Kikki K is only losing one star because I feel the place is a tad expensive for what it is. Yes the…read morestationery is beautiful, quirky, cute (depending on what one chooses) and of quality. But still. I bought numerous items on their most recent sale and loved all the goodies with a 30% or 50% markdown. The service is always friendly and the girls working there now recognise me. It's worth noting Kikki K also holds organisation and happiness workshops. Great place to go shopping for gifts.

A wander through the Britomart precinct is incomplete without a visit to Kikki K. It's the…read moreclassiest stationery shop in Auckland by a million miles. The staff here are friendly and seem to have an idea of the very specific way that true stationery officianados need to revisit each item in the shop about twelve times per visit, as they make their mental lists of which pencil is cuter, which noteboook is the ideal size, which illustration best sums them up as a person. I'm not being mean! It takes one to know one. The only thing I would advise against at Kikki K is asking for too much assistance. I made that mistake and it kind of just made a hard decision harder, with all the options the sales assistant showed me.

I think I may have just found my new favourite gift shop - introducing Matchbox Studios!…read more Matchbox Studios originally started up in Wellington three years ago, where they are a large art and crafts store plus an art gallery. I recently discovered them on Instagram and saw that they were opening a store in St Kevins Arcade on K'Road (full of exciting things). I was so thrilled because it is a seriously awesome shop! It is a haven for all things colourful, whether it be art, jewellery, stationery, books, candles or homewares! I loved everything I came across in Matchbox, but here is a taste of what you might find: - Funky colourful cards (for example the Koala dressed in a Hawaiian shirt) - Range of art prints, including skulls (yay!), famous people, grumpy cat, etc. - The Beatles tea bags (check out the picture!) - Candles and soaps (all with very nice scents) and - Colourful cups, straws, plates and napkins - perfect for picnics or parties at home, plus so much more! The shop assistant was friendly and she was really happy when I signed up to their mailing list. How could I not - everything at Matchbox is fabulous and fun! So, if you need a gift or want to decorate your room with bright colours, then I highly recommend you visit Matchbox Studios today - I am sure you won't be disappointed!

Don't think this is just a beautiful shop to buy beautiful things for your mum. There's is…read moresomething for everyone here and you'll be surprised by all the unexpected cool stuff you just might want to get for yourself. The lady who runs Kinder Arts is lovely and treats her customers like old friends. The things she chooses to sell are just gorgeous and often you won't see them anywhere else - there's a range of silk velvet handbags in gemstone colours and various shapes that are so stunning I used one for my wedding. There's artworks, jewellery, fashion accessories (a lot of GREAT handbags, I LOVE bags), homewares, toys, even garden features and statuary. There's gift ideas big and small and nothing is ridiculously overpriced as is so often the case in these kinds of boutiques. I particularly love the Kiwiana bent to a lot of the products and the artworks are a really affordable way to put something beautiful on your walls. It's the kind of shop where even the kids like coming. Aside from the toys and other kids' stuff, my boys always talk about how cool the giant wooden spiral tower (for marbles) at the back is. And they are always welcome to play with it even if things get a little bit noisy and overexcited. Nice.

Even though this store is aimed toward older women, I often find myself returning to browse (the…read morestore not the older women). Kinder Arts easily entices me with busy crowded window displays, where every colour jostles for attention and recognition. This gift store has scarves and jewellery for your grandmother but also children's gifts. They have an outdoor retreat full of water features and concrete statues. The have mass-produced art done by some poor Indonesians depicting everything from Tintin pop art to Renaissance inspired canvases. Kinder Art has an eye boggling amount of knickknacks and gifts, with constantly rotated displays. As they are open most weekends, it is a nice store to waste away a lazy Sunday.

What a gorgeous boutique stationer, hidden away in the back of the renovated old Devonport post…read moreoffice. Thankful to my friend for introducing me to this little delight with it's amazing range of writing instruments, inks, journals, notebook, paper goods etc. Such a cool place to browse especially for that hard-to-buy-for friend (now I know where to go!). Hard cause you just want to buy everything for yourself. They have a gorgeous Kate Spade NY stationary collection as well as very vintage-esque wax seals for their rubber stamps and fountain pens. Lovely Scandinavian printed Orla Kiely and luxurious Midori range as well as neat pencil cases + accessories (cool Japanese paper ones), wrapping and decorating goods also. Love seeing the products in person to flip through it and have a feel but you can shop online as well. They do letterpress printing if you are in need of bespoke invites, personalised stationary, cards etc also. Lovely little space with the best range of special stationary goods and friendly staff- highly recommend a look in

