Nano-Tex, a leading company in the field, has developed processes that make traditional cotton and silk fabrics resistant to spills that would normally ruin clothing.

NPR: Nanotech in Fashion: The Trend in New Fabrics

Women attending the race keep custom clothiers in business, with eye catching clothing and millinery extravagance, a sea of silk, chiffon, sateen, and lace.

FORBES: World's Greatest Sporting Event You Don't Know About

While fine silk gazar and doubleface cashmere are standard bearers for luxurious clothing, many designers are finding that polyester, nylon, neoprene, polyamide and other synthetic materials allow them to be more daring and versatile.

WSJ: Polyester Is Back in Style at Alexander Wang, Talbot Runhof, Akris

Travel on this canal for designer (and knockoff) shopping at Siam Square and visit the Jim Thompson House, the beautiful teak museum home of an American silk trader, and other central Bangkok sites such as the Bo Bae wholesale clothing market or the hip Thonglor neighbourhood, full of boutiques and cafes.

BBC: Exploring Bangkok��s canals

By 1987 he was bringing clothing and medicine to Baan Borang and then hand-packing a few silk items on each trip to sell door-to-door back in Singapore.

FORBES: Weaving Connections