flygirl

Good morning

What kinds of souvenirs did you bring home from Thailand?

I am going to at least bring home silk and clothing and I'd really like to have something made. Where would you recommend I do that?

Thanks!

Kathie

If you like silk, do visit the Jim Thompson stores. JT was the man who reinvented the Thai silk industry. Very high quality. There are two outlet stores in Bangkok... sometimes I find great deals there, sometimes not. But I always take a look.

I love Thai crafts. CM is a good place to shop for crafts. If you have the Nancy Chandler map for CM, there is a list of fair-trade craft shops.

If you want clothing made, I'd opt for Cotton House, in the small shopping center right behind The Oriental Hotel.

Kathie

Oh, and my favorite Thai purchases are jewelry. Thai sapphires are especially well-priced. But don't buy just anywhere - especially somewhere a cab driver or tuk-tuk driver wants to take you. If you are interested in fine jewelry, I'll be glad to refer you to my jeweler in Bangkok.

rhkkmk

sapphires for sure, but tons of semi-precious stones as well..

gold is priced internationally, but the workmanship can be less expensive in bkk...

custom clothing.. silks, cottons, linen, etc... wool too

housewares, fabrics of all kinds..

the jim Thompson outlet on sukhumvit soi 93 is worth a trip---2 blocks off sukhumvit on the left..

wood

junk jewelry

visit platinum fashion mall for amazing stuff for women especially

js thai silk, 2nd floor of river city shopping mall, next to royal orchid Sheraton on the river... mall has an hourly boat from taskin pier BTS

rhkkmk

JT outlet---visit all 4 floors

sartoric

I got some great inexpensive silver wrist cuffs in CM and the handwoven textiles from the hill tribes are beautiful, think scarves.

I did get clothes made in BKK,but years ago. Just be careful with fittings, they do seem to like to make things tight.

cwn

Kathie,
We will be back in late March.....went to "your" jeweler in 2009 and had some wonderful pieces make using my designs....love love them! I have 4 more years worth of stones collected from our travels. Is you jeweler still the same?

Bob,
Where is the River City Shopping Mall in relation to the Shangri-La? Can we walk or do we need to go down to the water taxi area? JS Thai Silk is added to my list.

Flygirl,
Please post if you find any great craft/silk clothing shops...I love to shop and we will have time this time. JT shopping has a whole day set aside for this trip as we have never made it there. I did buy some of their pieces for my home and as gifts last time (2009) from our hotel's JT shop and love them. Not cheap but really beautiful.

Kathie

cwn, Yes, still the same jeweler - though I haven't been there for a couple of years.

Oh, and River City is right next door to the Royal Orchid Sheraton, so not that far from the Shangri-La. As Bobo mentions, there are shuttles from the pier to River City, but you could also take the Royal Orchid boat.

kuranosuke

bamboo chopsticks and chef knives.

sartoric

Good suggestion Kuranosuke.

We bought several "Kiwi brand" cleavers, they are made in Thailand, and Kiwi have a large range of cleavers and knives. They were very inexpensive - maybe $4 or $5, and hold an edge better than the $200 brand names. We still use them every day, 5 years later.

flygirl

Thank you everyone!

I love silk. In fact I am planning to line one of my winter coats in silk - I may do a test one before I leave to see how it works out and then load up on colorful silk while I am there for various other coats. I had JT on my list already and will check his stores out, thanks!

I have never heard of Nancy Chandler, but, I'd love your jeweler's info. My email address is in my profile. Thanks Kathie! I will also look up Cotton House.

Scarves, oh yes. Especially as they are sure to be colorful.

I will give shopping info when I return, for sure. I am also at the Shangri La.

Kitchen stuff sounds wonderful too.

Thanks again everyone!

Kathie

I think Amazon sells the Nancy Chandler Maps. They are much more than maps - the "map" is really a schematic of Bangkok (and the CM one of CM) but it gives you a better feel for the relationships among the locations than a regular map does. It marks lots of points of interest and comes with a small book you can carry with you. So it lists, for instance, 4 or 5 dozen wats in Bangkok. It lists many restaurants as well. You can also get the maps once you are in Thailand. Best place to buy is Asia Books - many locations. Your hotel will likely sell them for twice th price.

