Another day, another closure. Popular Japanese lifestyle store Tokyu Hands is closing its outlet at Westgate.

On July 1 2020, Tokyu Hands put up a notice on their Facebook saying that they will be permanently closing their Westgate outlet at Jurong East. Their last day of operations will be on 2 August 2020.

In the post, they thanked their customers for their loyal patronage over the past few years and mentioned that their other stores will continue to remain open. They did not cite the reason for the closure.

If you’re sad about their closure, fret not as you can still visit their other outlets at Orchard Central, Suntec City, Jewel Changi Airport, PLQ Mall and Great World City.

We don’t know about you, but we absolutely love wandering in and around lifestyle stores. Perhaps it’s the sheer size of them or possibly the fact that they carry such a wide array of gorgeous items and ornaments that we could only wish our homes had space for.

These stores are usually filled to the brim with quirky items and little knick-knacks that will definitely keep you occupied for quite some time. They are also great places to head to if you’re looking for a gift for someone or if you want some pretty pieces to decorate your home.

From the ever-bustling Don Don Donki to vintage bookstore, Books Actually, here are 14 of our favourite lifestyle stores in Singapore that you definitely should check out.

BOOKS ACTUALLY 

It’s easy to get lost in a good book on a lazy day, and a place like Books Actually is no exception. Nestled in a quaint, quiet neighbourhood of Tiong Bahru, this gorgeous vintage will easily keep you preoccupied for a while.

This hipster-esque bookstore does not just house a plethora of good books. They also have pretty, old-school trinkets on display and for sale. You can also take home the treasures that you’ve found here in one of their customised tote bags which are sold for S$10 each.

9 Yong Siak Street
Singapore 168645
Tel: +65 6222 9195
Tue to Sat: 10am – 8pm
Sun to Mon: 10am – 6pm
Nearest Station: Tiong Bahru

CAT SOCRATES 

If you adore cats, this is one place that you definitely must visit. One of the shopkeepers here happen to be Chestnut the cat, and he will “assist” you (or simply follow you around) as you browse around the shop.

The store is filled to the brim with quirky knick-knacks and many cat-themed items. We could stay here forever if we could!

231 Bain Street, #02-25
Singapore 180231
Tel: +65 6333 0870
Mon to Sat: 12pm – 8pm
Sun: 1pm – 7pm
Nearest Station: Bras Basah & Bugis

COMMUNE

Commune specialises mainly in beautiful and luxurious home goods that will definitely spice up your living area and give it a modern touch. Besides home goods, they also have a cafe area for you to chill at after the shopping’s done.

#02-51/52/53 Millenia Walk
9 Raffles Boulevard
Singapore 039596
Tel: +65 6338 3823
Mon to Fri: 11.30am – 9pm
Sat & Sun: 11am – 9pm
Nearest Station: Esplanade

CRATE & BARREL 

If you’re bored of the furniture at IKEA, you can always hop over to Crate & Barrel to look through the gorgeous furniture and home decor items that they have here for sale. From king-sized beds to aesthetically-pleasing wooden ornaments that’ll beautify your kitchen, they have pretty much everything here that you need to do up your home.

2 Orchard Turn, #04-21/22 Ion Orchard
Singapore 238801
Tel: +65 6634 4222
Daily: 10am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Orchard

DON DON DONKI 

The popular Japanese discount king store was all over the news late last year because they had finally opened a store in Singapore. This megastore sells a plethora of things such as food, household items, makeup and novelty items. We also love how it is open 24-hours so that we can do some late night shopping when insomnia strikes.

Orchard Central, B1 & B2
181 Orchard Road
Singapore 238896
Tel: +65 6444 2422
Daily: 24-hours
Nearest Station: Somerset

DOVER STREET MARKET 

Dover Street Market is a multi-brand retailer located at the quaint Dempsey Road. If you’re into high-end streetwear such as Balenciaga, Brain Dead, Vetements, Comme des Garcons and Gucci, this is the place that you should be at.

18 Dempsey Road
Singapore 249677
Tel: +65 6304 1388
Daily: 11am – 8pm
Nearest Station: Farrer Road

EDIT 

Edit Lifestyle oozes with beachy summer vibes. This airy, spacious store sells very tropical related items such as bikinis, beachwear, sunglasses, hats and baskets. They also sell pretty home decor items to jazz up your living space.

