Be careful when you buy lanterns!

Thanks for posting this Lynne. At most of the market stalls and shops in the old town the workmanship is not great, and quite often they use glues and bamboo frames that many visitors can't get passed customs in their home country due to strict import laws (a tip is to give them a good shake, if there is wood dust there is likely an insect infestation, these won't get through).

A better alternative is to buy your lanterns from De Lantana (website below). They make lanterns to order for export (they also do worldwide shipping) so the quality is outstanding. Their shop on Ly Thai To Street (nr Aubergine restaurant) has an extensive selection of frames, silks and materials, plus a workshop on site where they make your lanterns (generally this takes three days). The prices (in store) are fixed and you'll often find them to be cheaper than the shops in town.

Here's the link:- http://www.delantana.com/

They look beautiful. Unfortunately the website doesn't show prices and the silk lanterns have a minimum order of 50.

I think the price varies depending which fabric you choose and the quantity, so they send quotes (I've only ever used their shop as it's just down the road, you can buy one or two at a time that way). I'm sure in special cases they would do the same via mail order. The owner (who also deals with emails) is lovely and speaks very good English.

Or buy 50, set up a pop-up christmas market stall and finance your next trip! I know of a few people that funded six months per year stints in Hoi An doing exactly that.

Nice post and thank you so much for these tips about online shopping If you have any idea regarding Organization 13 coat please let me know?