I love just walking in and smelling all the lavender, ylang ylang, seeing what's new in lotions,…read moreessential oils, and sniffing my way through this tiny shop. Today I was helped by Hernat. She helped me make a good choice for a birthday gift. So many excellent choices with a good price range! Everyone who has helped me in the past is knowledgeable, friendly and very helpful. Today, Hernat made my shopping easy! Gift wrapping is simple and elegant and ......free! Perfect Potion is at the Westfield mall in Bondi Junction, on level two. Westfield mall Bondi has an enormous covered car park, 2hours free parking! Easy peasy. Looking for a gift for a friend, family or yourself? Perfect Potion is THE place!! You're welcome!

I can never resist a pop in to Ginger Flower…read more A cacophony of colours, textures and fragrance, this boutique gift shop has every inch covered with things to read, touch, smell, wear and write in. Ginger Flower has a distinctively bohemian feel, stocking brands like Ecoya, Voluspa, Nesti Dante Soaps, MOR and Cards by Lulu. I recently bought a very cute 'Flat Out Bear' ($55) as a gift for my 3YO niece which she absolutely loved. There is almost always something in this shop you would like to give... to yourself if not to the person you are shopping for!

After a last-minute birthday/baby shower/engagement/Christmas gift and no idea where to look?…read moreGinger Flower in Kirribilli is likely to have a solution for you. This charming little gift shop is a magnet even for unintentional shoppers, tempting passers by inside with their beautifully curated window displays. Once inside, marvel at the bounty of trinkets, stationary and beauty products covering each and every inch of the tiny space. Choose from candles by Voluspa and Ecoya (theirs are portable and made from soy), smells-good-enough-to-eat body lotions and scrubs from MOR, leather bound journals, coffee table books, silk scarves and even Moroccan-inspired leather ottomans for those in search of something larger. They've got a good selection of cards, too, so it's pretty much a one-stop shop. Upon purchase, you can opt to give a gold coin donation in exchange for their gift wrapping service - your pressie will be completed with colourful tissue paper and a cord ribbon. Best of all, the money is given to the Kids For Life charity, which assists ill and under privileged children in Australia.

If you're in search of a new fragrance, a hard-to-find beauty product from overseas, or a nice gift…read morefor someone girly, I recommend taking a trip down to Chinatown and visiting SWS Spring. Once a commonplace souvenir shop, Spring has undergone transformation and now holds some of the rarest cosmetic lines from Asia and North America. I followed my nose into this shop after walking through Chinatown (swapping fish for roses). I was amazed to find some small boutique fragrance lines in here that I haven't seen since being back in the States, most specifically: Tokyo Milk, Bloom, Love + Toast and Pacifica. In addition to the ones I was familiar with, there were triple the amount of ones I was not. I wouldn't say this shop is necessarily affordable, but if you'd rather not smell like every other bird in Sydney, swing on into Spring, and pick yourself up a nice new perfume. Come on, you can't rub magazine samples on the inside of your wrists forever.

The Jo Malone concept originated in London but has made its way to our shores. The flagship…read moreboutique is aptly placed on Queen Street, Woollahra which is one of the most beautiful shopping villages in Sydney. Undoubtedly Jo Malone products are classic but the most unique part of Jo Malone is the philosophy of 'Fragrance Combining'. Basically the idea is that you create your own signature scent by combining two scents. So while it isn't exactly 'bespoke' it does give you a chance to create something personal, unique and surprisingly reasonable. A 30ml signature scent will set you back $90. Perfect for a special occasion or if you're looking to treat yourself to something special.

The embodiment of luxury is buying the best bath, body, and home products. And the highest point of…read moreluxury is buying from Jo Malone on Queen Street in Woollahra. This store offers the best creams, shampoos, moisturisers, candles, and fragrances that you'll ever find in the whole of Sydney. Their products are of the highest quality and beautifully packaged. Their staff are friendly and efficient, always willing to lend their expertise while you browse around the store. If you're looking to pamper yourself or buy a special gift for a family member or friend, this is one of the places you simply must visit. A gift from here is sure to earn some BIG brownie points!

Vivid is a girl's store. They might as well have a 'no boys allowed' sign outside. Vivid is full of…read morepretty, cute, girly things. There's jewellery, baby and kids gifts, toys, clothes, homewares, bags... it's a browser's dream and even better if you are looking to buy. The speciality here is baby clothes and baby gifts as well as kids toys and homewares. There's also a small selection of clothing both kids and adults and some great jewellery.

