I am a great painting and arts and crafts enthusiast, although the rule in our household is that I am only allowed to do messy jobs such as painting outside! This of course rules out painting walls in the house (Paul let me do the kitchen and then said ”never again!”) Why is this? I have this talent for getting glue and paint everywhere as well as on the object I am painting. So glue or paint ear is a real possibility. My worst habit is to step in paint that I have dripped on the floor and then transfer it to other parts of the house! Hence my painting jobs are confined to renovating book-cases, painting garden tables and chairs, and really anything that can be moved outside. Of course this does also mean that I am a fair weather painter.
St David’s Stores (http://www.stdavids-stores.co.uk/) is a real gem of a shop, and one we have taken to using in the past 12 years or so since we moved to the area of Maidenhead near Pinkneys Green. It is so refreshing to find a shop where you can buy single light bulbs and screws, and in addition the staff are really helpful and knowledgeable. It is of course a family-run business; I have had many a friendly chat with the staff there, who are able to help and advise on products, whether you need something for painting, DIY or specialist cleaning. It is a typical hardware shop which packs so much into a relatively small premises. For my painting projects, I can find much of the same range that you would find in a big DIY store. I am a big fan of the Dulux paint mix ranges, and of course because they are mixed to order, it does not matter that the shop is smaller – you can still get the full range of colours.
For me the big draw is the location; for us it is a local shop that I can drive to by myself. I have a driving phobia, so am very limited in where I can get to on my own. It is always my first choice for painting products. There is ample parking outside, and there is always a friendly member of staff available to carry heavy shopping to your car. In the winter we buy fuel for our open fire, and I have never had to carry the bags of coal or logs myself.
My most recent project was to renovate our barbecues using an amazing black paint, which withstands extremely high temperatures; of course I purchased the paint from St David’s Stores, and had a lovely chat with the young girl who served me. If the weather is still fine when we get back from our holiday, I shall be going there to stock up Cuprinol Wood Paint and re-paint the table and chairs in the picture you see on this post.
In this modern age, it is so refreshing to find a friendly, local shop where the staff have time to help you and really know their products. Long may this shop continue to thrive and provide a good service for Maidenhead residents!