Tudor Court, 137 – 139 Tanglin Road
Singapore 247927
Tel: +65 6836 5686
Mon to Sat: 10am – 7pm
Sun: 10am – 5pm
Nearest Station: Orchard

GRAFUNKT 

Grafunkt is an independent (indie) design brand that specialises mostly in modern furniture and home goods that adopt a somewhat industrial style. Their products are beautifully laid out throughout the store and make for a good and comfortable place to browse for furniture or simply to take a short break from all the walking.

9 Raffles Blvd, 34/35/36
Singapore 039596
Tel: +65 6336 6046
Daily: 11.30am – 8.30pm
Nearest Station: Promenade

IN GOOD COMPANY 

Tucked away in ION Orchard is In Good Company, a store that specialises mainly in clothes and accessories. They also house popular cupcake brand Plain Vanilla that sells their signature sweet treats and decent coffee to match.

#B1-06, 2 Orchard Turn
ION Orchard
Singapore 238801
Tel: +65 6509 4786
Daily: 10am – 9.30pm
Nearest Station: Orchard

KAPOK 

Located at the National Design Centre, Kapok is filled to the brim with interesting knick-knacks and quirky items. Besides that, they sell a range of pretty interesting and creative clothes and accessories. We also adore the walkway leading up to the store entrance—it’s so adorable!

111 Middle Road
Singapore 188969
Tel: +65 9060 9107
Daily: 11am – 8pm
Nearest Station: Bugis

KNOTS CAFE AND LIVING 

We absolutely love the concept of Knots Cafe and Living. This rustic, cosy cafe not only sells great eats and fragrant coffee, but all their furniture in the cafe itself is also for sale!

From the tables and chairs that you sit on to the paintings on the wall, if you like it just buy it from there. They also sell fresh flowers which are great for if you’re bringing your date here.

#01-07, 160 Paya Lebar Road
Singapore 409022
Tel: +65 6817 0383
Tue to Thu: 9am – 9pm
Fri & Sat: 9am – 10pm
Sun: 9am – 9pm
Mon: 9am – 5.30pm
Nearest Station: MacPherson

MONUMENT LIFESTYLE GOODS & CAFE 

Hidden away in a crevice of Duxton Road is Monument Lifestyle. Here, they sell men’s items that are imported from the US. They also have a coffee shop that serves up fresh brews and teatime snacks.

75 Duxton Road
Singapore 089534
Mon to Fri: 8am – 7pm
Sat: 10am – 6pm
Sun: 10am – 3pm
Nearest Station: Tanjong Pagar & Outram

MUJI 

Muji has always been popular for their minimalistic products and store design, and we have always been in love with their woody, minimalistic interiors and simple but versatile home goods. Besides home decor, they also sell food and stationery.

68 Orchard Road, #01-10
17 Plaza Singapura
Singapore 238839
Tel: +65 6264 5838
Daily: 10am – 10pm
Nearest Station: Dhoby Ghaut

NAIISE 

Naiise is a colourful, quirky store that sells a plethora of interesting knick-knacks and novelty items. We love how many of the things here are Singapore themed such as tote bags with MRT locations printed on it as well as pillows in the shape of local childhood snacks.

2 Handy Road, #B1-08
The Cathy Building
Singapore 229233
Daily: 12pm – 10pm
Nearest Station: Bencoolen

ION Orchard impresses both locals and international guests with the world’s best-loved brands—be it luxury boutiques, lifestyle stores or sensational F&B establishments—ION Orchard has literally become a beacon of envy in the retail scene.

Over 300 retail, F&B establishments and entertainment stores—which includes some of the world’s top luxury brands—we honestly can’t think of a better lifestyle destination to splurge and indulge as the year draws to a close.

ION Orchard houses a vast array of both homegrown and internationally-renowned fashion boutiques, food brands and some of Singapore’s finest restaurants, including award-winning Imperial Treasure Fine Teochew Cuisine and the newly-opened Violet Oon Singapore.

With the new revamp on Level 3 as well as several new additions to the basement food hall, ION Orchard has even more to offer now. Life’s already short enough as it is, so treat yourselves to some year-end indulgence—both shopping and feasting—and if you need a solid place to start, let ION Orchard be your preferred location.

VIOLET OON’S NEW FLAGSHIP

The brand-new Violet Oon Singapore in ION Orchard occupies the open space on Level 3. The new restaurant traces the Singapore food story back to colonial times with dishes that include British food interpreted by Hainanese cooks back in the day.

Offering a stellar menu that covers every aspect of the niche cuisine such as oxtail stew, Hainanese pork chop and shepherd’s pie and a selection of Violet’s crowd-favourite Nyonya signatures, all nicely cradled around the ideology of Peranakan hospitality, the restaurant is perfect should you wish to stop by for a tasty meal, a cocktail or coffee in the midst of your shopping.

