Shopping in China

I think I have a few minutes to let you know the new things in my life.  I just finished a long day of shopping. 
I have always loved sewing and fabrics.  In the U.S. I had a bucket of fabric that was absolutely full of random fabrics, bolts of cloth and buttons and everything that I ever needed when I wanted to make something.  It was a fabulous hobby that I enjoyed doing when I had the time.

 Here I am in China, land of silk and cheap tailors and I decide to go shopping for cloth so that I can have a few items made.


I am exhausted. I spent 6 wonderful hours walking around and bargaining at the fabric market. Now imagine if you will a mile long stretch of mall that has indoor and outdoor shops and stands simply covered in cloth. Cloth bolts, cloth samples, cloth drapes. Everywhere you look there is every possibility of finding exactly the kind of cloth that you are looking for. I wanted to find quite a few different items so I had a lot to look for.

  To start with, I was looking for cloth for a coat. my husband is in need of a winter coat so I started by looking for fabrics that came with quilted batting. I went to several different shops, and I searched and searched for just the right fabric.  Several times I found deals on fabrics that I knew he would not put up with... No man looks quite right in pink duckies...Finally I found just what I needed, plain black (okay it might be a little shiny) and it came with the batting and the  lining... I purchased 3 meters (enough for a full length coat for my husband) for less than 6 U.S. dollars.

 Well that was done, so now I needed to look at a few silk samples because I have been wanting to have traditional suits made for the children... For 20 U.S. dollars I was able to buy enough silk for three childrens outfits. Two in brown for the boys and one in light purple for Rae.  So here I am, lightly loaded down and feeling very happy with my purchases and we come across the satin section.

Now I had been wanting drapes for the living room.  I had needed a yellow material that would brighten up the room because of the pale blue gray walls and the flourescent lights.  It felt so drab.  So I noticed the satin and I thought...It isn't the right kind of cloth for drapes, but lets check the cost anyway.  I know, satin is a bit rich for drapes, but at less than 75 cents for a meter of cloth I simply could not resist, I bought enough to drape the living room (Less than 12 dollars for all of it) with enough left over for the other rooms.

I spent 6 hours going over every inch of cloth that I could. I did find some fabulous worsted wool that I really wanted to make a coat for myself out of, (a nice sporty English style coat) but it was very expensive so I turned it down (12 U.S. dollars per meter). The whole time I was in that shop I kept thinking about all of my family back home... I bought a lovely treat from the land where silk is made.

2010 Note -  I still have that yellow satin and have used it regularly for wall decorations,  table clothes,  pantomime curtains, one of the best purchases I made while in China!