We buy some nice organic grown produce from these people and have toured the property also, met the alpacas, and visited the crafts store there where you can buy doonas, sleeping bags, hand-woven scarves, knitwear and raw fleece.
Alpacas have seductive large eyes and long lashes and although tractable, are aloof animals not keen on cuddles and petting the way well handled goats, sheep or horses can be. All the same it was great fun to see the set up and be close to these lovely quiet creatures.
The Australian alpaca industry has passed the phase of being an odd fringe enterprise. Now there are pedigree studs and common to see them at agricultural shows. Certainly alpaca have come to be appreciated because they can thrive in conditions where sheep have poor fodder and they are not destructive like goats. There is an off shoot industry of provision of herd guards for sheep. Whereas the sheep are inclined to panic, an alpaca is believed to stand its ground and fight a fox or dog.
The fibre is lovely. I have a soft light warm alpaca wool vest which washes well and comes up every time looking new. I can recommend both alpaca products and visiting Blue Moon.

The business advertises that it offers lots of canvas goods like tarpaulin, shade sails and blinds. There are other window coverings too- roll down metal shutters.
I dropped by to arrange for a quotation. Geraldine, who was manning the desk, could not have been congenial or more helpful and efficient. The face of a business, that is the first person you deal with, can make or break a deal by the impression created in the potential customer. Top marks to Carey Covers for good attitude.

I am very tired of rude or off hand behaviour where the business person or staff member treats the customer with contempt or as an intrusion on his otherwise far more important activity.

The visit from the consultant would have been prompt had he not got slightly lost. This circumstance was down to the off-sider who failed to note the property number sign at the top of my driveway. The same young man looked bored the entire time they were here, including picking his nose and metaphorically dragging his feet about anything he was supposed to do. I hope he is neither apprentice nor son of the owners because it almost negated my good opinion of the business.

Although I was happy with the service, unfortunately the shutters available are not appropriate to my requirements as my house would be hard to modify. I was disappointed in this instance (as was the installer no doubt) but I would have no hesitation calling on Carey Covers for other products should I find a need.
I know that the family suffered devastating personal losses during the local floods and were displaced from home for months. To carry on business cheerfully is a credit to them.

This is something of an oddity being a florist with a cafe at the back, or a cafe with a florist at the front. Walk through the florist/gift shop and you arrive in a pleasant quiet restaurant. From my point of view the food and prices are fairly standard but is the venue that sets it apart. It is not any quirkiness but simply that it is quiet, with the impression of being secluded since there is no passing traffic or hubbub just a metre or two away as with most cafes. It makes “coffee with friends” or a light meal more pleasant. The place is informal with enough of a restaurant atmosphere to provide a sense of occasion to our birthday afternoon tea.

Vege Spread is a very dark sandwich spread, or flavouring, that resembles Vegemite and Marmite but unlike either is not from yeast. In addition it is gluten and GMO free. Admittedly the taste is different since it is not strongly salty and may take getting used to if you are accustomed to very salty flavourings. We are being urged to quit the salt habit and cut back for the sake of heart health so this product is worth a try. I have found it to be pleasant and nice for that savoury tang that can be got from the other products and like those other spreads, rich in B vitamins. Similarly Vege Spread also should be regarded as a condiment, rather than a food because the best way to get your daily nutrients is through a varied fresh food diet and not be reliant upon one or two foodstuffs or supplements. This product is available through ordinary supermarkets, which is a plus.

This store offers more than just camping and outdoor hobby supplies. There are things for the home, car, electrical goods, garden, gifts... It is a good place to search for just about anything. For many years Lyal Eales was the only shop where I could get fly papers which I prefer to spraying my home with insecticide. I remain satisfied with the 12 volt fridge I purchased years ago.
Of course this is very much the same as the same named store in Ararat, with a similar range of goods and prices;
the benefit to Stawell being that customers are saved the trouble, time and expense of travel. The staff are pleasant and helpful. This is very important to me as I prefer to spend my dollars where I am respected and treated courteously. Just offering a bargain or being the only store in town to offer a particular product is not enough to keep me as a customer. I have found this is often a good place to find some thing I can't manage to track down elsewhere, so now think it is best to start here!
While, sadly, many of the products are produced overseas the business itself is Australian.

