I am still in the midst of shopping in Colombo in Sri Lanka, mostly for boring household items like serving spoons, dal (lentils), towels, etc. However, I made a trip to Barefoot earlier today - a popular shop-cafe-and-art-gallery, mostly frequented by well-heeled locals, expats and tourists.
While we were staying in Sri Lanka, the husband and I used to pop over to Barefoot every now and then (especially for the Sunday wine brunches with live music). I would "ooh" and "aah" over all the beautiful, colourful, tasteful items in the store and wish I had an apartment to put them in. (However, many of the items are MOST certainly overpriced although this does not matter that much if you're spending in dollars or euros.)
This time when I went, I entered the Barefoot store from the front door (I usually come in through the cafe), and discovered an adjoining shop called Ko-Lanka. I spotted some beautiful dinner napkins in the shop window and walked in to find a veritable treasure trove of gorgeous handicraft items - cushion covers, mats, dinner napkins, toys, clothes.... Lovely, elegant things - most of them very similar to Barefoot merchandise and quite a bit cheaper! I went back and forth between the two shops a bit and here's what I found:
- A single dinner napkin in Barefoot is LKR 450. A set of 6 dinner napkins in Ko-Lanka is LKR 550. (Yes, the Barefoot napkin has slight scalloping on the edges but NOT enough to warrant this price difference.)
- The SAME toy in Barefoot and Ko-Lanka has a price difference of LKR 200!
- The kurtas (long shirts/tops for men and women) are far more beautiful in Ko-Lanka. Much better fabrics and fits, especially if you're not a fan of the new-age, shapeless shifts favoured by the Barefoot designers. And Ko-Lanka has (surprise, surprise) better pricing.
In the end, I bought almost everything I wanted from Ko-Lanka -- 3 lovely kurtas, a bunch of handloom toys for my nephews and nieces, dinner napkins, a floor mat, and a few other items.
The only things I picked up from Barefoot were a pair of adorable baby booties for a newborn niece and the lovely candle-stand (see in picture above) that simply called out to me and would not be denied (LKR 600).
All in all, Ko-Lanka is going to be my first go-to shop next time I want items of this sort. Will head to Barefoot only for items I don't find next-door, and maybe for a quick bite in the lovely, breezy, green cafe. (I recommend the beef sandwiches and tuna salad, especially.)
