buying rugs & silk - advice please..... |
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Feb 20th, 2006, 14:15
| #1 |
| Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: gloster uk
Posts: 49
| buying rugs & silk - advice please..... Hi there everyone, ...would appreciate some advice on where to buy rugs & silk, if you'd be so kind.... ...will be in Mumbai, Varanasi & Candolim, in that order, thru Mid March/mid April. Want to bring home a small rug for my living room floor, and also some silks, as my daughter thinks she wants to decorate her bedroom with hangings as a memento of our trip.... my question is...should I look for these items in Mumbai, or Varanasi, or will I be able to find them in Candolim....? The later in the trip I get them the less time I'll have to carry them around from train to plane to taxi to hotel etc, but, on the other hand, if the best range of goods/quality/prices etc are in Mumbai or Varanasi then I'll look there.... peace & love Daeve |
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Feb 20th, 2006, 14:31
| #2 |
| Not So Bloody Senior Member  Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Chipping Sodbury, UK (was Bangalore)
Posts: 413
| Varanasi without a doubt for silks, I deal in silk from there but often have to buy through another trader in Bangalore due to time constraints, when I do buy from Varanasi direct I make a huge saving and get much cleaner stock. There are several great little silk shops in some of the winding ambling and narrow streets that take you from the main area of the city towards the river (can't be more specific than this I'm afraid) and you'll get a much better deal and usually a better range than following some tout to his so called silk shop with the lowest prices anywhere. You need to do some serious haggling in either case. Can't help much with the rugs, if I were buying these I'd go somewhere like Dilli Hatt in Delhi but thats not much help to you! Cheers Malc |
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Feb 20th, 2006, 14:59
| #3 |
| This is just a cameo appearance  Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Chennai, India
Posts: 38,225
| General points: don't look for the killer bargain! One day you'lll meet someone who paid half as much for the same thing and you'll never like the stuff again! Don't expect high quality items to be cheap. I came across the price for raw silk in the news the other day: I forget, maybe Rs1,600 or Rs1,900 per kilo! To the weavers! Pay what you think is reasonable for something you like. Enjoy your shopping  |
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Feb 20th, 2006, 22:08
| #4 | |
| Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: London
Posts: 24
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Feb 20th, 2006, 22:49
| #5 |
| Naan.tering Nabob  Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Abode of Glooscap
Posts: 6,372
| There are a wide range of rugs to choose from. There are Kashmiri Silk rugs to Balouch Afghan to Natural Dyed woolen Indian rugs etc. Many of these rugs may be presented to you as "Persian Rugs" even though the rug dealer really means that these rugs "have a persian design" -- excuse them for their bad english cum trade cunningness! The Kashmiri silk rugs may not be silk at all or at least not all totally silk. They come in many different compositions and knotting densities with mercerized cotton piles sometimes being passed off as silk. If you are a novice at negotiating its best to go to one of the Government run emporiums to get an idea of price before you venture into the world of rug wrangling with experienced salesmen. The above information is not meant to frighten you but to prepare & toughen you just a little for the "Rug Game". Above all find something that pleases you at a price that is fair and just for its quality. Best of Luck!
__________________ What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives within us. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes  Don't go to India ~ Pre-trip Warnings & Misconceptions? |
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Feb 20th, 2006, 23:17
| #6 |
| Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: gloster uk
Posts: 49
| Hey, many thanks good people.....! peace & love daeve |
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