Don’t judge me. I love my dog immensely – to the point sometimes I think I’m going to hug him too tight and he’ll stop breathing – but I get a bit bored with the whole walking-him-on-a-regular-basis thing. I mean really. Walk the dog, pick up poop, and repeat – no even general chit chat. Anyhow, I have worked out how to make it better.

And the solution came about more than a year ago when a cool shop opened near us. Ideology at Banyo is a quirky little place full of beautiful furniture, clothes, books and general knick knacks that spark the interest of the owner. Located across from the train station, it has great little finds.

So now when I walk the dog, I shove some cash in my bra and swing by the shop (which has great opening hours that work with people who work during the day) and have a squiz as a reward.

Before you get on your high horse, there is a post directly outside the shop door where I tie the dog up with a bowl of water and can see him at all times. (see, I said no judging!). Many of these little “dog walks” have resulted in some great finds for the home and the wardrobe. I have also picked up many birthday presents for the past year there.

Although it’s getting to the stage where I might have to invest in a saddle to put on the dog so he can carry the purchases home.

But don’t take my word for it, have a read of my little chat with the owner of Ideology below:

What was the motivation behind it? The residents of our little village of Banyo (and surrounding sister suburbs, Nudgee & Virginia) had limited options available to source interesting home and gift products. I also wanted to create an experience for our guests, which go beyond picking mass-produced products from shelves. We had a very meagre budget to start off with, so initiated a space to lease to local hand-craft and pre-loved clothing.. .over the last 15 months, we continue to evolve to our market’s demands.

Why do you stock so many local artisans? Ideology continues to support our local artisans (20% of our products in store are created by local artists), however, we also offer an array of unusual gift, home and personal fashion labels to suit a diverse group of guests.

Have you always been in this field? I had worked in hospitality and within the airline industry throughout my previous ‘life’.  I had only experienced a short stint in assisting at a gift shop the year prior to opening ideology.

Is this your first store of this kind? If not, how long have you been involved? This is absolutely the first store of its kind I have had the experience of developing, 15 months in the making. . . this has been a journey of self-development in the unknown!

Where do most of your items come from? 20% of our products are created by local artisans (ceramics, pottery, body products, jewellery etc), The home decor is sourced from all over the globe, naturally, I have agents throughout Australia who import the pieces, and I have the joy of choosing what I believe my guests will most likely respond well too. Our clothes are all Australian designs. We base our choices to suit all budgets and are partial to garments that fit into the ”lifestyle” category – comfortable and presentable from the beginning of your day, to the later hours of the evening. Our homewares range from ceramic hand-painted drawer knobs, gorgeous hand-stitched textile cushions, to quirky lanterns and lighting.  Prices for a treasured find in ideology starts at just $5.50 – allowing for all budgets to source a quality product.

And opening hours? Mon     Closed Tues    10 – 4 Wed     10 – 6pm (we offer our community mid-week later evening shopping) Thurs   10 – 4 Fri        10 – 4pm Sat        9 – 12 Sun       Closed So there you have it, maybe make your next dog walk a little more interesting by swinging by Ideology. If you see a black-and-white dog tied up at the front watching his owner madly darting back and forth, then come and say hello, but don’t try to get in the way of me and the glass door knobs I’m collecting.