PearsonMaron

pearsonmaron.etsy.com

This has to be the coolest thing I’ve seen in ages.

It’s the mobile ideas factory from PearsonMaron who I’m now truly and utterly in love with. They also make cloud factories and heart factories.

What clever people !

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Nature baby

www.naturebaby.co.nz

Our favourite shop for all the kids basics – merino tops, body suits and pyjamas, Nature Baby is one of the best things to ever come out of New Zealand. Thank goodness they’ve got an online shop because we probably couldn’t manage without them when offshore.

Their organic cotton and merino clothes are made to last (by a collective in India) – our daughter has had oodles of wear from everything we’ve ever bought from there. They’ve been handed down and will be handed back for our next one – all with plenty of life left in them yet.

If you can pay a visit their Grey Lynn and Newmarket shops are a delight to visit. There are lots of toys that aren’t on their web site and they’ve got play areas full of fun distractions so you can shop and browse to your heart’s content. Everything in Nature Baby; cotton, babyfood, nappies – it’s all organic by default.

Just released – their new Kid Nature label. Everything we know and love about Nature Baby, now for big kids too!

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Salvage

537 Mt Eden Road, Auckland
Tel. 09-630 4054

Salvage is a vintage fabric and trimmings shop which opened its doors at the end of 2005. It is fast becoming known as the place to go in Auckland for a great range of high quality vintage fabrics and accessories for crafty girls and boys.

The stock comes in from a variety of avenues; People bring things into the shop or phone requesting a trip out to collect an estate lot. Kay recalls one time she visited a home where a room was lined virtually wall-to-wall with fabrics. After two cars-loads full she got everything back to her house for sorting. Finding she had no space left the bath was quickly commandeered and piled high with the new vintage treasures for the shop. Prices range from a good selection of vintage buttons for 20c each, and you can’t go past the ric-rac at 50 cents a metre.

You can get a couple of metres of really good fabric for well under $30. And there are always treats at the higher end of the scale too. Salvage is a great asset to Auckland. We’re not sure how we ever managed without it.

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Mrs Jones

Millstream Building, 17 Elizabeth Street, Warkworth
Tel. 09-422 3275
www.mrsjones.co.nz

Tuesday to Friday 10am – 5pm. Saturday 10am – 4pm. Sunday 12pm – 4pm

Mrs Jones is a cornucopia of nice things to look at and buy. We got quite carried away taking photos here and we’ll let them do most of the talking.

This is a quality shop, right (say that in a cockney accent please). There’s a jolly fine collection of Crown Lynn that takes up much of one wall in the back room.

Everywhere you look are highly covetable pieces of art that we, for one, want to buy.

A 1970s New Zealand dining table and chairs. And just look at that photographic print on the wall to the left – can you just imagine that in your living room. Oh my!

The walls are just clad in art – they’ve got a distinctive style in here. And it’s very good.

In the book alcove we spy barkcloth duffel bags. we rub our eyes in disbelief, but it’s true. There they are in broad daylight right next to a picture of a sheep from Onehunga.

Each of the eight sub-rooms has been decorated to set off its contents. One might note the rather reading room -esque wallpaper above.

We liked the vermillion and the cyan walls too. Especially with the hand coloured landscape photographs.

We spent ages and ages in her marvelling at all the lovely eye candy. Maybe you ought to too!

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Ruby & Sol

62 Williamson Avenue, Grey Lynn, Auckland, New Zealand
Tel. +64 (0)9-378 0357
Open Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday

If you were one of the many who discovered Sherry Roberts’ shop Ruby & Sol in Richmond Rd in February this year, you will be thrilled to know that she is back, this time in the front of a lovely villa in Williamson Ave.

People were so enthusiastic about her first foray into the retro retail market, Sherry decided to keep on collecting and has filled two rooms with wonderful bits and pieces.

“Having a shop with such a loose genre allows me the freedom to collect, play and display and sell anything that appeals to me. I’m not stuck in any particular era although I don’t think anything in here has ever worn a bar code. The recycling aspect of this business appeals to me too.”

You will find furniture, lamps, crockery, glassware, clocks, paintings, photography, mirrors, beautiful little girls dresses, toys, linen, jewelry, handbags, shoes, silk sarongs and scarves.

Just because it was practical and useful didn’t mean it wasn’t beautiful.” Case in point: check out Sherry’s amazing collection of retro kitchenware and aprons.

Sherry is also happy to hunt down that special item that you know is out there somewhere and you just don’t have the time to search for it.

This is most definitely one of the loveliest shops we have ever found, anywhere. And it is refreshingly reasonably priced too. Another excellent reason to visit – you will actually be able to afford something.

The problem you will be faced with of course is narrowing your choice of item down to the very one you like the most. Happy shopping!

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