colombo 5 havelock town

For a good range of Sri Lankan, South Indian and South-East Asian antiques head to The Hermitage on Gower St. The most astonishing things I found here were a rare collection of framed Lionel Wendt photographs as well original vintage photograph postcards of a bygone Ceylon, many of which were of comparable quality to that found in Plate Ltd.

Less than 10 mins tuk tuk ride south is the upmarket homewares store Suriya which has a selection of antiques together with a large array of replicas of Sri Lankan artefacts, handloom fabrics and a wide range of beautiful cushions made in Sri Lanka. Everything on sale is a celebration of Sri Lankan heritage. The jam-packed but well-curated store includes crafted furniture and artisan jewellery. It's easy to lose yourself in the many rooms of this store.

The other homewares store in the vicinity is Kandygs which is on the other side of the Kirulapone Canal. Kandygs is a large exporter of handloom textiles for nearly 50 years and you can find high-quality, brilliantly coloured tableware, toys, cushions, bedspreads and bags to name a few in their shop.

The two fashion houses worth visiting in this district are Indi & Co and Selyn. Indi & Co is the brain child of the formalwear designer, Indi and is well on its way to becoming Colombo’s next concept store. Curated with a designer’s eye, it stocks exclusive local and international fashion at reasonable prices. The handloom fabrics at Selyn have been operating for nearly 30 years priding themselves on being locally and ethically made. More recently collaborations with high-end designers have produced a line of contemporary fashion available in store which includes shoes and accessories.