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The Hong Kong BaoTou Tailors and Fabric Shops for CMT Thread

glaucomadoc1

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@PekingRoadHK

My chinese interpreter has gotten in touch with Wong sifu ( not Wong MH who has fabric on hand). Just in case I don't find the selection desirable, are there really no shirt fabric stores/merchants in Mirador or in the TST area? I dont think I'll have the time to go to far places just to buy shirting fabric for personal use.... thanks in advance!
 

PekingRoadHK

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@PekingRoadHK

My chinese interpreter has gotten in touch with Wong sifu ( not Wong MH who has fabric on hand). Just in case I don't find the selection desirable, are there really no shirt fabric stores/merchants in Mirador or in the TST area? I dont think I'll have the time to go to far places just to buy shirting fabric for personal use.... thanks in advance!
suit fabrics and shirt fabrics, too many to choose from in TST:
http://suitcmt.blogspot.com/
https://pekingroadhk.pixnet.net/blog/post/83119709

Some baotou and fabric shops will tell you to look at the lists for fabric shops in the blog to find the right fabrics.
 
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Warrant_Buffet

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@PekingRoadHK

My chinese interpreter has gotten in touch with Wong sifu ( not Wong MH who has fabric on hand). Just in case I don't find the selection desirable, are there really no shirt fabric stores/merchants in Mirador or in the TST area? I dont think I'll have the time to go to far places just to buy shirting fabric for personal use.... thanks in advance!
How much time do you have left in HK?

Couple things you can do:
1. Have whichever sifu you deal with send the finished products to your mailing address outside of HK
2. Not expect any sifu to be fast. They cut. Their workshops sew. And the workshop folks don't take urgency into account unless they are earning a lot, and they aren't. Expect at least a month for your goods to be made (no fitting). Some finish work faster, but that one-month window is realistic enough and saves you from disappointment.
4. Remember by heart and meditate that tailor shop assignments will ALWAYS be prioritized over odd CMT orders. The rationale is simple: tailors tend to have enough fabric for remakes when unsatisfactory work leaves customers who pay 8k HKD angry, whereas with odd order clients... no spare fabric and easier to send away probably. Again, just my experience.

Pretty much an impossible trinity of efficiency workmanship and price. Oh yeah, sifus retire too, and before retirement their work becomes... not as good (speaking from my personal experience with the currently-active Wing sifu. Shirts are fine but turnover has taken a nose dive.)

In any case, I hope you get what you need wherever.
 

glaucomadoc1

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How much time do you have left in HK?

Couple things you can do:
1. Have whichever sifu you deal with send the finished products to your mailing address outside of HK
2. Not expect any sifu to be fast. They cut. Their workshops sew. And the workshop folks don't take urgency into account unless they are earning a lot, and they aren't. Expect at least a month for your goods to be made (no fitting). Some finish work faster, but that one-month window is realistic enough and saves you from disappointment.
4. Remember by heart and meditate that tailor shop assignments will ALWAYS be prioritized over odd CMT orders. The rationale is simple: tailors tend to have enough fabric for remakes when unsatisfactory work leaves customers who pay 8k HKD angry, whereas with odd order clients... no spare fabric and easier to send away probably. Again, just my experience.

Pretty much an impossible trinity of efficiency workmanship and price. Oh yeah, sifus retire too, and before retirement their work becomes... not as good (speaking from my personal experience with the currently-active Wing sifu. Shirts are fine but turnover has taken a nose dive.)

In any case, I hope you get what you need wherever.


Applaud you @Warrant_Buffet for explaining these crucial points regarding work priority, extra fabric availability, and preferring tourists who just don't have the time/patience to complain and alter. You made so many things clear in a short post than so many other pages combined.

Nonetheless, I figured the following

1. I don't mind paying the sifu more for a quick turnaround since waiting 1-2 months without a final fitting is just going to make me anxious since I don't have an existing pattern on file or a "customer service" relationship should things turn south.

2. If they ship me the suits and shirts via DHL or Fedex then that costs money too and I'd rather give them that for a quick turnaround and peace of mind. I recall a gentleman in this thread (or another) who commissioned 3 almost perfect suits by Ng sifu years back with the help of a guy called Michael in a small place in Sham Shui Po. He admitted paying 5,900 HKD each for 3 full canvass suits including hotel fitting and delivery service. I realize that price no longer exists but my point is that the turnaround is possible in 5 days (the gentleman from the US in this forum outlined his initial consult, fitting and delivery timetable including pics from all angles)

3. I'm not particularly comfortable sending stuff to China for assembly since this is my first time. Should there be any issues with the final product, sending it back for alterations in absentia or even scheduling another trip to HK just to get things sorted will cost more money.

