window. Then there's an A board on the pavement saying 'Town and Country Antiques Upstairs', with different opening hours. Argh, I haven't a clue what's happening. What I do know is that the downstairs section of this antique shop is like an Aladdin's Cave, overflowing with the most delightful vintage furniture (there are genuine sofas from dear only knows when, which have become a bit battered and worn, plus more plush chaise longues, beautiful tables, lighting and that sort of thing), as well as accessories (those giant antlers seemed to all the rage at one stage), a few pieces of jewellery, figurines and ornaments. There was even a fur coat lying on a one of the chairs...I didn't check if it was genuine or not. The little business card (under the name Drummondreid) informed me that they do furniture restoration too, which is pretty cool. I'm all into reusing things, and I do love old knick knacks, so that may come in handy at some stage. Despite the name confusion, I absolutely loved this wonderful antiques shop (minus the fur coat...)

I think I've been watching too many of those Cash in the Attic style shows, because for the last…read moregood while I've had an insatiable desire to go visit an antiques shop and have a nosey, though I've always felt a bit silly. I mean, what do I know about antiques?! The answer is zilch, nada...nothing. And I almost passed this lovely little place for fear of looking completely out of place (I don't know what antique-loving people look like, but let me tell you, they don't look like me), except for the fact that I listened to the voice of reason that happened to be my sister. Delusion happens to the best of us... "Aww, come on Lynne! Don't be so silly, just go in!" she exclaimed. Man, she can be mighty persuasive at times. So, in we went. And I gotta tell you, I rather liked it. The lady shop keeper did keep a bit of an eye on us, but we ended up striking up a conversation about the character figurines in the cabinet, and she even told us we could open it and have a closer look. My sister and I shared a laugh, and explained that they'd probably all be broken within minutes if we were to do that. She laughed along, and we continued to examine the delightful little ornaments from afar, pointing out the Jemima Puddle Duck one, and explaining to her that my sister had always had an affiliation with this particular Beatrix Potter character, having been called after her on certain occasions when she was much younger. The shop has lots of stunning chinaware, furniture, and home interiors, as well as jewellery and random little knick knacks. We spotted a Victorian kettle, a 120 year old book and a couple of strange animal antlers on plaques...very fetching! If I was after an unusual gift, or an item of vintage furniture, I wouldn't hesitate to repay Christine and her antiques a visit.

What a consistently well stocked liittle shop! Changes on every visit. I've nerly always found…read moresomething I want to buy! Christine is a an avid Francophile and something from the South of France occasionally turns up and finds a good home with me in Northern Ireland. Well worth a visit. Keep looking!!!

The second pet shop visit of the week to find something for our spoilt puss cat. You'll recall my…read moreexcitement at the number of fish in the Ballynahinch Pet Centre (review is about here somewhere), but Beechill's was a step up from those slippery amphibians. Oh yes, screw those fishies...this pet shop had a real life dog. Mmm hmm. A dachshund to be precise, and a friendly mutt it was too. I'm glad that my sister walked into the shop first, as it ran up and greeted us as soon as we were through the door. In fact, I didn't even see what it was my sister was talking to, namely because a) there wasn't a whole lot of room, and b) the dog had raced up to her so deftly that I was unaware of its presence. A couple of seconds later and I realised that the deft dog was now playing dead dog, and had decided to perch itself on my sister's feet. I then took a slight detour to the cat section (I'm not gonna lie...give me a cat over a dog any day of the week), whilst my sister gave doggie a rub. I then realised that the shop assistant was sitting right in front of me, and got ever so slightly embarrassed at my comments to my sister ("get out of the way", "shift that dog" sort of thing). He was evidently very amused at the ongoing shenanigans, and had to stifle a laugh at the comedy unfolding before him. Glad to be of service, sir. I did manage to pick up some food for the cat, but that wasn't before my sister got super excited at the discovery of a yellow and blue budgie. [Don't ask where the dog had gotten too...I haven't a clue. Both of them (sister and mutt) had moved on, so it longer mattered anyhow]. Not much else to report, but it's not often you'll find a pet shop that has a dog as it's greeter...

It has been said in other reviews how bad my family's luck is with animals. You name the type of…read moreanimal and it has probably died on us under our direct supervision or the wheel of our cars! When we did have our last dog tho we occasionally treated with things from here. This place isn't the best for dog food as you can't get it cheaper in supermarkets if you like tinned food: this place is better for large bags of feed, which are far better for your dog anyways! The store is small but has animal accessories for the most popular domesticated animals like hamsters, cats and many more! The store also takes advertisements for local breeders so it can be a useful place to look if you are trying g to locate a specific breed of animal!

