Holly in Mount Pleasant

Ken McAinsh has done a wonderful job repairing the 100 year old stained glass in my house. Previous owners had painted the actual stained glass (sad, I know) white on the outside and bright pink on the inside. I spend many hours painfully trying to remove the old paint but was still left with chips of paint on the glass and lead. Ken completely cleaned and repaired the stained glass, removed all the paint from the wood frame and sealed the glass around the frame so it is like new, but old! Great job at a very reasonable price. (note: the price is per window)

This place is mostly roll-end and discontinued flooring, so the selection is somewhat limited, especially if you want to buy it and take it home the same day. They do also sell new flooring by ordering it for you, but the savings come from buying the stuff in the showroom. I was able to pick up some Mannington resilient (vinyl) flooring for less than half the retail cost.

Those of you old enough to remember Lumberland are in for a treat if you visit this Rona store. It isn't flashy and doesn't have kitchen and bathroom displays, but if you just want to get in, buy a bag of loose nails or screws, a few sheets of plywood or some 2x4's, this is the place to go. You won't have to walk down aisle after aisle of home decor, and the staff here tend to be more knowledgeable than in most big-box stores.

It is always fun to prowl around Jack's haphazard yard full of lots of junk and a few great gems. If you are looking for items like old doors, windows, doorknobs or antique stained glass to replace what has been ripped out of your old house by a previous owner, Jack's is the place to go. A lot of the stuff is overpriced, but they are usually willing to take offers on items, especially if you are buying several things at once. This place is crowded with stuff, often messy and not the safest place so dress in your grubbies and wear sensible shoes.

The bathroom in my 100 year old house was disgusting. After gutting it I wanted to put in some old-fashioned looking subway tile with small mosaic floor tiles. Lower Mainland Ceramic tile had exactly what I wanted and their service was friendly and helpful without being pushy.

The oven of my just-out-of-warranty Ikea gas range stopped igniting when turned on. Handy appliance was able to explain what I needed to do to fix it and provided the needed parts for under$50. This is a great place for replacement parts as well as a great place to browse for discounted new and near new appliances. It doesn't have a fancy showroom, but it also doesn't have pushy commissioned salespeople following you around, either!

I have completely renovated 3 homes in the past 15 years, and have found that the people at Hillcrest have great new and used plumbing supplies and fixtures, and they are very knowledgeable about old home renovations and quirky plumbing problems.