There is no place in the world quite like Hoi An, Vietnam. The lanterns are magical! And the street are lined with beautiful pagodas and amazing street food. There are fisherman with gigantic nets at sunrise, reeling in their catch and beckoning all photographers who are awake. There is a peaceful and picturesque beach. But, by far, the most unusual thing about Hoi An is the fashion scene!!!
Every other storefront is a tailor or cobbler waiting and willing to make you ANYTHING you can dream up with a turnaround of 24 hours…what!?!
Mouni, Kim and The Roaming Jones had arrived in Hoi An a few days before us, so they quickly gave us the inside track with the best restaurants, hotel and, most importantly, tailor and cobbler. Armed with information, we surfed the web and sketched a few things, dreaming up the ultimate shoes and/or clothes…then we hit the streets.
We went to the shoe place first. It was hard to believe they could turn around 7 pairs of shoes in 24 hours but we decided to test the limits of their capacity. We ordered everything from red Ugg knockoffs with a pink star (Jones) to stylish suede high tops with a custom logo (Wescott) to metallic, open-toed, fringe boots (yours truly!)
Next we went to the tailor. Yve designed a cool dress with two different fabrics and cut outs on the sides. Tuck had a button down shirt made to fit perfectly. Otto ordered a funky striped shirt too! Cliff had them knock-off an über hip coat he had restrained himself from getting in Barcelona. Rather than paying $400+, he got a made-to-order version that was better for $40!!!
We sat down to dinner that night and guessed as to whether or not anything would actually be something we would wear. The next day we went for a fitting. EVERYTHING was awesome! So awesome, we ordered a few extra items Not only did everything come out great but they boxed it all and shipped it for us! Full service!!!
What a crazy, whirlwind experience! It was so fun to see what each person decided to order, given a blank canvas!
I am putting Hoi An back on my MUST VISIT list, but next time I want to go with 4-6 adults and each of us bring $1000 on a mission to design a new wardrobe! We can go for a week, shop all day and meet for dinner each night to talk about what we have designed and ordered! How fun would that be?! Who’s in?
Latest posts by Lisa (see all)
- VIDEO: Tour of Canggu, Bali House - July 13, 2014
- The Bali Art Scene - June 13, 2014
- Lucky! - June 7, 2014
13 Comments