The all-day restaurant has also tailored special menus to cater to diners looking to enjoy breakfast, high-tea and weekend brunch as well.

New to her repertoire of dishes and exclusive to this outlet is her Steak Sandwich. A traditional take on a classic British sandwich that sees elements of Nyonya cuisine injected into the sauce, good bread and a perfectly seared-off 150-day grain-fed Blank Angus ribeye.

Nicely seared on the outside but staying perfectly pink in the middle, the beef was tender and gave off a nice grilled aroma. However, impressive as the steak was, it was the Nyonya-style green chilli relish that truly made it for us. Punchy with a good amount of heat, the piquant relish added a dimension of fresh, botanical flavours underscored by a sharp spicy kick, to further lift an otherwise decent-but-typical steak sandwich.

A crowd-favourite and one that warrants multiple return visits is their signature Dry Laksa. Reduced down naturally rather than thickening with a roux, the flavour is concentrated and rich.

Punctuated with the fresh, uplifting flavour of laksa leaves, the dish is an aromatic and decadent marriage of flavours that represent centuries of Peranakan food heritage—presented and interpreted in a modern way of course.

At the entrance of the restaurant, visitors can feel free to browse through shelves of pre-packaged edible delights such as homemade pineapple tarts, cashew cookies, and kaya.

Available throughout the year, diners (both local and foreign) will be able to bring home a part of Singapore’s culinary heritage along with them.

Violet Oon Singapore (ION Orchard)
ION Orchard #03-28/29
2 Orchard Turn,
Singapore 238801
Tel: +65 9834 9935
Daily: 12pm – 10pm

IMPERIAL TREASURE FINE TEOCHEW CUISINE

Awarded a one-Michelin star for 2 years running, Imperial Treasure Fine Teochew Cuisine in ION Orchard is one Chinese restaurant that can always be relied on to provide us with an exquisite, out-of-this-world dining experience whether it be a casual dim sum brunch or a full-on feast. And judging from our recent visit, we can see why the restaurant is indeed deserving of the prestigious accolade.

Well-lit and accentuated with lots of fresh flowers and natural sunlight, the interior gives off a cheery appeal and an overall laid-back vibe—but the atmosphere is only secondary to their array of brilliantly crafted dishes. Nuanced in flavour, their food is prepared with the utmost skill and attention to detail by a team of master chefs.

Delicious, straightforward and great for sharing, we opted for their delicately hand-crafted Diced Abalone wrapped with Egg White Skin , Wok Fried Hor Fun with Diced “Kai Lan” and Preserved Radish as well as their Frog Legs with Sze Chuan Peppercorns.

Freshly poached daily in a mix of sauces and spices, their marinated offerings take on a lacquered sheen of brown, indicating that flavours have indeed been permeated all the way through. We opted for the Three Kinds Of Marinated Combination In Teochew Style that includes marinated pork knuckle, sliced duck meat and octopus.

The flavours were mellow, refined and milder in comparison to other dark-coloured braised meats found elsewhere. Based solely on taste, we have to admit we were hesitant about its lightness but as we proceeded to take more bites, sampling the various sauces as we went, the items became more and more addictive.

Imperial Treasure Fine Teochew Cuisine
ION Orchard, #03-05,
2 Orchard Turn
Singapore 238801
Tel: +65 6736 2118
Mon to Fri: 11.30am – 3pm, 6pm – 11pm
Sat: 11am – 3pm, 6pm – 11pm
Sun: 10.30am – 3pm, 6pm – 11pm

AWFULLY CHOCOLATE

Well-known for their ultra-rich and sinfully-good chocolate cakes and desserts, local chocolatier Awfully Chocolate, is no stranger to anyone who’s ever had a hankering for decadent desserts. Tucked away in a cosy corner of ION Orchard’s basement, Awfully Chocolate’s only concept store offers takeaway cakes, sliced chocolate desserts as well as a permanent collection of handcrafted chocolate bars, cookies and gift sets.

Exclusive for the festive season, Awfully Chocolate has launched a new range of Artisanal Christmas Cakes that include luxurious and decadent Christmas Fruit Cake Brownie (S$78 for 800g), Crème Brûlée Cake (S$98 for 1.8kg) as well as many others.

