I popped in to look at kitchen cupboard door and drawer handles but they only had one range…read moreavailable. As it happened they had stuff I liked. I asked about prices and the staff member at HID gave me a brochure which didn't have prices in it but there was a website address so I went home and emailed my quest for further info. Within an hour the prices were on my screen so no complaints there. Home Ideas Centre is not what it used to be. Sure it still has a range of products you can touch and measure and feel but there are lots of big gaps in the displays. Nice that's the centre's open at the weekend though. Good on you.

The Home Ideas Centre is a like a strange vision of the future, where some sort of terrible…read moredisaster has forced people to live in giant windowless warehouses, but the high level of prosperity has meant these warehouses are appointed with luxury fittings such as restaurant grade extractor fans and artisan skirting boards. It's really very strange here: it's a big warehouse, where people who make various home related items hire a space and then install a display. That's all fairly straightforward, but the strange part is that there's no people: if you want to know about an item you have to take a flyer, or register for more information, or go online; there's no one to talk to. Furthermore, because of the way the place is laid out, you very rarely see any other customers so it's quite eerie. I get that it's a useful place if you are doing a big home reno, but the whole place is unsettling so I just wanted to leave when I went there.

If you've ever done any work with lighting technicians, you'll know that some of them can be…read moreterribly superior about their knowledge of various lights and the other gear that's needed to make them work. This can make talking with them sometimes a bit intimidating if you're not a pro. I'm so happy to report that the people at Kenderdine Hire don't have this attitude at all; they're always really helpful and happy to talk you though what you need, even if you don't really know yourself. I've even mistakenly ordered one thing, got there and realised my mistake, and they've been totally fine about it, even though it's a pain in the arse for them. They're also community minded and often help out with various community projects. Thumbs up Kenderdine.