Details - Bali Suits

In the lead up to the wedding we were on a spending hiatus. Saving every penny for the wedding and wedding things.

Mr B works in travel and a deal came through that was just too good to pass up. $300 return to Bali. Mr B did the sums, worked out that going to Bali and having suits made for all the guys would cost about the same as buying the suits here. I was still not convinced. I told him that if he could talk our friends Mr P & Mrs O into going then I was in (thinking they would say no). Ten minutes later we were all going to Bali!I don't regret it for a second (even though we blew out our budget). We had the best time. Holidaying with friends is so much fun. Made me wish we were having a destination wedding!

So back to the suits. We had five groomsmen plus Mr B that all needed suits. We had decided early on that we were going to pay for all our bridal parties clothing. Dresses for the girls had already been paid for at $100 each. So the boys suits really needed to cost no more than that or we just couldn't afford to do it.

We went to a few tailors in Bali. Some were a rip off, some were just plain scary. But then we found Liza tailors. It's in Kuta down Poppies Lane 2 - which I know sounds like crazy directions - but trust me - that's all you need to tell any taxi driver. Poppies Lane 2 is a one way road and the shop is a tiny hole in the wall - don't be put off - it is great! The guys that were running the place were about our age and loads of fun. They measured up Mr B & Mr P and we gave them a list of the rest of the boys measurements. It took quite a while to decipher the list and work out that boys are hopeless and can't measure themselves (lots of jokes about must have "fat leg and no crotch" from the guys running the shop). We had told them to get measured at a suit shop by a professional - but only one of them did. The other three had measured themselves - and it showed. We took our own photo of the suit we wanted - although they had tons of books with photos ripped out of magazines to choose from. All six suits - white tuxedo jackets with satin lapels, black tuxedo pants with a satin stripe on the leg and white pin tucked tuxedo shirts - cost us AU$85 each. They gave us a discount for getting so many (Mr B also had a grey pin stripe suit made so we ended up with seven suits!). BARGAIN!

Two days later we were back for fittings. Something obviously got lost in translation as the pants were white too! They tried to cover it up by saying they were just a mock up to try on - but we felt really bad when I saw the pile of six pairs of white pants behind the counter! The suits needed some slight tweaks and new buttons (they were way too yellow) and the black pants would need a much thinner stripe of satin (the white ones had a stripe about an inch wide, changed it to less than half an inch). But overall I could not believe how fast and how professional a job had been done in two days! The jackets were lined with fancy pockets. They were nice!Two days later we were back to pick them up. Seven custom made suits made in four days for $595. Only in Bali!
When we got back home the groomsman that had been measured by the tailor got a suit that fit, all the others needed adjustment - which ended up costing more than the suits! But we made the boys get that done themselves.

We ended up getting Mr B an expensive tuxedo shirt for the actual wedding day. The ones they made were good, but very thin material. Although with the heat wave of a day we ended up with thin was better! All the rest of the guys wore the shirts we got in Bali.

Overall it was a great experience and I would recommend it to anyone. We got a holiday and suits for the same price as just buying suits in Oz!


Words of wisdom - If you're planning to do this - take all the guys to a tailor before you go and get measured correctly! Take your own picture of the suits you want made up. Make sure you are very clear about exactly what you want - even down to the colour of the buttons. Go to the tailors at the start of your trip so you have time for fittings and adjustments. Don't bargain too much - the quality is superb and the guys really do lovely work. If you short change them, they will short change you! We just paid what they quoted us - we had been to a few shops before and knew that we were getting a good deal. Also seven suits take up a whole suit case! So don't forget to leave room. Good luck!

P.s. Wedding day shout out to Bicoastal Bride who is getting married as I type this. Wishing you a wonderful wedding day. Can't wait to hear all about it!