Another day, another pharmacy, but Saintfield Pharmacy (aka Trevor Baird Ltd) stands out in my mind…read morefor three reasons: 1) It's right beside the Post Office. Like properly adjacent...there's not even a wall dividing the two. Pharmacy and Post Office = one and the same. Novel, I thought. And useful, except the Post Office wasn't open when I was in. Ah well. 2) They have a quite a significant jewellery / handbag selection...lots of those little charm bracelets that seem to be *everywhere*. Really pretty stuff too - gorgeous patent bags in a variety of colours. And this is a pharmacy remember! 3) The young girl who served me had the most stunning gel nails, and despite her protests, she really was managing rather well with them on. Gosh, I am such a girl... I did purchase a smoothie shower gel thingamajig, which was apparently the most forgettable aspect of the visit, as I didn't even notice until last night that I didn't have a clue where it had gone. Oopies... Great pharmacy though. As pharmacies go.

I really like this branch in the Gordon's chain. I will go on record as saying that this is…read morepossibly the most immaculate pharmacy style shop that there is around: the shop always seems to be dazzlingly clean and the stock is always fronted well so the shop always looks in great condition. The store has the usual blend of hygiene and health and beauty products that you would expect, with a good range of special offers in all product ranges. There is a pharmacy inside which is very handy, being a 2 minute walk from the health centre just up the hill. There is a good perfume section and some home electric items, and has all the things you would want from a store like this. If only the staff were more cheery, but I know someone who worked here and the owners are apparently v very strict and banter is kept at a minimum!

Isn't it just typical that when you break your sunglasses, the sun decides to come out? When I…read moreaccidentally snapped the arm off my £1 Primark specs, I figured I'd be ok until next summer. But oh no, the very next just *had* to be on of the sunniest days of the summer. And I was stuck in Saintfield, blinded by the light, so to speak. Oooh, fun times. Gordons is one of my favourite chemists anyway, but it's gone up a whole lot more in my estimation now. Not only do they stock excellent makeup wipes for a mere 99p, or indeed stock a whole lot of other things for 99p, but they do a rather nice selection of sunglasses. Bingo! A pair were spotted, tried on, complimented (by my sister) and purchased alongside half the shop...I needed to purchase some 'necessities' too you see. I had initially thought the sunnies were going to be £5, which was decent enough for a category three pair of shades. When I got to the till, however, they came up at £2.50 - half price! Ooooh, I wasn't half a happy bunny. Never did I even consider Gordons for a pair of glasses, but it seems these places do everything these days, and ridiculously cheap prices too. Oh Gordons, how I love you...

Called in to have new charging port fitted to an iphone. Staff member took phone upstairs, gave it…read morea good clean and returned it to me and the phone is charging again without any wiggling or bending of charger lead To get a charge. And asked for no payment, highly recommend.

So I smashed my phone on Saturday night (don't ask!) and I needed to get it foxed before I started…read moregetting glass splinters in my fingers. I immediately thought of the Repair Lounge down to the their catchy radio ads. First up, it's pretty easy to find, opposite the junction of Tates Avenue on the Lisburn Road. If you're driving park on one of the many side streets rather than trying to get a space on the Lisburn Road. The shop itself is minimal, you walk in and you are presented with platformed area, don't let this put you off, that's where the phone fixers sit. When I went in (about 3pm on a Monday) the two guys were noticeably busy, one on the phone and one in the middle of dissecting an iPhone but I waited patiently. Once they were free I asked how much and how long it would take to get my phone screen repaired. They then explained to me that it varied from £100 - £140 depending on the quality of the glass used for the screen. This didn't put me off as I expected it to be in that area. What did put me off was the wait - they explained that they had a huge back log of phones to repair and with Monday being delivery day I couldn't get it repaired straight away. This wait made me go somewhere else, but the experience wasn't bad at all. I understand that it's a skilled job to fix these devices and that Monday is their busiest day - especially after all the weekend smashes! Cool set up and really knowledgeable staff - I'll be back no doubt!

Now, this place may not win any awards for being cool and I used to curse my mother for buying me…read moreshoes from here when I was a young boy but now I'm older and buying my own shoes I can see why she brought me here year after year to get my school shoes. The prices aren't low but they're really, really good for the quality of shoe that you get and a pair of Clarks will last you ages. There is also that cool machine that works out your shoe-size which always used to amaze me when I was younger. The staff are knowledgable and friendly, not being too pushy with the optional extras like polishes and leather protector etc.

I usually don't like going to this Clarks Shoe shop as their kids department is upstairs and not…read moreoverly convenient for prams. I was passing today but and needed to get new shoes for my youngest so I thought I would nip in. As I said kids department is upstairs so I parked the pram in the designated area for prams and brought my wee one upstairs. There was no one else there, bonus I picked a good time to go, I noticed on my way in through the doors a ticket system so it must get very busy at times and to stop arguments between mothers they have thought of this. Shop is very well laid out in age categories and types of shoes. Lovely and bright too for kids. Assistant came straight over and measured my daughters feet and then went into the store and got all the available stock in her size, three pairs to choose between. Assistants are very knowledgeable in fitting for kids. Needless to say we came home with new shoes.