As you would expect this shop displays and supplies sports equipment and clothes. Personally I can't justify paying a high price for supposedly special T-shirts and track bottoms but this shop's prices are standard for the sort of business it is. I purchased a punching bag here which is still in good condition after several years so my experience is that of good quality that lasts.

This is the best place to find all your art supply needs in once place locally with a wide array of paint, pencil, brush or other art related items tucked into this shop. Usually there are original art works on display and available for purchase as well so it is interesting to go in just browse occasionally. You can get your prints, posters, or art framed, with professional advice as to the best choice of colour and style.

This new cafe caters for gluten free and presents a wide interesting menu, beginning with breakfast.
The premises look bright, clean and upmarket, as though it has been picked up from the city and plonked down in the quiet of Stawell Main Street. Of course the $3.50 coffee has to compete with a well known fast food place better placed on the highway and I am unsure as to whether Stawell can maintain yet another coffee lounge/cafe, but this one is worth a try even if one yo-yo is $2.50, which I consider steep. Maybe I am out of touch with prices? Although the Mokepilly is offering a more “up market” experience it is in competition with popular alternatives like the $10 counter lunch at the pub.
However, the foods here are produced by a chef.

I was alarmed to see what I believe to be the proprietor in complete disregard of work safety procedures when he was standing on an inverted plastic crate to drill holes in brickwork (presumably to hang a sign). His very long electric extension cord ran across the floor of the shop and through the front doorway and he was apparently without proper protection for his ears nor eyes- he was wearing spectacles and admittedly I do not know if he was wearing ear plugs.
This disregard for OH&S makes me wonder how safe are customers and the other staff?

The front of shop is given over to books, magazines and some videos and dvds. Outside are the bargain bins of books, usually 4 for $1, and a clothes' rack. The books are shelved according to genre: thrillers, romance, non-fiction, and so on. On the whole they are second hand but generally in good condition. I think some prices a bit steep considering they are donated stock,especially when they are ex-library books already paid for by us through rates etc. There are some art works and jewellery, also curios. It is worth popping in to see. This is not the best shop for clothes or household items but, as with any op shop, you can be lucky on the day.
The staff are pleasant and relaxed about you browsing the books without buying anything.

Approximate cost: $50 cents to $6

Indirectly we citizens pay for such services although they are "free" to use.
According to the site "The LSC has power to handle complaints about Victorian lawyers, including disputes between clients and their lawyer or a law practice. The LSC aims to handle complaints fairly, impartially and in a timely manner. All complaints must be made in writing. "

It is recommended that you read the information supplied before you make a complaint.
LSC says, "You can complain about:

Legal costs charged by your lawyer
Unreasonable delays caused by your lawyer
Communication issues
Incompetence
Inadequate service
Ethical issues (for example conflict of interest)
Financial loss
The Legal Services Commissioner cannot deal with complaints where:

The matter is before the courts, including where your lawyer has sued you
The complaint is about the courts, court staff or anyone else who is not a lawyer
The legal costs in your matter are more than $25,000
Any person may make a complaint about the behaviour of a lawyer. However, generally only a client may complain about costs charged by a lawyer."

This agency is for complaints against members of the legal profession in Victoria, however, when is a solicitor not a solicitor and therefore not subject to the scrutiny of the Legal Commission? When he is acting as an executor I was informed - after I complained about a solicitor who was appointed executor.
Does this mean that no matter how many complaints are made against a solicitor acting as an “executor” he will never be investigated for wrong doing? Apparently so.
Even a solicitor who may have influenced unduly the deceased and who was the very one to draw up the documents which benefit himself as having enduring power of attorney and sole executor. What protection is there then for the feeble or easily influenced client (and his beneficiaries)? If a solicitor abuses his position of trust as an executor or attorney, whether dipping into the trust funds to pay himself whatever he wants, or in any other way failing to carry out duties rightly expected of him, the Legal Commission is not the authority with power to intervene it seems. One wonders how glaring the inappropriate behaviour must be before someone can? I feel mislead by the Legal Commission's blurb which appeared to offer a service that in fact proved not to be so for me.
I can't help but be in sympathy with people who aver that the Law is not about justice.

Approximate cost: $none