4. My aim is to continue having clothes made in Hong Kong as I have done so since the early 90's by establishing a relationship with a sifu/sifus without having to pay thru the nose with a tailor shop. To be fair, my TST tailor who has made me no less than 60-70 shirts (great fit and quality) and half a dozen suits over the years (mixed results) has agreed to make me a suit with my fabric for 4,500 HKD (a long time customer accommodation really and I plan to bring a suit to copy with a few adjustments). For shirts, (his fabric but not exactly Thomas Mason calibre) is at 1000 HKD. I plan to see him tom am before noon and have 1 suit made and a couple of shirts just to maintain our relationship BUT I will also go to Mirador after lunch to have more done. I know for a fact my TST tailor uses a sifu.

I'm ready to dive in. Once I come up for air, I'll take as many pics for all to compare - workmanship, price points, turnaround time and additional shipping expenses. Thanks to the forum for all the advice. Cross fingers...
 

Warrant_Buffet

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Applaud you @Warrant_Buffet for explaining these crucial points regarding work priority, extra fabric availability, and preferring tourists who just don't have the time/patience to complain and alter. You made so many things clear in a short post than so many other pages combined.

Nonetheless, I figured the following

1. I don't mind paying the sifu more for a quick turnaround since waiting 1-2 months without a final fitting is just going to make me anxious since I don't have an existing pattern on file or a "customer service" relationship should things turn south.

2. If they ship me the suits and shirts via DHL or Fedex then that costs money too and I'd rather give them that for a quick turnaround and peace of mind. I recall a gentleman in this thread (or another) who commissioned 3 almost perfect suits by Ng sifu years back with the help of a guy called Michael in a small place in Sham Shui Po. He admitted paying 5,900 HKD each for 3 full canvass suits including hotel fitting and delivery service. I realize that price no longer exists but my point is that the turnaround is possible in 5 days (the gentleman from the US in this forum outlined his initial consult, fitting and delivery timetable including pics from all angles)

3. I'm not particularly comfortable sending stuff to China for assembly since this is my first time. Should there be any issues with the final product, sending it back for alterations in absentia or even scheduling another trip to HK just to get things sorted will cost more money.

4. My aim is to continue having clothes made in Hong Kong as I have done so since the early 90's by establishing a relationship with a sifu/sifus without having to pay thru the nose with a tailor shop. To be fair, my TST tailor who has made me no less than 60-70 shirts (great fit and quality) and half a dozen suits over the years (mixed results) has agreed to make me a suit with my fabric for 4,500 HKD (a long time customer accommodation really and I plan to bring a suit to copy with a few adjustments). For shirts, (his fabric but not exactly Thomas Mason calibre) is at 1000 HKD. I plan to see him tom am before noon and have 1 suit made and a couple of shirts just to maintain our relationship BUT I will also go to Mirador after lunch to have more done. I know for a fact my TST tailor uses a sifu.

I'm ready to dive in. Once I come up for air, I'll take as many pics for all to compare - workmanship, price points, turnaround time and additional shipping expenses. Thanks to the forum for all the advice. Cross fingers...
Here's a real vet👍🏼

1. is, in actual fact, linked to 4. If the logistical back-and-forth is a concern, MH Wong is essentially the only possibly choice. You'll be looking at 350HKD per shirt for cutting and sewing. One-piece collar, big pockets, MOP buttons etc. cost extra. You can contact him and see if he takes express orders with one fitting but I'm not entirely positive. Dude's real chill though so you can bank on that.

Re. 2. you're right about hefty courier. Michael has passed a while ago. Ng and I we go wayyyy back and I don't bother explaining. That old bloke charges 3.x k HKD per a 2pc suit, one fitting, with very great sleeve cutting. SY Wong is better esp if you're into softer tailoring. The workshops used by both and many other Mirador sifus might use skin fusing for better-looking structure. Anyway, suits or shirts, I don't know how quick turnover can get.

It might help to know if you care about handmade elements too. I don't, and as long as the fitting of the products is passable, I take the items home🤣
 

PekingRoadHK

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@glaucomadoc1

There is no customer service or anythng close to that from baotou, tailor shops provide services. Both baotou and tailor shops don't order fabrics for customers for CMT order for whatever reasons, because this is CMT order.

If you require CS, or mailing the products to your home country, or whatever services you need, don't go baotou. Baotou are well-experience skilled tailors behind tailor shops, they are old folks of age 70+ 80+ who don't understand services. A few baotou go to special customer's home for fitting, and a few baotou carry limited choice of fabric. Tailor shops charge extra to go to customer's places for fittng, and they offer more choice of fabrics. This is the big difference between baotou and tailor shops. You pay more to tailor shops for their services. We pay less to baotou for the same products with no services (self service). Baotou customers prefer baotou, we go baotou. Tailor shops customers prefer tailor shops, they go tailor shops. This is our choice.

