Tropic of Linen is a neat little store with a good collection of linen and cotton clothing. The Colombo store is new, but they’ve already enjoyed some popularity in Galle, and surprisingly, the prices are not too bad.
The Stuff
You get a decent range of shirts, pants and dresses here – for the most part in linen and cotton. Cotton and linen are ideal and the most sensible choice for Sri Lankan weather, but when it comes to getting them in good quality and design, it usually costs a whole lot, like at Cotton Collection or Linen & Life. So it’s not too bad here with shirts and dresses for around Rs. 2000. We took a double-take when we suddenly found pure cotton pants among it all for Rs. 750.
They’ve got a range of sizes, and we were told they want to cater to the variety of Sri Lankan body sizes, as opposed to typical size-6 stores that are in the same quality range. Since it’s all out of their own factory, they can also do custom clothing for you.
Ambience & Service
Tropic of Linen actually gets full points for ambience. The store is very cosy, with polished floors, a wooden staircase and a view of a garden out back. They were playing some chilled out tracks from Jack Johnson’s old albums when we were there, and the place smelled pretty great too.
Even if I wasn’t buying anything, it felt nice to just sit there in one of the white cushion chairs for a while. You might meet the owner and his family on your visit, so service feels personal.
Conclusion
Tropic of Linen is great if you’re looking for quality linen and cotton stuff, at relatively affordable prices. The personality of this small Galle-born store makes for a happy shopping experience.
