“Children are great imitators. So give them something great to imitate.”
This week was hectic and crazy and a little emotional too. A lot was happening at our showroom, the event in Astra restaurant and at the D&D Spring Market. I walked up and down the floors looking at all the beautiful window display in other showrooms, as I got near our window I watched my 11 year old daughter holding a big sign featuring GoodWeave image and our partnership with them, right by our showroom door. It took me a few seconds to “swallow” the moment, then I approached her and asked if she knows what the sign is about. She pointed at the children in the picture and said “oh mom, they to go to school…you sell rugs and give them money so they won’t have to work”. I heard her answer but wasn’t sure what her voice told me. A typical eleven year old? maybe not. But I rushed to explain to her, again and in simple words so an eleven year old would understand the big meaning behind everything she sees, touch even wears, how privileged SHE is, and how many children around the world are not as fortunate and miss out on so much that she, at a young age, have experienced in her childhood.
Some day, I told her, I want my daughters to join me on a trip to Nepal to see and talk to these beautiful children who are lucky enough go to school, eat, visit the doctor when needed and feel loved and cared for. And it is only because of a great effort and compassion, I added, that come from good humans who care enough to help. Simple but fundamental things that many children in this country take advantage of. And just like her, I added, these children have dreams and want to become somebody when they grow up.
I look at the children on the image and think about my daughters who are talented, beautiful and healthy, and can’t stop but thank god for the gift he had given us and for the opportunity to teach, inspire and support others. I hope that some day my daughters too will make a difference in someone’s life. The reward is priceless.
A year in Casablanca.
No, not me. I wish. It’s about the author who bought an old unoccupied palace by the sea…in Casablanca.
The Caliph’s House
To move to another country and trying to settle down, like we did. To experience different culture and customs like we have. To work with people from different backgrounds and mentality like we do – all these and the list goes on, takes more then just guts. I was so engaged in this hilarious story by the talented English writer Tahir Shah.
The book made me so nostalgic for Morocco, where my family is from. Reading it made me appreciate the perspective of this fascinating culture, while a lot of emphasis was given to Moroccan artisans, that it reminded me so much of the pride my parents took in their culture, beliefs and crafts. With every chapter I kept reflecting on my own Moroccan experience and why my View of Morocco design collection is one of my most favorite. Every design in this collection, sketch or an inspiration came from a deep admiration to the magic behind the Moroccan craft. I recommend this book because it’s hilarious, full of surprises, easy to read and informative. When I got to the end of it I wasn’t ready to say goodbye so soon.
Bespoke rug – I’ll have what he’s having, please
One of my favorite moments when collaborating with a client and creating a custom rug, is that the whole process brings a fresh perspective on my own designs. A well known TV personality (which I cannot reveal his name), chose my Silhouette rug, one of our latest designs, but asked to change the colors. Coincidentally, I’ve created drawings of other colorway for this particular rug, but kept it in a drawer and left Silhouette in its original rich tones. Until this client showed up.
If there’s anyone who loves colors and not afraid to show it is this particular client. Silhouette new colors for this projects are fresh and vivid, to me it looks like a new rug design.
We went on with drawings of the new colors, then sample, approval, then to actual execution of the rug. Everything looked good on paper especially the colors, but when we got pictures of the rug itself completed and ready to ship from Nepal, we were like wow! it made me drool. It is absolutely a stunner. Rich wool in the background shows off a gorgeous layer of bright silk pattern, oh this rug is delicious I want it.
Actually, I would love to sit in this client’s home with the rug in the room (and the client too). I can only imagine how he feels and what the room’s going to look like.
In reference, I’m working on Silhouette rug in its new colorway (slightly different), for our inventory and can’t wait to see it in the coming months. Nothing gets more attention, or expresses sensuality, shows presence and says “here I come” than a pop of color. It’s the ultimate in personalization.
My interview with a lovely SF Interior Designer
A couple of months ago I had the pleasure to get to know a talented and a lovely Interior Designer from San Francisco CA. The introduction happened quite by accident when I was pinning and happened to see beautiful images of interior design projects that, when I clicked, led me to Anna Fane Pinterest page. Following her on Pinterest made her contact me stating she loves my art work and our rugs. Through interesting back and fourth email chats we’ve got to know each other a little better and now we can say we are pen pals.
Anna Fane runs her own design blog The Design Tray (don’t you love the name), and I love the way she designed it; clean and clear. Recently, I was interviewed by Anna who posted on her design blog. Not only that I like the post (really), but her blog is interesting to read and beautiful to look at.
Thank you Anna for the interview and hope to meet you some day.
Glow – design inspiration
Nature has been mastering itself for some time now and it is an honor to be able to capture its beauty. (Justin Beckett)
Glow, Hand Knotted Himalayan wool and Chinese silk. RUG ART
Ever since I learned scientific illustration I became fascinated by mother nature; rock formations and patterns, stones and plants.
When I was in high school I remember this trip very vividly; I was struck by this ancient magical small Cave in the Judea Mountains. It was an impressive collection of sculpted rocks and frozen drops of water, naturally formed during a period of a hundreds of thousands of years beneath the ground. I was fascinated by its ambiance and bizarre looking stones that like a magnet I was drawn back to see the cave time and again. It was a jaw dropping experience for me; The mood and color, nature’s glorious wonders, even the silence – everything was intriguing. I walked around gazing and speechless. I wanted to touch but wasn’t allowed. I did it when no one was watching. The rocks felt smooth to the touch almost like glass and very cold. The air was moist and strangely, while I walked followed by a path, it felt as if I was floating. I’ve never seen anything so magical, so magnificent and so naturally artistic without a touch of a human hand, as this drip-stone Cave. Still fascinated and in awe by this experience I knew that a rug design was a possibility and I already begun to envision how it’s going be constructed.
When I begun to think this rug in my head, my thought was to achieve something that will have a mystical/vintage feel but modern in design. The colors I worked with are not only subtly complementing each other, but also have an understated elegance. I chose to work with wool and silk. The design itself is layered with unstructured texture of drips-like silk, revealing subtle movement of elegant pattern in the background. Anything else added would distract from its sophisticated elegance. The high mountain wool is rich in oil which gives the rug its natural luster, but with the addition of silk the rug gets this patina shine that only emphasizes the design’s characteristics.
The rug feels very soft under foot and lustrous; a design well appreciated from any angle one chooses to look at. Visit our NY showroom to view the new collection.
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