You have limited time staying in HK, you don't have much time to source your fabric, and you require services. Baotou are too old to provide customer services, they cannot explain everything in details to all customers all the time. They charge less than tailor shops and provide no service, this is Baotou character. Baotou is not right for you, tailor shop is right for you.

This is what baotou told me about their customers:
1) the majority are tailor shops, brand names corporations, and local customers.
2) minority are
a) people who work in HK for 1/2 years,
b) tours / travellers who stay in HK for over 3/4 months, or they always visit hk every month.

For those who are staying in hk for around 1 month, they don't have time to source fabrics, they don't have enough time for baotou. They go tailor shops for services, tailor shops can mail things to customer's home country.
 
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glaucomadoc1

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@glaucomadoc1

There is no customer service or anythng close to that from baotou, tailor shops provide services. Both baotou and tailor shops don't order fabrics for customers for CMT order for whatever reasons, because this is CMT order.

If you require CS, or mailing the products to your home country, or whatever services you need, don't go baotou. Baotou are well-experience skilled tailors behind tailor shops, they are old folks of age 70+ 80+ who don't understand services. A few baotou go to special customer's home for fitting, and a few baotou carry limited choice of fabric. Tailor shops charge extra to go to customer's places for fittng, and they got more choice for fabrics. This is the big difference between baotou and tailor shops. You pay more to tailor shops for their services. We pay less to baotou for the same products with no services (self service). This is our choice.

You have limited time staying in HK, you don't have much time to source your fabric, and you require services. Baotou are too old to take care to provide customer services. Baotou is not right for you, tailor shop is right for you.
lets find out tom....
 

PekingRoadHK

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@glaucomadoc1

2. If they ship me the suits and shirts via DHL or Fedex then that costs money too and I'd rather give them that for a quick turnaround and peace of mind. I recall a gentleman in this thread (or another) who commissioned 3 almost perfect suits by Ng sifu years back with the help of a guy called Michael in a small place in Sham Shui Po. He admitted paying 5,900 HKD each for 3 full canvass suits including hotel fitting and delivery service. I realize that price no longer exists but my point is that the turnaround is possible in 5 days (the gentleman from the US in this forum outlined his initial consult, fitting and delivery timetable including pics from all angles)

1) suit
This is my 3pcs full canvas suit made by Ng sifu in 2022, his charge remains the same: HK$3.4k (2pcs) + HK$900 (vest is fused, vest is not full canvas) = HK$4.3k

Fabric is vintage British fabric from Golden Circle a few years ago for around HK$1.2k. (They raised their vintage fabric price to HK$300+/yard in 2022). My experience, the quaility and character of this vintage fabric is about the same grade of Dugdale Bros. NFW.

Total is around HK$5.5k for a 3pcs full canvas suit (workmanship + fabric), fitting and delivery in Mirador. no hotel fitting and no delivery service, turnaround was about 5weeks in 2022. This cost less than your quote of Michael for HK$5.9k (2pcs) with hotel fitting and delivery service. This is direct deal with baotou, by-pass all middle man, and no service is provided.

How much does it cost for a 3pcs full canvas suit with NFW fabric made by a mid price bespoke tailor shop in HK? more than double of what I have paid.

I found Ng sifu suits are same grade of cutting and same grade of workmanship as Wong SY sifu. The difference is Ng cut is British cut, and Wong SY cut is Italian cut. I got suits from both Ng sifu and Wong SY sifu, both sifu are on my top list.
3pcs.jpg

Yates vintage fabric.JPG


2) shirt
Wing sifu is the shirt baotou I talked about, I talked to him a few times. It seems to me he is drunk in daytime, I knew he didn't drink. I gave him 1 pcs of shirt fabric to test his work, it was my 2nd time to order CMT with Wing sifu. He asked me to give him all my shirt fabrics in one time, I said I wanted to see his work first for my new body after I lost 50lbs. He broke his promise 3 times as he promised a day of shirt completion, it means he delayed delivery. He said the first time was logistics problem, the 2nd time was he forgot to place my fabric in his logistics cart, the 3rd time was his stuff forgot to place my fabric in his logistics cart. Then, he said he broke his promise only once (not 3), I can't blame him for the other 2, because the other 2 were caused by others. Then, he said he didn't want to take too many orders from walk-in customers. I know, I am not going back to this shirt baotou again.

#1,865 shows you a few product examples of other shirt baotou, made in HK and made in Shenzhen.
 
