Hi Carolynne,
I’m a crafter too. I intended stocking up on supplies when I was on holiday in NZ, but apart from one short visit to a nice little craft shop, I didn’t get round to buying anything much I’m afraid. Having just bought a house I felt I’d better spend the money on that rather than craft items.
I don’t know whether Bunnings DIY centres (like the UK B&Q) stock the little test pots – they have a great selection of paints and I would think they might well have them. Wish I’d taken more notice when we were in there, but, at the time, we were tracking down some wood stain. The Warehouse has a craft section too and there are stores throughout NZ. I was sure I’d seen somewhere that Hobbycraft had stores in NZ, but I can’t bring that up on the Net. Something comes up but it ain’t what I was looking for. I was hoping to find at least one large outlet with branches throughout NZ, but haven’t come up with one so far.
Here’s a few sites to have a look at. I’ve tried to do a search for craft supply shops in NZ, but the rubbish it’s bringing up is beyond me. Anything to do with hobbies brings up model aircraft etc. and ‘craft’ can bring up a load of stuff that is, IMO, nothing to do with crafting at all (and irritates the hell out of me for wasting my time – aaargh! :head banger: ) but you’re OK if you want scrapbooking.
Craft Direct
New Zealand Craft Shops
New Zealand Craft Supplies
Woodworks Ltd. Wholesale Wood Craft Supplies
Fine Art Supplies Manufacturers of artist, craft, face paints, inks and dyes
Zigzag - Fimo or polymer clay as they call it.
If you’re a glutton for punishment you could try a Google search under Craft Supplies, New Zealand and see what you can find on there. Good luck.