Awfully Chocolate
ION Orchard, #B4-50,
2 Orchard Turn,
Singapore 238801
Tel: +65 6884 6377
Daily: 10am – 10pm

HEYTEA SINGAPORE

Dedicated to serving high-quality brews made using only the freshest and top-quality ingredients, it is no surprise that HEYTEA is the most highly sought-after tea brand in China—and now, Singapore. The original inventors of the acclaimed cheese tea, HEYTEA has garnered many fans across Asia and inspired a global trend.

Having opened its very first outpost outside of China in Basement 4 of ION Orchard, the cheese tea giant serves massive queues on a daily basis. Their tea leaves are specially sourced and blends are customised for their own use only and with it, they brew a myriad of thirst-quenching, refreshing beverages that come with a generous dollop of their signature Cheezo.

HEYTEA Singapore
ION Orchard, #03-0528/#B4-29
2 Orchard Turn
Singapore 238801
Tel: +656908 0019
Daily: 10am – 10pm

LUXURY FASHION BOUTIQUES GALORE

Boasting floor upon floor of luxury brands and boutiques, ION Orchard is a shopaholic’s heaven. The 3rd floor of the mall recently underwent a revamp and features more internationally-renowned brands such as Valentino, HUGO, PINKO, Longchamp, Diane Von Furstenberg (DVF) and Karl Lagerfeld.

Feeling like you need a wardrobe makeover? Pick up a printed dress from Diane Von Furstenberg; a pair of shoes and some accessories from Karl Lagerfield and a bag from Longchamp.

With big names such as Kendall Jenner and Kaia Gerber being the faces of these brands, get a piece of Europe and its incredible fashion right here in the heart of Orchard Road—at ION Orchard.

Now you know where to get luxurious Christmas presents too, yes?

This post was brought to you by ION Orchard.

Haji Lane is not just. Besides the usual slew of cafes, eateries and apparel stores, these colourful streets are also home to a number of aesthetically-pleasing lifestyle stores that have a plethora of interesting knick-knacks that can keep you occupied for hours.

From rustic, handmade accessories to beautiful Danish boutique crafts, here are 7 lifestyle stores located in Haji Lane that will have hipsters occupied for hours.

CRAFT ASSEMBLY 

Decked out in rustic, vintage decor, Craft  Assembly is a store that features uniquely local-made crafts, vintage apparel as well as old-school toys. They love featuring local designers, so if you happen to be one, do drop them an email!

61 Haji Lane
Singapore 189254
Mon to Fri: 12pm – 8pm
Sat & Sun: 11.30am – 8.30pm

DRUNKEN BALLOON

Drunken Balloon definitely has an eye-catching storefront. Their balloons sculptures that frame their entrance really grabs ones attention and lures them into their colourful store. Though specialising in party goods, they also sell a lot of decorative, retro pieces to help you pimp out your pad.

84 Haji Lane
Singapore 189273

DULCET & FIG

Dulcet Fig is an eclectic store that stocks independent labels from both Singapore and overseas. These mainly consist of vintage pieces like apparels and accessories that are sourced from the store owners travels. Most of their items also support a social cause such as fair trade labels and eco-friendly brands.

41 Haji Lane
Singapore 189234
Tel: +65 6396 5648
Daily: 11am – 9pm

HYGGE 

Hygge used to be a quirky Danish cafe slash lifestyle boutique, but they recently converted fully into a minimalist lifestyle store that sells pretty handmade trinkets as well as gorgeous vintage apparel. This is a great place to create a personalised gift for a friend or loved one.

37 Haji Lane
Singapore 189230
Tel: +65 8163 1893
Daily: 12pm – 6.30pm

LIFE BY DESIGN 

For those of you who like mysterious, metaphysical things, this store is the place for you. This place sells a ton of quirky knick-knacks such as healing stones, tarot cards, Hoodoo oils and even Ouija boards!

43 Haji Lane
Singapore 189236
Tel: +65 6884 9968
Daily: 12pm – 10pm

MONDAYS OFF 

This gorgeous Scandinavian-decorated store is a multi-label boutique that sells an array of interesting, quirky items. From colourful kitchen accessories to pretty stationary and printed scarves, there is something here for everyone.

76 Haji Lane
Singapore 189269
Tue to Fri: 12pm – 6pm
Sat & Sun: 12pm – 8pm
(Closed on Mondays)

SPOILMARKET

This place is a treasure trove for just about anyone. The whole store is packed to the brim with quirky items such as vintage TV sets, retro cameras, unique bags, loud fashion pieces as well as funky collectables. If given the opportunity, we would stay here for hours!

74 Haji Lane
Singapore 189267
Daily: 10.30am – 9pm

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