When I saw the shop name of Petite Maison, my schoolboy French interpreted it as 'small house'.
On entering, it manifests as a small shop, but it was big with a range of goodies.
Lots of goodies.
The full name of the shop is Petite Maison Boutique. My schoolboy French remembered 'boutique' as a small shop dealing in fashionable clothing and accessories.
More merchandise.
They certainly sell fashionable clothing but a lot more as well. It's a gift shop that sells those fashionable clothes.
A browsers paradise.
On duty the day I called in was Jacinta. When asked whether they sold more clothes or more gifts, she replied "
It's seasonal, sometimes clothing outsells our gifts and often gifts outsell clothes, such as Christmas."
Jacinta.
Looking around the shop I saw numerous rabbits, sitting, standing, and even climbing up lamps. I initially thought that a couple of amorous bunnies had been locked in over a long weekend, but Jacinta explained. "
They are for our Easter theme."
There are a lot of them.
Rabbits crawling up lamps.
It is a gift shop extraordinaire (that's another French word). I've known people who collect little houses, or in this case, petite maisons. They will expand their collection here.
Petete maisons.
At the back of the maison was a display of sale items that appeared from almost every type of merchandise in stock.
Selecting from the top shelf.
The clothing is displayed on small racks throughout the store, which gives the impression there is only a small range. Not so. Combined with the two racks on the footpath it is easy to see why they sometimes outsell the gifts.
Racks of clothing.
There is a showcase of exquisite jewellery, earrings, necklaces and more.
Something for your ears and neck.
While I was photographing the shop exterior, a couple of ladies were examining the footpath display and headed into the shop with a dress in hand.
Shop exterior and customers.
The shop does not look cramped besides being packed with merchandise. You will find beauty products such as soap, hand and body lotion and lots more. I even saw some scented candles. To go with gifts are a range of hand-crafted cards.
Goodies everywhere.
Hand crafted cards.
The aisles are wide making browsing easy. A display cabinet of cushions looked comfortable.
Shopper browsing.
I received the impression that displays are regularly changed, with new stock arriving, so every visit will exhibit something new.
Opening hours.