When walking into Vividshop for the first time, make sure you keep your sunglasses affixed firmly…read moreto your face. With a myriad of color and florescent lights overhead you might think you've walked into a mix between Rainbow Bright's bedroom and heaven. But don't fear, you'll get used to it... and you'll probably like what you see. Vividshop, situated on Crown in Surry Hills, is a mecca of fun children's things and home decor. With worldly imports (majority from India, Asia and Latin America), there's more than enough to splash some color into your life. I particularly enjoyed the Indian embroidered tapestries and patchwork pillows. If you're shopping for a little one, Vividshop is a must go. With princess tutus, darling handmade plush animals and walkable wooden critters on a stick, get ready to be the new favorite Auntie (or Uncle, or Grandma). But don't be deterred, there are items for you in here too. The fact that many things are imported from overseas help keep the prices down. I bought myself a beaded, stuffed bangle bracelet sewn out of fabric. I'm not quite sure of its origins, but it looks vaguely Middle Eastern, is eclectically cool and was only $20. Thanks Vividshop!

You know those places you go to that as you walk past you stop, then you turn around and go back…read morejust to go find out what that smell is? This is one of those places. It's a small corner store just as you get out of Town Hall train station and walk into the QVB. However, don't be disappointed by its size, the smell is all encompassing. I will make a note here that these candles, oils, cremes and other beauty products are not cheap. There is a reason for this, I swear. It's because their products smell divine for hours after. The candles you pay $40 for a 300g but it goes for months and never once looses it's scent. Other candles you buy stop smelling nice by the time you burn it half way. Not so with these. The 350g ones come in a beautiful glass jar with a lid to extinguish your flame. It's double wicked and will have your home smelling divine in under 5 minutes of lighting them. Why the double wick? Well from what I gather a double wick means that it burns more evenly and that there's always a good liquid layer on top. It also burns all the way to the bottom so you don't waste any wax. A double wick also means that there's less soot and the scent, it releases the scent of the candles nicely. So do what I do, treat yourself on occasion. My next one will be the lemongrass. Or maybe the coconut and lime? Decisions!

The biggest of the 3 Morning Glory outlets, so this place has the most variety and most likely to…read morehave something that you are looking for. A great store for finding small gifts for a secret santa, birthday, etc. For me, I've been always drawn to the Domokun merchandise (keychains, etc).

Morning Glory is full of little tiny treats and treasures. If you're looking for something with…read morethat "aawwwwweeeeee how cuuuute" factor, this is your shop. From cosmetics to stationary, clothing accessories to stuffed animals, this is the haven of everything you never needed but really, really want. Also, if you're looking for a gag gift or something a little silly, walk toward the back of Morning Glory. The "bust roller," a plastic handle with little sets of wheels, is a sure fire conversation starter. This shop stays open nice and late, so pop in after a yum cha dinner and have a browse. Just leave your very little ones outside, though; this place has choking hazard written all over it.

Closed every Sunday and Mondays so that owner Justine can forage around the local auctions and…read moremarkets to find bits and bobs to fill her wee treasure shop you know you'll be getting the best of the best old stuff. There really are some quality finds in here but it's not all second hand - a lot of it is hand made and recycled like the cutest stud earing made from gorgeous prints. Another 'new' item are the deck of large cards with nursery rhymes and vintage drawings of the characters printed on them. Justine tells me these fly out the door as they are very popular as people love to give them as presents. I'm included in that bunch of gift buyers. I also love the glassware and teacups polished up, the knitted dolls, unique collection of children's books and the mirrored animal wall hanging series - worth a visit just to know what the heaven I'm talking about. In 2010 Retrospections was a finalist in the Specialty Store of the Year award for the Mosman Daily 2010 Business Achiever Awards. Retrospetions is a great shop to buy gifts for those who read magazines like Frankie and Peppermint. This is a real find.. doll.

I was unexpectedly enchanted by Retrospections, a small unasssuming shop on the corner of the…read moreCammeray shops. From the outside it looked liked it would just be collections of old tat with prices stuck on them, but everything in here has been carefully and tastefully chosen. The corner devoted to books is certainly a trip down memory lane as it features all those books I deemed to be magical when I was a youngster. Princesses, castles and classic illustrations were all that was needed to set my heart a-flutter. There are even vinyl audiobook versions of some of these old favourites, something I have never seen before! You'll even find a few more grown-up treats such as dainty cookbooks and a box of Penguin bookcover postcards, I've now mentally bookmarked this place for presents for any gal pal with a bit of a romantic-literary streak's up-and-coming Birthday.