Menty

I am used to getting my shirts and suits in Hong Kong (Jantzen if anyone knows...)

Are any of these places mentioned above comparable to the quality of HK tailors?! or am I better off visiting there...?

Stick to Hong Kong mate.

Never seen so many poorly dressed farang, a cheap suit is just that, cheap.

Poor quality material, badly cut and ill fitting suits not hanging right, stitching that aint worth a shit, cheapest buttons available that do nothing to enhance the suit, when was the last time you saw hand stitched lapels?

Bangkok choice of teachers, boiler room boys and those who dont know what a good suit should look like.

Workmanship, quality and fabrics are very comparable to Hong Kong, the big difference is in price....Bangkok is much cheaper.

Everyone has a different recommendation for a tailor in Bangkok. I guess the big factors to consider are:

1. Price-what are the prices for a shirt/suit etc?

2. Quality-What exactly do you get for your money?

3. Service-What is the service like? Do they understand exactly what you want, are they pushy, is it a pleasant experience?

4. Location-where are they located? Can you get to them easily?

Based on this what are your recommendations?

Just wondering how it really is? For that money you can get top quality suits in the "west".

Was thinking about buying some shirts but they also seem to be cheaper in farangland. I don't need them to be tailored as I'm very standard in body shape.

For a nice quality 100% cotton shirt I think you are looking at 1400-2500thb.

The beauty of getting a tailored shirt is that it fits you perfectly (in your case it doesn't need to be tailored) also you get a huge range of choice. Basically the tailors can customize every aspect of the shirt from contrast stitching, to buttons, to collar types and so on. There is also a much larger fabric selection that you wouldn't get in a shop. There is a certain satisfaction to having something made personally for you and at Bangkok prices it is certainly affordable.

The other thing to factor in is the level of quality. If you paid for an equivalent level of quality (i.e great fabric, mother of pearl buttons etc) you would have to go for a branded shirt and they are not cheaper than a tailored shirt in Bangkok! Obviously some people just want a plain blue shirt and have no problem with the fit then maybe its not such an attractive thing to do!

My understanding was that the "tailor shops" are, in the vast majority of cases, just material and measuring shops and the suits/shirts/et al are all made by the same few Thai factories that operate elsewhere in the city. Thats why the delivery to the shops are always tied together in the plastic bailer twine, and the shop never truely knows the exact delivery time - because the factory is supplying many so called "tailor shops"..

My off the peg suits are many times the quality of the suits I had made in Bangkok. Marks and Spencers for my trousers and shirts!

Most of the "tailor shops" in bangkok are just that, tailors shops. That doesn't mean the guy you meet at the door who measures you up and shows you the fabric etc is a tailor however they are shops offering tailored clothing which I guess means it's fair to call them tailors shops. They all work directly with tailors and in any good shop you will do some fittings with the actual tailor, this is mainly the case with the jacket tailoring.

The beauty of using a Bangkok tailor is that you can get a level of fit and personalisation that often an off the rack suit can't provide. Certainly you can get a cheap polyester suit that doesn't fit well, has been poorly finished and falls to bits in a few months. But on the flipside, you can purchase a quality fabric, finish and achieve a great level of fit and customization that you would struggle to get off an off the rack suit for a fraction of the price.

There are many good tailors here in Bangkok. There are also many not so good tailors. There is also a lot of great fabrics from pure wool suiting fabrics, to high grade blends. The key is sorting out the good from the bad. One thing that many people look for is "Cashmere" it is important to realise just how expensive cashmere is and that you can't buy a cashmere suit for 7,000thb!!!

Defiantely Bamboo Hut on Haad Yuan, great food, lovely staff and beautiful location!

I think the thing that is the most important factor when choosing where to learn to dive is the actual instructor that is going to teach you. The reputation of the shop and price is obviously important too, but the person who is going to be teaching you is really the most important thing to consider. You want someone who is keen, has a level of experience (not necessarily the most experienced but not someone teaching his/her first Open Water Course either!) and actually enjoys his/her job!

I would go to Tailor On Ten, Sukhumvit Soi 10......

depending on the fabric,

you will not get shirts in pure cotton for 500,

(unless you buy off the rack from a cheap outlet place)

That's why I said 500-1000. If you want pure cotton you pay the upper end of the range. If you want poly-cotton you pay the lower end. No need to go to a cheap outlet place though. Plenty of Suk tailors will make you a poly-cotton shirt for 500 baht. The point was, 5000 baht for 5 is definitely not some special deal, regardless of the material. Sorry to spoil your free advert.

I agree with you on that, 5000thb would be way too much. (way too much!) Although I think that 500-1000thb is more in the polyester blend range. For 1000thb you might get a cheaper quality, low thread count, cotton shirt (though I don't know too many places that would do that!) For a nice quality 100% cotton shirt I think you are looking at 1400-2500thb.

Tailor On Ten is your best bet. They can produce anything you want from the highest quality to a cheaper suit. They have a big range of fabrics. Run by a Canadian guy who you deal with directly. http://www.tailoronten.com

Guests report the fun dives off Koh Mah om Koh Phangan as being very good if a trip to Koh Tao seems long

It is a good spot, shame that all the tour boats and longtails reguarly drop their anchors.......even so it is a nice place to snorkel and dive.

Different stores have different fabrics and suit cuts. Some could be good but whether its suitable to your taste or not is what you have to go to their stores and see it for yourself. For me, I had a great slim fit suit custom made in Bangkok at Jhasper Fashion. Very pleased with their outstanding insights on tailoring suits and up to the mark service. Wonderful decent people.

Agree - what works for one, may not work for others. Even in this one page alone, there are at least 5 recommended stores here and I'm just about to add a 6th. What I'd suggest to do is for you to walk around to all these stores, as they can't be more than a 5 minute walk from each other. Walk in, browse around, talk to the guys working there, see their finished products, fabrics, etc, then make up a decision. You don't want to rush this! Give yourself plenty of time to decide where you want your clothes made. Anyways, the store I use regularly is Crown Tailors just inside of Sukhumvit Soi 8. Great service nor any pressure, thats why I Love them so much.

This is good advice, walk around, talk to the guys and see what they have to say. I'd also recommend you pick up a phone and call a couple of shops (its a lot easier than walking) and see how they deal with you on the phone. If they can tell what you need this way then they are professional and organised. Most of the bangkok tailors are pretty skilled, the big difference comes with the fabric. This is what tends to seperate the real quality from the not so good. I'd recommend Tailor On Ten on Sukhumvit soi 10 but as you can see here everyone recommends something different!