I gotta love this place. Literally two steps away from home, I had gone to check it out a few times…read moreand, to my frustration, it had always been closed. It's in a walk up building and it's a little hidden. Yesterday I picked up one of their business cards and saw an appointment needs to be made to visit the shop so I called up and told the guy I was there, he said he would arrive in 5 minutes. And so he did. He opened the shop just for me...and I started to look around. I kind of knew what to expect, lots of second hand, retro stuff, that most of us don't need for anything but they are so much fun to collect (if you have the space; I live in a match box so I have to be careful with my purchases!). So what they sell...where should I start? It's difficult to tell. The shop is cramped with old pieces of antiquities, furniture, toys, clocks, decoration in general, some accessories (bags, sunglasses...). They have another shop in Kwun Tong five times the size of this one (this one is rather small). I was looking for a vintage Chinese dress. The owner funnily said I don't look like that 'type of girl' which made me laugh. He showed me online some of the dresses they have at the other store and suggested I go there and check. Then I had a second look around and set my eyes in a Polaroid bag, I love that hint of coolness of second hand things...! I had also scanned the sunglasses, displayed in a big glass box. Most of the items in this shop are for decoration though. I'm now checking the dresses online myself. Yeah, will have to go to Kwun Tong...!

Super cool shop with a super cool owner. I forgot his name, but the owner spoke pretty good english…read moreand was a really nice guy. We talked comics for a while and he showed me some Hong Kong produced Batman comics from the 60's(?). They were so cool I had to buy one (not cheap, but totally worth it). Despite the store being very small there was a lot of cool retro/vintage collectibles. So glad I stumbled upon this place, check it out as well as the whole building, lots of cool stuff

This is a small street of craft and souvenir shops, also known as cat street. This could have…read moresomething to do with it being the end of the cat statue photo walk, which is a must do in my opinion. I wish I had the chance to see this street fully open, but unfortunately when I visited on a Monday afternoon, more than half the stores were closed. I think Friday might be the day to go, as I passed by around noon and it was lively at this day and time. I still enjoyed looking at the shops that were open and found some great items to bring back, including some jade trinkets and ceramic tea cups. There is a strong chance the jade pieces were fake considering they were so cheap, but they were just little ornaments, so that was fine for what they were. If we're taking jade bracelets, that's another story. This is a very good place to look around and find deals on gifts and whatever you like to buy.

I'm posting for anyone who needs to have a watch fixed or find a replacement battery…read more So I've been walking all over HK looking for a simple watch battery, but none of the stored around had any. A few small shops that I could some something, didn't have my size (SR621SW). I saw this review on Yelp about Raymond's shop, and figured I would give it a try. Trying to find the shop was horrible, because the address is not precise, and the location on the Yelp picture is wrong. So for anyone who finds themselves in bed of a watch battery in HK at a good price, here's how you find him. At the intersection of Pottinger and Queen's road, there is Top Shop and The Body Shop. Pottinger stops there, but there is a rising stairway up the hill with little metal cabinet shops on both sides. That's where Raymond is. He was the first stall on the right. Just look for the man with a eye monocle that is strapped to his head. He is very nice and friendly, and very knowledgeable about watches. I hope more people find him and give him more business! You can also give him a call as well. His English is good and he is easy to talk with. Thanks Raymond!

If you need to get a new watch battery, replace the watch face, repair your watch, or buy an…read moreauthentic Rolex watch band or second-hand Rolex watch, Raymond is your guy. His store is one of the first booths at the bottom of Pottinger St, just off Queen's Road Central. Raymond (obviously his Anglicized name) has probably been there for years and years, but I've only lived in HK for two, so who knows. What you need to know is that he's friendly, speaks decent English, charges a reasonable amount for services, and is the quintessence of an old school Hong Kong small business owner. I paid way more for unfriendly watch repair services in the past and am so glad to have stumbled upon him. Highly recommended!

