Furniture Shopping In Either Thailand,Cambodia or China?
 

My husband and I are looking to buy either 2 or 3 ornately carved desks in Chiang Mai, Bangkok, Siem Reap or Xian. Where do you think we'd get the best buys along with honesty in shipping and acceptance of a credit card? We look forward to hearing from you!!!

Honestly, Downtown Los Angeles, or Hacienda Heights California

My son has purchased furniture in Chiang Mai at Hangdong market. Some has already arrived, some is still being made and will be shipped later, and some will arrive in a container next week! The hand carved furniture in Chiang Mai is lovely. I have been there and seen many many pieces. But, keep in mind that there are different qualities of workmanship. Do a lot of looking, comparing quality, etc. before buying any pieces. There is soooooo much to see there! Have fun shopping. (and yes, many, if not all, do take credit cards)

I think Chiangmai is your best bet, but for the best quality look along the Sankampaeng Road as well as the Hangdong are. There are also other shops outside these areas worth looking at, the Aka Walai for instance that is operated by an architect.

Be sure that the wood has been properly dried or you can have trouble if you take it to a temperate climate.

Using Credit Cards is not a problem at the larger shops and they will also arrange packing and shipping.

When you arrive, get a copy of Citylife and Guidelines, both are free and should be available from your hotel and will give you lots of ideas.

For views on furniture from China, type 'furniture' into the search box at the top of the page, and you'll find two relevant threads to read, particularly the one called 'furniture from china'.

Peter N-H
http://members.axion.net/~pnh/China.html

still say downtown la and hacienda heights have all that you could possibly want....it's up to you though

Thanks everyone!!!! I've settled on Chiang Mai for furniture, unless I find something spectacular in Xian, while we are there. Anymore specific recommendations for carved furniture in Chiang as far as factories are concerned? Thanks again

Sevral countries in the Far East use woods that are protected by the CITES convention and should a smart customs guy get curious you might not receive the furniture.

Check that it is legal to export and that your country will allow importtaion. As the furniture is likely handcrafted, many western will allow them to be imported as 'craft work' rather than commercial production.

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That is right.

Go and get a nice piece of Thai rainforest and ship it halfway around the world just to brighten up your living room.