One of my favorite souvenirs that I purchased during my 4 day trip to China was the most stunning 100% alpaca custom coat. As I researched things to do on my trip, I read about some tourists’ experiences ordering custom clothing at the South Bund Soft Spinning Material Market and thought it would be a great souvenir that I can wear year after year (rather than a typical inanimate souvenir I would display on a shelf). 

I went to the vendor, Tina & Peter, with a couple of screenshots of a coat that I found on Pinterest and 48 hours later, I had a custom coat in the fabric and color of my choosing! 

The process was extremely simple and took less than 30 minutes:

1. Find Tina & Peter at the South Bund Soft Spinning Material Market
2. Show the inspiration photo
3. Choose the fabric type
4. Choose the color
5. Get measured
6. Wait ~48  hours for them to complete the garment

I was floored when I tried on my coat for the first time and found it to fit perfectly. As a petite person (who has never had a custom item made), I was skeptical that it would fit on the first try. I thought I would need a couple more edits either on the sleeve length or hemline, but I was wrong. They did a fantastic job!

Lastly, it was super easy to purchase the item using AliPay. They requested a deposit during the initial meeting and then the remaining balance the day I took the coat with me.

Now that I’ve been through the process once, here are some tips for ordering custom:

• Come in with inspiration photos. Having visuals of what you are looking for is a better form of communication rather than trying to describe it on your own. They may have questions to clarify any missing details that are not shown in the photo. For example, there were no pockets in the photo but they asked if I wanted pockets. I’m so glad they asked because it’s not something I would have thought to mention!

• Be picky. When you go to pick up your completed garment, don’t be afraid to make any callouts. If the sleeve lengths or hem need to be shorter, tell them. If the item doesn’t fit exactly as you expected, let them know. They will make edits to your liking because they want to ensure you are satisfied with the custom garment you are ordering.

• Ask questions. It’s totally fine to ask questions, whether it be about turnaround time (they first quoted my 6 days, but I needed the coat before I flew back to the US in 3 days) or even thread color used for the lining. You’re paying for a custom garment, you should have any questions that come across your mind answered before purchasing.

Now that I know how easy it is to get custom high quality clothing, I will come prepared next time I visit Shanghai!