Natural Fabrics In Bangkok

[hermespan]

I have been visiting Bangkok for 20 years and I have been away for several recently. Numerous times I went shopping for natural fabrics (by the meter) and did not have great success. Firstly, I am a linen afficianado for me this is the perfect fabric for the tropics. But except for a Co-op department store in Khao Sarn, where a natural colour linen is sold at about the same price as in Canada (I think it's made in Germany) I have NEVER come across any of this wonderful fabric. I order Russian linen from a US mail order house because of their fabulous selection and great price, even after exchange and shipping. I also buy linen look cotton and linen in Phnom Penh at Phsar Tual Tom Pong from the lady who appears to buy roll ends from China. It's $3-4 a meter - less than a fifth of the price than in Canada. Can anyone recommend good value linen in Bangklok? Perhaps imported fabric is highly dutied at Thai Customs. or there is simply too little demand to merit large scale importation.

Silk, I haven't been much interested in, mostly because, unlike in Canada, fabric is not usually labelled. And frankly many of the merchants in Little India... well, I don't trust their accuracy of assessment of fibre content. Let me put it that way. And I become exghausted shopping in that crowded lane in the hot season. I'll take a look to see if air-con Jim Thompson is worth the price. I did see an upscale silk shop on Chakrapet, but prices were not very appealing. Aesthetically speaking, generally I prefer Chinese silk to Thai silk. Does one have to go to China to get it? Good quality satin silk can cost $70 a meter in canada.

The only fabric that I treasure from Thailand is some black on blue hand-dyed fabric I picked up in Chiang Mai and had made into a shirt there in combination with some local denim colour cotton.

I am not a politically-correct aesthete looking for organically-grown natural fibres hand-picked by hilltribe virgins under the full moon and sold through a worker-owned co-op that serves herb teas. This is the sort of boutique appeal I see in many shops. I just look for good value linen, silk or even the new bamboo blends - sold by the meter.

In conclusion, I find buying fabrics a better experience in India, especially in Bombay. There I can buy chiffon and exotic cotton prints at prices I would kill for. But I am hoping I am just missing out on some great places to buy in Bangkok that I don't know about yet!