The Details...Quilt Batik Shopping in Bali

Inconsistent internet speeds at all of our accommodations put me off blogging while on our trip. Now that I am home I will recap this great adventure. First...the most important day of the whole trip...quilt batik fabric shopping. 

To start out...all I had were two addresses I had found on trip advisor and blogs for shops in Bali that sold quilt batiks. The street, Jalan Sulawesi is loaded with fabric shops but they all seemed oriented toward clothing and home decor.  We arrived and started the search...

After the third quick sweep through a fabric shop, a shop worker asked me what I was looking for...when I told her cotton batiks she told me to follow her. We did a turn onto another street...not a  name familiar from my research at all...right away I knew this was going to be good!!!

When I found out the prices, I was instantly overwhelmed. $2.50 per meter...and it was good quality. I started pulling hanging fabrics off the wall!

Pretty soon there were Australian quilters joining me in the shop. One quilter I spoke with visits fairly often since Bali is a quick and inexpensive trip from many Australian cities. I was making quite a spectacle of myself...creating a great pile of fabrics to be cut. The Australian quilters assured me this was the shop to hit...fixed prices...no bartering. Consistent quality.  I didn't notice any obvious dye issues. The shop is constantly turning over its stock of fabric so even though they do have an email address you can't order from afar. 

At one point, the shop owner brought out ice water for us...a much needed refreshment since the store was not air-conditioned and I felt like I was shopping in a sauna. Our Bali driver, Wayan, was very patient...I absolutely could not believe we had spent three hours in this shop!  It was finally time to pay up. My total came to $350...which I was able to charge. The shop owner said he would now be able to afford air-conditioning after my purchase. Gotta love a good sense of humor!

The woman who led me to the shop helped me carry it all back to our car. I paid her $5 for her help...she spent the entire three hours waiting for me to finish my shopping. Many Balinese are lucky to make $100 a month so she made a great little tip from me and I was happy to pay her for this wonderful find.

Here's the stash laid out at our hotel...

I bought several pieces that were 4 to 6 meters in length since I tend to make large quilts. Generally speaking...I buy at least two meters of a piece that is good deal...that's just my standard. There weren't really any fabrics for light backgrounds on the day I was there.  I also bought precuts which were made at the shop. The fat quarter sets had 19 pieces and were $15. The Jelly Rolls had 40 strips and were also $15.00. 

No...I don't have any immediate plans for any of this fabric. I have ten tops I need to get quilted in the next three months. 

Here are the shop details incase you get a chance to visit.

CV Dewi Mas

Jalan Gajah Mada 48 Denpasar

Tele: +62 (361) 236707 / 236650 / 222994 

( if you are employing a local Bali driver, these phone numbers should help a great deal as he can call the shop for directions.)

Open Monday through Saturday, 0930 - 1630

Sundays 0930-1330

The owner is Rayyis Aljaidi. His email is: rayyisbali@ymail.com

Quilt Batiks in Bali

Finally found them...quilt quality batiks in Bali. Just a tease...I bought 81 meters and had a little help carrying my purchases back to the car. 

So many stories to tell!

Bali - Ubud Wanderings

Our day started with the villa staff arriving to make our breakfast...I could get used to this!

We decided to indulge ourselves right away in a spa experience. The spa sent a driver for us. 

We each got a massage, facial and manicure which cost us 380,000 Indonesian Rupiah which was about $35 US! This was our room with three massage tables for our three-hour session.

Our massages left us covered in various substances. I had a sea salt scrub. My friends had a Green Tea Scrub and Javanese royal treatment that had a yogurt base. We wound up in the tub for a twenty minute soaking. 

We wandered the shops of Ubud and had a little lunch before having the driver return us to our villa. We've had some great meals here...lots of fresh fruits and vegetables. Our first evening we ate at Indus. Chicken Sate is one of the staples here.

I had a very spicy noodle soup with lots of fresh ginger...soo good!

This was a trio of rice, green beans and a beef stew served with a flat bread.

The sites are non-stop. There are temples everywhere for this Hindu culture.

I forgot to show the most important person we have met so far...our driver, I Wayan Naja. "I Wayan," means Naja is the first born son. He has a wonderful car with great air conditioning. He met us at the airport. You can see one of my traveling companions, Erin, on the left...me on the right. He pretty much takes us everywhere we want to go.

Time to get back to the vacation schedule.

Bali - Ubud

We are staying in a compound with four or five separate villas. Our villa has two bedrooms, two baths, a full kitchen and living/dining area. The front of the villa has large moving window walls that open to a view of rice fields. It is peaceful and quiet here.

The pool is five feet from our front door and usually we don't have to share it with anyone else.

Lots of space to spread out inside the villa.

Here is my room...mosquito netting around the bed and I do use it...no air-conditioning but good ceiling fans. It is a very comfortable bed with great firm pillows...I detest mushy pillows!

Breakfast is cooked in our villa every morning by the staff. The first morning we had banana crepes, an omelet and fresh fruit. Absolutely delicious. And they cleaned up the kitchen afterwards too!

This is Trixie...she lives here...coming and going around to all the villas.

Bali is close to the equator. It is hot and humid but this Alaska girl is handling it fairly well, There are bugs and geckos and lots of lush vegetation. It reminds me of Hawaii...only less developed and poor.

I am having a hard time keeping up with blogging...or anything on the computer but that surely means I am too busy having fun! 

Hong Kong - Day 2

We had a day to wander around Hong Kong. There were so many beautiful flower arrangements everywhere...I should have taken more pictures of all those gorgeous arrangements. Lots of huge orchids.

We walked down to the cultural area where there is a Science Museum, Cultural Center and Art Museum. We went for the Art Museum...great choice. There was a special exhibit by Ju Ming, "Sculpting the Living World." He worked in many mediums, wood...

Stainless steel swimming beauties...

and styrofoam...this piece was a series of prison cells with figures...this was a wedding couple.

We found a boardwalk area to wander.

A group of school children (on a Sunday) stopped us to practice their English...adorable.

Here's one of the "Buddy Bears," I saw on display my first year in Paris...safely back in Hong Kong.

Our view at dinner.

Off to Bali in the morning.

Hong Kong - Vacation Day 1

A quick post! I am staying at a friend's apartment on Kowloon. This is their view of Hong Kong island.

Yesterday we rode a trolley to a peak on Hong Kong Island and got this view...

I had a fabulous lunch...Singapore fried noodles.

En Route

Killing time in airports...the journey has begun. I have a five hour layover in Vancouver, Canada. Then I have a 13 hour flight to Hong Kong. 

I'm very tired...for some strange reason I decided to tackle putting plants in those enormous planters my last day home. That Alaska gardening fever hit me and I got worried all the plants would be picked over by the time I got home from my vacation. (Alaska has a short growing season so plants get bought up quickly!)

Love them.

I brought my laptop just for blogging but slow internet speeds may keep me from posting too many photos.