One of those shops that seems to have all sorts of household items that you often don't realise you…read moreneed til you walk in here. Mops, buckets, mats, bathroom mirrors... there's a bit of everything in here.

This place looks like it's been caught in a time warp, its amazing. Walking through its doors is…read morelike travelling back through time. I'm not sure why anyone would like to travel back in time to a hardware shop but there ya go. It stocks all the dedicated D.I.Yer would need to help them in their quest to ruin their living room by trying to mount their own shelves or flat screen tv. The staff know everything their is to know about the contents of the shop and will help you no end, if it's required.

This is a great little pokey shop on the Lisburn road. With so many new outlets on the Lisburn road…read morecatering for everything from Estate Agents to interior design, its nice to see an old well maintained premises. But lets be honest, for most of us hardware is hardware and I for one like the thought that I can buy my garden spade form a place my grandfather bought his garden spade from. The guys that work look like they have fun, they stock just about anything that a DIY quiz would mention but don't plan any of your weekly hammer purchasing trips on a Wednesday. As they will be having a wee afternoon off!!! Visiting Mr Guinness i gather

This is one of those places where you've always been able to get your paint and other DIY malarkey…read more They're also pretty popular as an establishment where you can hire all sorts of tools and equipment whether you're tidying up the garden or building an extension. You can hire equipment from hedge clippers and lawn rakers to kangos and cement mixers. It seems the only thing they don't do is a crane, but I'm sure if you asked them... It's a family owned business and in recent years has diversified to offer other services. They now do a line of party items, Halloween costumes, and even floral arrangements for weddings. Still, their hire services for equipment is pretty useful, especially if you're sitting about the house with nothing to do and think, "I reckon that wall would look better with a hole in it..."

A boring review, but a review none the less! There's so many big stores like this on the Boucher…read moreRoad. Within a mile radius you have B&Q, Homebase and Dunelm Mill - all essentially selling the same sort of things. So why go to Homebase over the others? Well first up they have a dedicated garden section. Secondly they are always really well staffed and you can ask for help rather than aimlessly wandering the isles. They also nearly always have sales on - if you buy anything at full price here you're doing it wrong. One negative is the parking situation. Unlike B&Q across the road they don't have dedicated parking for large purchases. So if you're heading to Homebase make sure you try and get a space close by. It's either that or take a few wing mirrors off whilst negotiation you large purchase through parked cars. Don't say I didn't warn you! 3 stars, nothing more, nothing less.

This Homebase store is massive. You could spend a week in here and never make it through every…read moreaisle. This is great if you have time to spend hoking and poking through garden furniture, paint and odd bits and bobs, however not so great if you've called in for a quick purchase. The store is bright and airy, with its high ceilings and white walls. Yet it can get a little cold when you're wondering around so make sure you have a cardigan or jacket on hand. What I find about this store is that weekends in particular seem to bring the masses in. Whether there has been a recent advertisement that D.I.Y enthusiasts have jumped to, a couple have recently moved house or people going for a nosy, they all arrive at the weekend. So, if you don't fancy queuing, make use of the late week night openings as they tend to be a lot quieter with time to ponder over difficult decisions.