So I love a party, and any excuse to decorate. In the states there is my dream, a land called Party…read moreCity. That has any decorations you can ever imagine. My 9th birthday party, had high heel and lipstick everything, I am talking, napkins, cups, confetti, streamers. Needless to say I like my party shops. This place is pretty great, which was evident on arriving at 9.55am and there being about 4 other cars in the parking lot waiting for the place to open at 10. I was looking for silver wedding decorations, the other cars a mix of baby shower and kids birthdays. The shop is on two floors, the lower is balloon heaven, with two walls of pick your own balloons, and plenty of decorations for any wedding, hen-do, baby shower theme. Upstairs is the kids party area and endless costumes! Perfect, if you need to pick up a costume not during the Halloween season. They also provide helium services and can make balloon bouquets, on the day. They also had a section of balloons to be picked up later, which is perfect if you want to pre-order and then pick up the day of the event. I also saw a sign for fireworks, but didn't investigate further!

OK are we all set for the party?…read more Kiddy food... check Soft drinks... check presents... check booze for the frazzled parents... check balloons... balloons... balloons?...feck Now rather than telling the story normally, let's go for something that best fits the 'eeeeeeeeek' manner in which the balloon less state left us. Ruuuuuuuuun.... buuuuuuuus.....waaaaaaaalk.....hiiiiiiiiiiii....... baaaaaallooooons please.......niiiiiiiiice daaaaaaay.......yeeeesssssss.....paaaaaaayyyyy.....waaaaaaalllllllk.....buuuuuuuus......hiiiiiiiiii hooooooney.....and relax Phew says i. Two kick ass balloons (one a giant silver foil number 2...as in the number, not the bodily function... not that you'd be expecting that, but just in case....oooh, i'm in a big hole) filled with floaty gas for aout 15 notes... pricey but cool. Oh and an update on the staff.... this time i was the grumpy frazzled one and she the nice friendly one... sometimes we can be too quick to judge!

This is the ultimate in tacky, novelty shopping, with everything from big bright balloons plastered…read moreall over the walls, to hen party costumes for the unashamedly tacky. From the moment you walk in the door, your eyes will be assaulted by the garish surroundings, you can't help but laugh. Since it specialises in party decorations and dressing up gear, it can be forgiven for being a little bit over the top and this just adds to its weird and wacky wonderfulness.

Dazzle has recently opened up for the Hallowe'en market and no doubt will be closed again in a…read morecouple of weeks. It has a wide range of costumes for everyone, and some I've never seen before such as Dino from the Flintstones and Mr. Potato Head. Prices vary, but they are quite steep in general. The advantage of a shop though, is that you can try before you buy. Last year I bought a hallowe'en costume online that was obviously designed for a 6 foot model, because the skirt was almost knee-length!! Yeas I know, we can't be having that.

I went in here purely because it's a play on my name. I jest. I noticed this new shop had opened so…read moreI popped inside for a nosey... and wow! This place is just bursting with costumes - as Liz said, it'll probably close down after Halloween (when else do people normally need an abundance of costumes?! Ok, christmas, sortof, but generally, Christmas isn't associated with pumpkin dress, no?), but it's fun while it lasts. It's quite pricey, but all the costumes look semi-professional (you know, not authentic disney, but a pretty darn good copycat), and they look like they'd last at least 1 night out on the tiles. My favourite costume bit - the couples section. "A Space Aged Couple Costume" was my favourite - rip off of the Jetson's anyone?! Fantastic.

Cloud Nine has only recently appeared in Hamilton, hopefully following in the footsteps of it's…read moresuccessful small chain stores in Glasgow. It has everything you need if you are organising a party, birthday or wedding. Think balloons, confetti, favours, banners, cakes, party bags and much more! Cloud Nine are also specialists in cake making, and have sample pictures in store so that you can see the skills of the cake makers and they are really, really impressive to say the least. The wedding cakes are particularly spectacular, starting at 280.00 for a 3 tier simple design, which is really reasonable as wedding cakes go. They can be a very expensive business! The balloon arches and table decorations can be made as simple or elaborate as you like, the balloon within a balloon being my particular favourite! Displays start at 4 pounds per table display and can range into the eyewateringly expensive. The buzzword here is Celebration! This place is amazing for everything related to that, you could go crazy with the credit card in here for a party!

Shops with the word "pound" in the title always conjure horrible images. However, Poundland in…read moreClydebank is really handy for little bits and bobs you can't find anywhere else. Case in point; last Christmas I was looking for a nice ribbon to wrap my gifts with. I couldn't find what I was looking for anywhere, until I popped into Poundland and found three metres of the nicest ribbon I had seen so far for only a pound. Poundland isn't one of those scabby pound shops filled with junk either. It is clean, brightly decorated and the staff are helpful. Oh dear, I've just realised I've turned into one of those people who go on about how great pound shops are. Next I'll be wearing tracksuit bottoms outdoors.

Good old Poundland, always a trooper if you're looking for wrapping paper or gift bags which can be…read moreas much as £5 elsewhere, £1 will do me fine thanks very much. I think the name says it all really, items all priced at a pound and therefore I feel it needs to be judged for what it is, it's not Harrods, so I'm amazed why so many people turn their noses up at these shops, it's not as if they're trying to be something they're not. The items they sell are a pound so big deal if some of it's tat? It can actually be quite amusing looking at some of the items they stock, such as crazy multi coloured feather dusters and £1 DVDs. I saw one a while ago that was a Halloween DVD and the stories were "House on The Haunted Hill" and "The Skeletons" oooohhh, they looked as though they were made by some lonely old guy with his home video camera. I kind of regret not buying it as I'm sure the comedy factor would have been awesome. I usually get really into the spirit of Halloween and Poundland is great for decorations, they have all sorts of things and I even noticed they had some rubbery severed limbs last year which looked hilarious. This is the same for Christmas party decorations and things for Birthday parties, especially if you have children you can get party bags and goodies to fill them with here. Overall, Poundland stocks the kind of items you would expect but it's not all tat in this shop and for household goods and party accessories this is a great shout.