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Having clothes and shoes made in HCMC

 
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robfir



Joined: 14 Apr 2012
Posts: 23
Location: Bournemouth, Dorset, England

PostPosted: Wed Oct 17, 2012 3:27 am    Post subject: Having clothes and shoes made in HCMC Reply with quote

There've been a few threads on this, one of them quite recent, but I'm hoping we can add to what's known!

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From the old threads:

Mid to high quality shoes made to measure or off-the-shelf for ~$80 at Tran Quoc Lan, 97 Le Thanh Ton street.

Expensive but excellent quality (both by Vietnamese standards) work clothes at An Phuoc/Pierre Cardin.

deadlift thinks his trousers, bought for $40-$50 on Le Loi street were well worth the high price. He posted that two years ago, maybe he can now tell us how long they lasted and what shop he used?

And s10czar has given us details of a good and cheap tailor he used long ago, perhaps if I take a photo of the tailors on that street he might remember which shop it was...
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=97671

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I've had two tailors of the same family recommended to me by a Vietnamese person I know - each is called Tailor NHUT, one's at 232 Le Than Ton, the other is 108 Ly Tu Trong. (Very near each other in District 1). Normal prices for tailoring, high prices for fabric. I've been to see them but haven't had anything made - they both gave the impression of being more interested in getting me to buy something without causing them too much hassle than helping me get something I really like done.

I think I'll have a look at that shoe shop, but we don't seem to have any detailed information on getting decent clothes made here. I don't want clothes that are expensive by western standards (I've got them in my cupboards but I'm too scared to wear them in the rain, filth and bikes of HCMC!) but to me clothes that don't last more than a few months aren't acceptable, and I'd like them to last more than a year.

I think the Tailors NHUT might be worth trying if I can find decent quality, pure cotton materials (they don't seem interested in helping me find those). But in Vietnam, short of learning how to recognise the quality and content of material or having a really good recommendation I don't know how I'd do that! Laughable lies seems to be a standard marketing/labelling style here.

I may have a look around google later to see if I can become a little more informed about the fabrics I'm seeing.
I'll also try to find out a bit about collars. Some have collar stays (haven't seen those in Vietnam yet), some are just a few layers of fabric (possibly the best choice here?), some apparently had plastic in which disintegrated, and do some collars contain glue? My best shirt seems to be bubbling here... maybe that's glue getting damp Sad

Does anyone have anything to add? Affording tailored clothes was one of the things I was most excited about here, but so far all shopping seems to be underwhelming. I'm sure many of us feel the same! Rob Smile
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deadlift



Joined: 08 Jun 2010
Posts: 267

PostPosted: Wed Oct 17, 2012 4:57 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
deadlift thinks his trousers, bought for $40-$50 on Le Loi street were well worth the high price. He posted that two years ago, maybe he can now tell us how long they lasted and what shop he used?


They're still in my closet, and I would still be wearing them if I hadn't gained a bit of girth over the last two years. The shop was, if memory serves, Tuyet Orchid on Le Loi near Ben Thanh. A totally tourist-oriented place.

But for pants, I would actually also recommend Tailor Nhut on Le Thanh Ton, opposite the famous Dung Tailor. I had a pair of Gap khakis* for them to copy, and I bought fabric from the shops opposite Tan Dinh market on Ha Ba Trung. Fabric was approx 100k per pair, tailoring was, I think, 400k or 500k per pair. They're holding up very well after a year.

I have no idea about how to select fabric, and resigned myself to the knowledge that whatever the label /salesperson says, I have no way of knowing the truth. So I just choose what looks and feels OK, and isn't absurdly expensive.

I used Cao Vinh on Pasteur for my wedding suit. It wasn't cheap but the quality and service was excellent. Other tailors I spoke to, including Nhut, hurried me and agreed with everything I said. The woman at Cao Vinh argued with me about styles, cut, fabric... It was clear that she knew what she was talking about and interested in getting me into a good looking suit. I couldn't justify the expense for work clothes, but I'll go back there for special occasions.

* Gap has larger size pants in stock fairly regularly, up to waist size 36. They are expensive at 1.2 mill or thereabouts, but they're quality and they'll last. As mentioned, I got one pair and had them copied for a third of the price of the originals. I've come to prefer wearing smart looking Khakis because they're more robust.
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robfir



Joined: 14 Apr 2012
Posts: 23
Location: Bournemouth, Dorset, England

PostPosted: Thu Oct 18, 2012 2:59 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

That's very reassuring deadlift! You make this sound much easier than I do... So perhaps I can just have a go with the fabrics, especially for trousers (one of the tailors NHUT told me pure cotton is no-go for trousers).

But I really do fancy 100% cotton for my shirts! One fabric shop told me that a shelf was pure cotton, the rest being poly-cotton... I suppose that's more likely to be true than if they'd said everything there was 100% cotton!

I'm going away for a fortnight on Saturday so I probably won't get to the tailor's before November, anyway I'll let you know how I do!
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Prof.Gringo



Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 2236
Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!

PostPosted: Mon Dec 24, 2012 7:40 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hand-made, high quality, comfortable men's loafers/dress shoes, perfect for teaching, just $500,000 VND in the backpacker ghetto.

I wear a size 12-EEE in the USA and these shoes fit perfect.
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robfir



Joined: 14 Apr 2012
Posts: 23
Location: Bournemouth, Dorset, England

PostPosted: Tue Dec 25, 2012 3:45 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi Prof.Gringo, could you tell us where in the backpacker area please?
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Prof.Gringo



Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 2236
Location: Dang Cong San Viet Nam Quang Vinh Muon Nam!

PostPosted: Tue Dec 25, 2012 6:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

robfir wrote:
Hi Prof.Gringo, could you tell us where in the backpacker area please?


I will try to swing back by there and get the contact info, I seem to have misplaced the biz card. I might get another pair made...

Custom made and tailored clothes, leather dress shoes, I guess I am set for a while... And some nice new vintage watches I picked up downtown Cool
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