Woop. If you wanna find awesome bargains and miscellaneous crap that you probably don't need, look…read moreno further. Hot Bargains is the best spot for all those little accessory items that you need for throwaway events (fancy dress, kids birthdays, Christmas presents, girlfriend's birthday etc). They more than deliver on their hot bargain promise and you won't believe how much crap they've got piled up in there. This is the reason we need a free trade agreement with China. Sure, they'll benefit by getting access to the very fuckin' elements and minerals the miners pull out of the fuckin' ground here, but you, as a proud Australian, will have access to all of the mass produced plastic shit you can ever imagine. Wow. Our politicians are really on to a winner there. Seriously, do not bother with another shop if you wanna go fancy dress. I got a full Mexican gangster outfit (complete with cap gun) for about $8. You can't fuck with those prices... Honcho.

I buy so many things here. Great bargains. Just watch if you get a few items that it is entered…read morecorrectly. I was overcharged from a $2 item put through as a $1 item 22 times. Very hard to reason with staff & the items aren't on the receipt, only amounts. Otherwise awesome.

Hand Maker's factory has recently moved from kensington to seddon and is situated atop a lovely…read morehousewares shop. It is a studio space that empowers people to confidently create in a sustainable way. Young teachers share their knowledge of sewing, knitting, screen printing, macrame and stamp carving amongst many other skills. Alongside their workshops, handcrafted tools, supplies and other items are also on offer via their online store. The studio space is run by the gorgeous entrepreneurial Nicola Prested. This morning I took a three hours long workshop in making a macrame plant hanger. I found free parking easily on a Sunday morning. Booking the class was easy via weteachme.com, and if you book with a friend you get a discount. You may think macrame is just about tying knots but it can be quite meditative. It was a small class of five women located in a bright homely space. We were greeted by two friendly faces, hot cuppas of tea, homemade chocolate zucchini cake and anzac biscuits. We learnt to tie a noose (definitely useful in getting out of life imprisonment) and square knots. Our arms hurt from all the tying but we were persistent. Lots of knots later and our bellies full of goodies, we had gorgeous maiden's fern pots sitting on top of our well tied ropes. We even got an instruction sheet to take with us. Hello etsy here I come. :) Definitely coming back for macrame part two.

With Love is a gift shop of the nicer kind in the Mountain Gate Shopping strip. It has an enticing…read moreshop front and walking inside I was not disappointed. It definitely has something for everyone and every occasion. It had a section for babies and young children with toys and even a pram. At the entrance it had some really cool Halloween facemasks - I wish Halloween were as big here as it is in the States. Ah well. At least I got to look at the masks and dream for a little while. There were so many other groovy items it would be impossible to list them all, so I'm just going to recommend you check it out. The owner Melissa is absolutely fantastic and will help you out with anything you need. There is a little room out the back where the business Mardi Armour Beauty offers beauty treatments like waxing and eye treatments. You can also call the store to make a booking to see Clairvoyant and Tarot Reader Kathleen Rose. Is that proof enough that this store has something for everyone? I think so. If you doubt it, then head on down and prove me wrong. I dare you.

The Amber Palace is a shop full of all things beautiful for the home. There are great vases and I…read morefound a lovely paperweight that would have suited my desk perfectly. I also found some really cute baby toys but they were quite expensive at $36 for a stuffed, albeit hand made, rabbit. It was pretty cute but as I don't have a baby and I would have no use for it, I kept looking. There were some cardigans made out of high quality fabric, which were quite nice. Again though they were a bit too expensive considering how plain they were. The store had a nice design and the staff member behind the counter was very helpful when answering my questions. This would be a good place to go to get some new accessories to impress some guests to your home. Or to buy your baby a designer rabbit toy. There are plenty more reasons to visit of course, but those seem like the most mainstream.

