56 square metres

I was disappointed by the shoe shops in Shenzhen. There were plenty of 'em, that's for sure, but I just didn't see what I was lookin' for. But that's the gamble you take with shopping -- sometimes you're delighted with the treasures you find, while other times you realize that some people will buy any crap as long as it's cheap you shouldn't lower your standards.

But on a much brighter note -- literally -- I visited a big fabric market and a whole bunch of curtain shops, looking for that "just right" fabric to transform the lounge into something even more brilliant. And I found it!

I took home 56 square metres of bright red silk organza fabric in one big piece, 2.8 metres by 20 metres. That's one honkin' big bolt of fabric, my friends! But it shimmers and shines and will look simply stunning in the lounge. I can't wait to drape it all over the walls of the tent to make it look less "tent" and more "lounge."

Unfortunately, I also found out that velvet doesn't come in wide fabric bolts, but is instead limited to pieces only 1.5 metres wide, while I need something a bit more substantial. As a result, I stupidly didn't buy any, realizing that I wouldn't have time to get the bolts sewn together before we leave here. But I should have just bought a whole bunch of it and kept it until I could get it sewn together in San Diego. Damn!

Are any of my readers going for a shop in Shenzhen any time soon? I'd love to give you my velvet fabric shopping list. Lots of red and black, please!!