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PekingRoadHK

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1000 hkd for a jacket made in Hong Kong by an old master? That's a joke

This is no joke, it is real. I already got 4 leather jackets made by the same retired sifu in the past few years, e.g. #1,880 #1,860 #1,783. Each one cost me HK$1k for the workmanship, made in HK. I need to shop for leather fabrics someplace else, leather fabric cost is extra. This retired sifu of leather jacket has over 5 decades experience making leather jackets, he also makes leather jackets for TV movie celebrities. He used to work in Mirador Mansion, he is now working in his home in Fanling (HK). This is saving Mirador rental cost, that's why I am paying only HK$1k for the workmanship. This HK$1k includes 1 fitting, fitting fabrics, China zippers, and China lining. I always source my Riri zippers, YKK zippers, Japanese lining, and cotton lining. I am planning to make another leather jacket in 2023, I need to find the right leather fabric first.

These are a few examples of high grade Italian and Spanish leather fabric, this is about the same grade of famous brand name leather jackets:
leather samples..jpg


These are ordinary grade Italian and Spanish sheepskin leathers:
lambskin leather 羊皮.jpg


-------------------

A) This 2 explained about bespoke tailor made leather jackets:

1) Cromford Leather https://www.cromfordleather.co.uk/

2) Savas Leather Jackets https://www.ateliersavas.com/
How a $5k Luxury Leather Jacket is Made

B) US$150 jacket from Asos Vs US$4k+ jacket from Saint Laurent, what are the differences? This one explained:

How to Buy Your First Leather Jacket
http://theessentialman.com/how-to-buy-your-first-leather-jacket/
Differences between a low end $500 leather jacket (left) and a well made $2,000+ jacket (right):
A. Quality and type of the leather, B. Topstitching, C. Cut and Fit, D. Details, E. Zipper quality, F. Sleeve & Body Lining

---------------

For lowest price possible, Lowu commercial mall in Shenzhen was loaded of leather jacket sifu before the pandemic. They offered tailor made leather jacket for around RMB800+ (leather fabric and workmanship) a few years ago. Don't expect fabric quaility for this RMB800 level. This is an example of China suede leather, I got a Shenzhen made jacket of China suede leather for around RMB1.3k (leather fabric and workmanship) a few years ago.

Shenzhen suede leather.jpg
 
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PekingRoadHK

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Hello - thanks for sharing info about HK tailors.
Could you please let me know which store you buy the lamb suede and RiRi zippers from?
I am also using the tailor from Fanling.

People have been asking where to make safari jacket. I was curious why people are interested in safari jacket. I made some research, and I got one. #1,092 showed details of this Italian lamb suede safari jacket. Cutting and fitting is perfect on my body. It looks expensive on me, and I think this is excellent value.

Italian lamb suede safari jacket.JPG

leather safari jacket fitting1.JPG


When I was in Fanling for fitting for the other safari jacket of #1,880 in 2022, Tang sifu showed me a few end products of Irish linen safari jacket he made. He said many customers followed me to make safari jackets, they came back to make more Irish linen safari jackets in different color. He said many of his return customers are more interested in Irish linen than suede leather. Irish linen is good for summer, and suede leather is good for winter.

With or without the belt, which one looks better? I prefer with the belt.
#1,092 my suede safari jacket with the belt Vs #1,880 my leather safari jacket without the belt.
1970's Roger Moore without the belt Vs 2020's Royal family with the belt.
the following 4 photos come from internet:

Roge Moore safari jackets.jpg

Charles safari jacket.jpg
Charles safari jacket..jpg


linen safari jacket with tie, this can replace suit jacket in the summer:

linen safari, tie.jpg
 
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matchankh

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Could someone please guide me to a fabric store where I can find Hardy Minnis fresco fabric? I have gone through the blog, but I couldn't find any mention of Hardy Minnis. Do the shops that carry English fabric all carry Minnis?
 

PekingRoadHK

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Could someone please guide me to a fabric store where I can find Hardy Minnis fresco fabric? I have gone through the blog, but I couldn't find any mention of Hardy Minnis. Do the shops that carry English fabric all carry Minnis?

I also got my Fresco from Linking, it's located in TST. This shop carries your fabric, you will see their fabric catalogs:
11) suit fabric
A) suit fabric shops:
11) Linking: Dugdale bros., Huddersfield, Fresco,

https://pekingroadhk.pixnet.net/blog/post/83119709
 
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matchankh

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I also got my Fresco from Linking, it's located in TST. This shop carries your fabric, you will see their fabric catalogs:
11) suit fabric
A) suit fabric shops:
11) Linking: Dugdale bros., Huddersfield, Fresco,

https://pekingroadhk.pixnet.net/blog/post/83119709

Thanks very much. I actually went to golden circle. Daniel was super friendly and found some Marling and Evan’s past season fabric at a decent prices
 

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