I can whole heartedly recommend Thomas & Co. to anyone looking for something a little more unique…read morethan is ordinarily found in homewares stores in Australia. Beyond the vast (and eclectic) range of goods, the service from all staff is exceptional. They are truly willing to go well beyond expectations to make absolutely certain you are happy with your purchase. Having purchased a custom made Salon couch from these folks (that ended up not fitting in the house - long story, but the store is looking after the issue perfectly), I can honestly not sing their praises highly enough. I've read a few reviews from unhappy customers and simply can't understand how their situations arose - you'd really have to try to have a negative experience here.

Thomas Gannan is one of those great shops that just seems to attract people. From its clever window…read moredisplays and quirky products, it certainly seems to have a lot going on. And this is very true. The busy store carries a wide range of homeware - from dazzling lighting, jazzy cushions, trendy table matter, witty décor pieces and functional kitchen ware. It also has a lovely range of children's toys, room accessories and gifts. But more importantly, Thomas Gannan carries a good mix of exclusive Jardan sofas and stunning Arthur G lounges. It also features a selection of environmentally sustainable Australian timber furniture, which can be custom made to suit your needs. I've bought quite a few presents from this store and have always been impressed by the service. It's not often that a sales person asks whether you would like a new piece but they do here!

After a recent trip to the YEW ESS of A, I had purchased one too many quirky prints off the streets…read moreof New Orleans that desperately needed a frame and a special place on my wall. I popped in to Frames Readymade with my prints to see what they could do. I have one word to describe my experience with these guys - EFFICIENT. I was in and out in about 15 minutes. That included choosing the optimum style, my print being trimmed ever-so-slightly and then being beautifully mounted in to the frame. Wow. Bravo. Brunswick ready-made frames quite literally have thousands of frames to choose from in all colours and sizes, or they will make one up for you to custom-fit your print. Plus they are affordable, to boot!

I have been to Frames Readymade several times over the last 12 months and have been consistently…read morepleased with their service and range of products (lots of frame styles and finishes - I particularly like the victorian ash range). During the most recent lockdown they were also readily available for call and collect orders, which were all fulfilled very promptly and the pick up process was a breeze. Would highly recommend to anyone in the area.

An excellent toy clearance warehouse…read more This place is fantastic, from their great layout to their abundant stock of every kind of toy imaginable, from current to past season stock at heavily discount prices. The large warehouse is stocked to the roof along its walls with everything from baby toys to puzzles and board games to play gym slides. Many trestle tables and dump bins fill the floor. There is so much to look at and all with handy price stickers attached to the items. The store has an indoor trolley rack (you will need a trolley) and there is enough room to push a stroller around. The warehouse isn't heated, except for what looks like an airplane engine, blowing blue fire towards the cashier. Which is good for them, because it feels almost colder inside the building that out. Do not underestimate the vastness of this place, you could easily spend an hour here, so maybe rug up? All in all, this is an excellent store. I love it and I couldn't find fault if I tried. Just the best assortment of toys, so long as you aren't looking for the newest range (although sometimes they are here too, hard to guess). A godsend for busy parents, because it's all in one place and well laid out and well priced. Check it out, you will not be disappointed...(Game of Thrones Monopoly, come on, who doesn't want that!!!??)

They knowingly sell products that are faulty. When I went back to let them know that something I…read morehad bought was faulty their response was that other customers had told them but that they continued to sell them because "some are, some aren't". They said that they often have other products that are faulty and that they can't open every box to test them all. If they know that something they are selling is faulty or potentially faulty then it is against consumer law to continue to sell it without informing the customer of this risk. This is a shell organisation without any proper management to contact. Avoid them at all costs.

This is one of those shops that basically sells random stuff for your house. I basically came here…read morebecause I was looking for a place that sold picture frames, and while they do, they tend to be standard sizes, and the ones that I ended up with didn't really fit any of the pictures that I wanted to frame (they are namely for photographs, not Monet prints brought all the way over from France). However the frames are only a small part of what this place has to offer namely because they have heaps of things that easily fall into the category of decorations, especially statues. Mind you the things they sell aren't exactly what you would consider useful items, rather things that are designed to add a bit of life to one's abode. Still, they have some pretty cool things here, and if you are in to fantasy statues then this is definitely a place to check out.