This really is a cute little store to stop into if you find yourself in the cool streets of Sheung…read moreWan. If you were on a tour bus and had stopped off at Man Mo Temple and then had 20-30 minutes to spare, Klondike would be a good store to go to and then drop down to tourist shopping street of Upper Lascar Road and walk back towards the temple to reach your bus. From Man Mo to Klondike is maybe a 5 minute walk, if that. Some vintage items, some fragerant soaps and candles, some unique jewelry, some leather goods and most certainly a lot of other cool things to look at. If you were looking to buy a little gift for someone or maybe a little gift for yourself, this is the perfect spot. Just a cute little local shop that has been around for the last many years.

From the owner: Beautifully curated antiques mixed with high quality, authentic home & lifestyle products. Perfect…read moreplace to discover gifts and your new personal favourites!

When it comes to buying antique furniture in HK, most would suggest the wallet busting shops on…read moreHollywood Road, or the handful scattered in Horizon Plaza. Alternatively, you could go to Guangzhou, and risk getting proper shafted. Red Hall is a decent compromise between the sharks on Hollywood Road, and the, errr..., sharks in Guangzhou. Based in Mui Wo, it is slightly incongruous in comparison to it's neighbouring shops, being neither an estate agent or a Park n Shop. It is also slightly inconvenient in terms of shipping to HK "mainland". However, don't worry about that, they will deliver your furniture for a cost. The pieces in there are mainly the big ticket furniture items; wardrobes, cupboards, drawers, day beds. There are a few smaller items like kang tables, which incidentally make excellent coffee tables, and traditional stools, both of which you could lug home yourself on the ferry. There is also a rather odd garden furniture section which sells seemingly contemporary items. It is a little bit like they bought a load by mistake and are trying to shift it. Red Hall isn't as "genuine" as Red Lantern up the road, but they do sell "half" antiques. Where Red Lantern sells the genuine article, warts and all, Red Hall primarily does reconditions or copies. It is critical if you buy here to understand that you may not be buying genuine antique furniture, hence the lower prices compared to Hollywood Road. Let me give you an example; I bought a narrow book cupboard, which was reconditioned from an old larder. The original larder was 8ft across and had 16 decorative panels. Only four panels survived, so they rebuilt them into the book shelf that I bought, which is now only 2ft across. The back and sides of my cupboard are new built, only the panels are antique. Of course I knew this at the time, as the staff told me. One thing they are here (unlike perhaps GZ), is they are honest about the provenance. If it is a recondition, it says so on the sales ticket, and the staff will tell you what parts are old and new. They will also indicate what is replica, i.e. a completely new build of an old design. Surprisingly, a lot of the new builds are more expensive than the antiques, but that's HK for you! Only valuable if it's shiny and new...

When it comes to interior decorating, furniture and that lot I'm not the person to listen to for…read moreadvice. If it was up to mean the living room walls would be filled with medieval weapons, I won't go onto my dream bedroom. That being said I was hugely attracted to the wares offered by Red Hall. It is situated in Mui Wo, strange as it sells things completely different to every other store on the island, in terms of price range and products. Upon walking in I was greeted by a giant cat statue. It looked twice my weight, beautiful, and from what I'm told, hand crafted in China. The same goes for everything else on the first floor of the store. The majority of items on sale are drawers, cabinets and shelves. All of which designed as if they were made in one of the Chinese Dynasties. Gorgeous colors of deep reds, blues and greens with chinese symbols adorn the drawers. Further back are some dining room sets - chairs and tables - and the second floor is entirely dedicated to outdoor furniture - sun beds, coffee tables, and that sort of thing. It's times likes these that I wise I took up a 'normal' job in finance as the price tags of these beauties are pretty heavy. We're talking about $3800 for a small shelve or $12500 for a couple chairs and table. I can see the value in the furniture here, and one day when I'm rich I'll be back and buy half a chair, or something.