HOI AN – TAILOR-MADE CLOTHES

Hoi An is an old-fashioned beach town that has its streets lined by tailor after tailor. There are more than 400 tailor shops around the town for everything: dress, skirts, shirts, bikinis, shoes, accessories and even jewelries, and you are able to have anything made out of any material, any style, to fit your exact body. This is fashion lovers’ heaven. But it is also a giant black hole; you may lose all concepts of space, time, and money here.

The skillful tailors of Hoi An are well-known throughout the globe. Many of them can trace the trade through generations of their family, and it’s not only women who are pulling a needle and thread. With deft fingers and a keen eye, they’re known by many as master craftsmen, able to copy any design they see. If you show them a picture of a coat, suit or dress, you can expect a nearly exact replica to be produced within 24-48 hours. 

Having clothes made is addicting, but many tourists regret that they were not prepare well before coming here. A smart fashionista /fashionisto would follow these steps to get their clothes perfectly made.

1. Making a folder/album on your smartphone to store all the styles, color, cuts of the items and doing mix and match
2. List out several reliable shops based on reviews on tripadvisors

3. Pick a couple of the easier, “just like the picture” items that you have. Go to your short-list of tailors and get general prices quoted for those items. Talk to the people who are there for fittings if you can.

4. Make your choice and start haggling (but not too much) for a group rate if you are having multiple items made.

5. Now you come to the process of viewing samples, discussing styles, choosing materials, being measured, having a first fitting, having a second fitting, waiting for alterations. Remember that you should have the idea of the colors, weight and patterns in mind. You can also bring your fabrics.

6. Letting them know when you have to leave the town. It’s a good idea to pick up your clothes one or two days before you leave town if you can.

7. Even they measure you properly; there are always the possibilities to fix it here and there. Some good tailors even insist to fix the clothes for you as they want their product to be perfect