Call me crazy - you wouldn't be the first - but I tend to go a little mad when I walk into shops…read morewhere cute / quirky things that I can add or turn into other cute / quirky things can be found. So, Chung Kee Ho, with it's rows of funky buttons / beads is right up my alley. I got tiny little pencils, butterflies, soccer balls, elephants and slightly more sensible white crystally ones. There were also badges galore - flags and patches, princesses and cats, all bases covered. I also picked up a whole roll of simple lace for HKD20 and another of narrow elastic for the same price - did I mention that when visiting SSP you should bring your wheelie shopping trolly or bag? Well I have now.

If you can't find the button you want for whatever job you need it for here, well then quite…read morefrankly, you just didn't look hard enough! I came in with a specific project in mind - thank God or I would have gone a bit button crazy and stocked up for life - and still came away with three different sets. A girls got to have options you know. The stock is cunningly displayed on panels which slid back to reveal the actual 'stock' on slaving units behind. The look is clean and far less cluttered than in many of the neighbouring stores and it makes it much easier to find what one is looking for. The staff were helpful and patient. When I changed my mind about a particular button after deciding it didn't go with my fabric sample, that was no problem, even though Michelle had just spent about 5 minutes trying to find the thing. As I said - three different sets to do the same job, so two sets will ultimately be redundant, but I'm sure I'll find a use for them in the next couple of years or so.

Sham Shui Po is the sort of place sartorial dreams are made of. Literally, these streets sell…read moreeverything from fabric to fasteners and trims, all in every hue design and material imaginable. This is where clothing manufacturers come and choose the actual stuff that make their designs a reality. Fortunately, you can also but 'retail' ie, not bulk, and make your own design dreams come true. In my particular case, I want a calf length, cream leather coat.  I took along the black woollen coat I intend to model said garment on and headed off in search of the leather to make it happen. Fortunately, I found Yuen Kee Leather Goods. The staff were a bit surprised by the scale of my project, but recommended a tailor and even called in advance to make sure it was all doable and that they we selling me the right amount of leather (at least I assume that's what they were talking about). That's one of the problems with shopping in Shan Shui Po generally, many of the vendors - especially the street stalls- don't really 'do' English, so you are relying on holding up fingers to indicate yard length. Needless to say, with the complexity of this particular project I was very happy to encounter good spoken English. Highly ironic as I am having real trouble with the shop's business card .....

One of the few shops in Sham Shui Po that I know (granted, that does limit the sample size), that…read morespecialise in 'craft' as opposed to wholesale designer supplies. Here you can find ribbons, trimmings and embellishments, but also gift boxes and embroidery hoops. Cross stich patterns and fake flowers. I walked out with almost 200 yards of ribbon for a little (a very little) over HKD50 - bargain! Like all shops in SSP, Tak Cheung Co obviously understands the value of a good business card - you WILL need help to find the same store twice. But theirs is one of the most helpful I've collected on many visits to the area. In fact, it's the one I present to taxi drivers whenever I go to SSP, just so I know where I am when I start and can orientate myself for the rest of the expedition, kind of. Of course one then has to pop in to the store to see what's on offer ... It would be rude not to.

"Excuse me. Do you know where the Sincerity Travel is in Mong Kok?"…read more"It is right next to Argyle Centre." As I was trying to get my student card ready, I was in Mong Kok trying to find that place but I ended up getting lost somewhere and had to resort to ask for help. The way he told me where that was made it sound like everyone knew where Argyle Centre was. Well, not for me. I seriously had no idea where that was. I just kept asking everyone along the way. Thankfully I made it. Turns out Argyle Centre is one of those malls for teens. I realized that teenage girls love coming here and I can tell by the number of people in this tiny little small here. You can see all kind of shops and I seriously do not think that any guys would come here as most shops here sell heels, accessories, dresses and basically women's stuff. So to be honest, I was literally the odd man out surrounded by all those girls. Anyway, the stuff here is extremely cheap. Well normally for guys, my shirt alone would cost me a few hundreds, but here a dress only costs around HKD$50. Wow! Are you serious? Well, design and taste aside... you can still buy lots of cheap stuff here. However, I believe everyone knows this place better than I do. I am so ashamed to call myself a local at this point. So if you are looking for decent clothes at a cheaper price, come here then.

Argyle Center is teenage shopping heaven. It's shop after shop and floor after floor of trendy…read moreclothes and accessories, all at EXTREMELY affordable prices. And I can't stress this enough - we're talking earrings for $10, shorts for $30 kind of cheap! Argyle Center is about a five minutes' walk from the MTR station. It's pretty easy to find your way - or you could just follow that group of teenagers in front of you because that's probably the way they're heading. The variety of things at Argyle is endless. You can find anything from backpacks with huge dolls attached to them to bags appropriate for you to bring for work - that's how much choice you'll have there. The mall is obviously catered to teenagers, but I don't think anybody could possibly leave here empty handed! Don't worry, it's not just all clothes and accessories - you can also find really fun novelty items and gifts there, like drinking games sets, offensive but funny cards and prank toys. If you're a fan of Korean pop music, you'll be able to find some shops that sell Korean celebrities merchandise like badges and posters. A word of caution though: some of the things here can be pretty tacky and cheap-looking - you'll see a lot of bright t-shirts with badly spelled words that make no sense and bags with so many studs nobody should be let within a metre-radius of them. But once in a while, you'll see a decent looking sweater or a necklace that doesn't look half bad. Most shopkeepers are willing to bargain, so you can get things cheaper than they already are! If there's a defect in something you want and it's the last remaining piece, don't be afraid to ask for a discount - you'll almost definitely get one! At all costs, do NOT come on a weekend because this place will be super crowded! You won't be able to browse much because you'll be knocking elbows with others who are trying to get a close look too, and it really just isn't worth coming on a weekday. Come on a weekday because there will be significantly less people! The key to shopping at Argyle is to be patient - you'll see some seriously tacky clothes, and you'll be bumping into other people because the mall isn't huge - but persistence is key! Poke around long enough and I'm sure you'll leave with a couple of good buys!