I will email you my jeweler info later today.

rhkkmk

from sh-la, go next door, under the sky train station, to the piers.. take the Sheraton boat or river city boat upstream 5-8 minutes to destination.. RC is just upstream of the Sheraton--- you must walk out t0o the street... or us Sheraton's bridge to RC from the 2nd or mezzanine floor.. JS is about 3rd shop on right from the bridge. tell penny, bob and Karen sent you... they know us well... do several fittings...

best place for silk yardgoods is the jt outlet on soi 93---we take a taxi there but you can go on the skytrain too with one change at siam

Kathie

flygirl, I found your blog but couldn't figure out how to email you. So here is my jeweler info:
The jeweler I've been using for the last 30 years: SJ International, 125/8 Sawankhalok Road, Dusit, Bangkok, phone 02-2342446, 02-2342447, 02-2411875

Call them and they will pick you up at your hotel and return you to your hotel after your shopping. No obligation.

Ask for Lily - tell her hello from Kathie in Seattle and they will give you great prices.

sartoric

Flygirl, I also couldn't figure out how to email you, think I left a message on your blog but not sure if you got it ?..

AskOksena

Warm morning greetings to you, flygirl (great handle by the way), and congratulations on forthcoming Thai holiday.

Can't concur enough with the above suggestions of Jim Thompson products. For my particular Bangkok business travel purposes, those JT lipstick and cosmetic cases. Over the years (decades) those items have never failed to keep me in the good graces with the various women in my life, from family and friends, to certain business colleagues and clients. My most recent Bangkok business trip was ~ two months back and once again had the privilege of JT purchases at her shops adjacent to the Four Seasons and Mandarin Oriental hotels. Best of JT fortune to you.

Noticed your planned Bangkok lodging is the Shangri-La; well done. Will always have the fondest memories of business and occasional holiday stays at that property. My favourite wing for business/leisure was the Krungthep. Should you be staying in her main wing, will suggest a room category allowing Horizon Club access and benefits. I always found the SL's Horizon Club staff most efficient and accommodating. A nice sanctuary within that property. And, the SL's main wing now has her own Jim Thompson shop; rather convenient.

The Shangri-La, Bangkok, should work well for you. I was reminded of the SL's fine corporate "DNA" earlier this month during a brief working stay at her rather new London property. My brief review of her under the "Comments" section on my profile page just touches on her uniqueness -- and views.

Savour your planning, flygirl; very happy for you. Should your future flying ever take you to our fine home of Singapore, honoured to assist with lodging - and even, aviation - suggestions. Warm Thursday morning wishes (and perhaps, flights) to you and all,

macintosh (robert)


... Singapore Girl, You're a Great Way to Fly ...

yestravel

Love all the JT stores, but the outlet mentioned above was great fun to visit. The Nancy Chandler maps are helpful, but you have to remember they are not to scale.

rhkkmk

and the maps can be confusing, but are very helpful... about 400B all over bangkok

Guenmai

For years I've had my clothes made at Cotton House in Bangkok. It's in the Oriental Place, mini, shopping mall on the street directly behind the Oriental Hotel. They have a collection of fabric there, but I've only bought their fabric once. I either buy my fabric in Singapore or at home in the garment district here in L.A. and then take it with me. I have a pile of fabric to take along for this winter's trip. I also take along some of my already-made garments and then just have them copy them with the new fabrics. Time needs to be set aside for fittings.

For very Thai items, I like to go to RiverCity Mall next to the Royal Orchid Sheraton. I had my Thai Buddha and monk statues shipped to L.A. from one of the stores there. Inside that mall is also the January boutique where I've bought semi-precious-stone jewelry for many years. For the real jewelry, I go to Kathie's jeweler. I've taken in stones to S.J., that a friend bought in Brazil, and then had them turn them into earrings. The designer and I worked on the design together and they turned out gorgeous and my friend couldn't have been happier when I brought them home to her. She used to buy stones when she went to Brazil on vacation, but now has moved there permanently. S.J. might end up very busy. Smiles.

Happy Travels!

Guenmai

http://www.nancychandler.net/

Happy Travels!