This is a super shop staffed by a charming lady (Kim, when I visited). She was super helpful and…read morethe shop itself is a delight - clean, well-stocked and airy. If you're into pencils, pens, and paper to use them on, this is a great place to visit. It appears the shop's motto is "Make an impression". Well they certainly did with me. Tony P

Amaze is Ponsonby's one stop gift shop. You can literally walk in there and walk out five minutes…read morelater with a funny and funky gift, complete with quirky card and gift wrapping. Amaze is that good. With numerous stands housing a seemingly infinite number of gift cards, regardless of whether you're after one for your best friend, mother, uncle, grandmother, for a friend's wedding, an anniversary, bereavement or baby shower - there are dozens of cards for every occasion to pick from. And they're all quirky and perfect in their own ways. I love just perusing the cards, let alone the rest of the store! Though, that's not to say the rest of Amaze isn't equally as AMAZING... It's the perfect place to find funny hens night-type products with candy G-strings, penis straws, and naughty dice stocked by the dozen. Amaze also stocks an array of journals and diaries, and as a real stationary lover I find I could spend hours just ogling over these products, let alone the choices of wrapping paper they also possess! Talk about overwhelming! It's like a dream come true in this store, sad as that may sound!

'Amaze' is just that. A shop that offers every type of card you would ever need - plus quirky gift…read moreideas. There are a few card stands outside to tempt you or you can go in-store and be spoilt for choice. I have purchased many birthday cards from 'Amaze', unique wrapping paper and gift fillers. Service is friendly & always sincere. Nothing can ever replace a fantastic card, from $5-$8 to say it with words! I love cards - writing in them, gifting them & especially receiving one too! Yelp, yelp, yelp!

It seems Japanese shops such as this one are growing like mushrooms!…read moreI would rank this one as my second favourite, the kitchen section in particular has lots of pretty soup bowls and pans and steamers. As mentioned in my fellow Yelpers's reviews there are also the stationery and bathroom sections and lots of random cute thingies no one needs... But oh they' so cheap so why not?!

This place is pretty awesome, hidden in an obscure location, you almost miss it. Thankfully for the…read morevibrant orange and black sign to mark the narrow entrance you begin your decent into the lower depths of Queen Street to find yourself in a rather large store that I could not accurately categorise. This is because there is a lot of stuff here, stationary, the gift bags and paper section is great, Hello Kitty and Snoopy are well represented here. There are aisles of all kinds of things for your home, a massive chopstick section, Hello Kitty cling wrap, food bags and plasters. Interestingly a big range of nappies and other baby things. It is fun just to look around, there are some odd things here too, especially in the bathroom and cleaning sections. Good fun I say, you'll walk away with things you didn't need but make are entertaining none the less. (Hello Kitty keeps my food fresh now).

There's always an occasion for a shop like this! Children's birthdays are a perfect example. Often…read moreI think WHAT THE HECK when I see people dishing out big bucks for kiddies gifts. I mean really, what child is going to appreciate the quality of their gift, which will more than likely get lost, broken or forgotten within a month? Enter: Mega Choice. Not quite the average/crappy $2 shop. This place has some really good stuff! Lot's of great gifts, cool dress ups, essential stationary, colouring books... everything. And it's all affordable. The name says it all really. Go inside and be faced with a mega choice of goodies!

What a way to run a business!!!! Hoping to buy some supplies for my upcoming art class I rang your…read morenumber several times but all I got was the answerphone, so in the end I left a message asking for the location of the shop. The day later there was a message left on my phone, so on Sat. I made the trip from Pukekohe to Howick only to find the shop closed and no explanation why ,even though the web site still said they were open. The girls in the shop next door said that several people had been enquiring but they had no idea why the shop was closed. Please keep your web-site updated and leave a message on the door. I shan't be making that trip for nothing anytime soon. Joan A

Paints, brushes and canvases galore, Art supplies is filled from top to bottom in the best array of…read morecolours you've seen since that HP Inkjet Printer advert. I'm not much of an artist, but I know good paint when I see it. They also have some great gifts, including face paint, glass and mug painting kits to colour the hours away. If they don't have what you're looking for, then they'll order it for you. Their website is really useful too if you want to take a look at what they have before visiting. It also has some artist tips for those determined to master the talent. Tucked away in the Meadowlands Shopping Centre, you may be travelling out of your way to get there (unless you're a local), but I doubt it will disappoint.