Fashion Friday: Zahra Saeed

I'm not sure what Arab-American designer Zahra Saeed's background is (though I'm guessing either Lebanese or from the Gulf, based on the metallic colors and all that brocade (not shown here, I hate brocade)) UPDATED TO ADD: Ok, a well-informed blogger says she's of Pakistani origin; so not quite the Middle East but I love her designs so the post stays!

but she's getting plenty of press for her contemporary designer styling with a bit of prim-n-properness thrown in.

I think her clothing walks a line between ingenue and fashionista for a wide age range.

And I give her props for being a single mom, successful business person and now fashion designer.

And even more props for choosing non-blonde/caucasian/angry-looking models for her chic S/S & F/W collections!

Zahra is based out of Philadelphia but several boutiques nationwide carry her designs (especially in Cali, go fig!)

Zahra also promises that her size 2 fits as well as her size 12. If that's true then it's she's achieved a remarkable design feat (c'mon we've all been there right?).

Ok I like this one just because it's kind of cute-tennis-player-meets-intergalactic-spaceship...

All images courtesy Zahra Saeed.

The pen is mightier than...?

Good post on Global Voices by Eman AbdElRahman on the Palestinian Literature Festival being shut down on opening night by armed Israeli forces.

I quote Eman:

Egyptian novelist, Ahdaf Soueif, who also participated in the festival, concluding her powerful blog post with this phrase:

"Today, my friends, we saw the clearest example of our mission: to confront the culture of power with the power of culture."

And borrow:

Christian Figs

Younes’s family was so poor, the kids had to sell Christian figs even when they went on the rare seaside vacation to escape the interior’s chokehold of summer heat and dust storms.

The kids would alternate places, two of them manning a crateful of “Christian figs*,” what Moroccans call the edible fruit of the prickly pear cactus, while the rest of the kids frolicked on the beach. The parents enjoyed insipid mint tea with their relatives, whom they always stayed with when they traveled to the coast.

Younes grew up selling Christian figs, karmous nsara, to passersby during summer or whenever the family needed extra money to make ends meet, although those two never did quite find the time to greet each other with a handshake and peck on the cheek.

Coming soon to a street near you...-source

Now a young man and home from college in the big city for summer, Younes had once again taken to selling his spiny “figs” from a large flatbed cart in the town’s dusty streets. The trade, considered illegal due to its itinerant nature and lack of taxation (as well as money for a sufficient bribe to briefly buy peace of mind), turned a meager profit but was subject to police raids and territorial competition from other carters. Younes spent afternoons peeling the juicily sweet prickly cactus fruit for thirsty strollers, the spines digging into his calloused but nimble fingers whenever he cut one open for an impatient child or middle aged man treating himself to a little street food and charity.

That’s when he heard it: tweet tweeeet shrilled the cop’s whistle as two of them rushed forward through the throng of people, running towards the few roving black market fruit peddlers scattered along the sides of the street. Prickly pears tumbled to the ground in fuscia and green splotches as Younes and the others grabbed the handles of their heavy carts and started pushing as fast as possible through the thick crowd of early evening strollers.

The cops were gaining on him, jumping into a car as Younes heaved the cart around a corner and took off at a fast trot, his tall ungainly form struggling against the cart’s weight. The sirens became louder, the police car approached, about to round the corner. At the end of the street, a car mechanic banged away on some metal in his garage. With a final burst of energy he heaved the cart into the surprised mechanic’s little shop, turned around a hurled the iron curtain door to the ground with a slam.

Panting, out of breath in the darkness, Younes and the mechanic listened to the police car siren go by just outside, without stopping, and continue down the street.

Younes turned to his impromptu refuge’s proprietor and humbly begged his pardon for disturbing him and invading his space. The mechanic chuckled as he congratulated him on his quick thinking and the two opened the door, long-legged Younes escaping into the early night air with his cartful of fruit.

Tomorrow, his brother would have to sell the unsold Christian figs.


---------------
This is a true story, but not my own. The protagonist "Younes" told to my husband and me by over a cup of tea.
---------------

*It seems no one wishes to claim these delightfully spiny snacks as their own. To the Moroccans they clearly belong to the other camp, while in France and the U.S. I’ve heard them called “Barbary (i.e. Berber) figs” or else “Indian figs”. At least the Mexicans embrace them as their own, and make wonderfully tangy pickles from the flesh of the cactus as well…

Extreme Sheep Art

This is in no way related to this blog.
You'll love it.

Lalla Fashion Friday: Masih Designs

This one's for the boys.

I've featured his collection before but Iranian designer Masih Zad of Masih Designs has his new Spring/Summer 2009 collection out.

"Masih is inspired by designs utilized in Persian rugs, miniature paintings, and the art of Persian calligraphy." - source. Masih is a master calligrapher descended from a long line of artisans from Isfahan, Iran, "whose magic creations of indigo, turquoise, and cobalt blues have adorned the mosques and historical monuments of the city of Esfahan for centuries. Holding a torch in hand and a palpitating hope in heart, he illuminates the path to mystical Persian calligraphy." (Talk about spreading it on thick with a knife...)
Now he designs these hand-made tailored pieces in L.A.

Check the cuffs...

His tee shirts are some of my favorites and you can see the wide array of abstract and pictorial calligraphic designs from previous collections on his flickr page.

He also designs for the ladies...

I can't say much for the model in these two pics but I dig the vest and pants.

Beyond "Aladdin" - 6 Middle East-themed kids books you'll love

If I drew a diagram of my heart for you, next to the sections for "loved ones", "dark chocolate" and "fresh cut grass smell" you'd see a big one for "children's books". For me it's as much about the illustration as the stories, and I believe these titles are particularly notable for both.

This is a small selection of some of my favorite Middle East-related children's books. You might know some of them already and I hope you will definitely give the others a look-through.

The Seven Wise Princesses
by Wafa Tarnowska and illustrated by the very gifted Nilesh Mistry.

This story is actually a children's telling of the classic Persian epic Haft Paykar ("Seven Beauties") by the Persian poet Nizami. A beautiful and an unusual tale with great symbolism.

The Arabian Princess in her Green Pavillion, one of the seven wise princesses in this story...


Traveling Man: The Journey of Ibn Battuta

Way before Marco Polo there was Ibn Battuta, originally from Tangiers. Illustrated in pictorial calligraphy, this is as much as art book as an adventure tale.

The Patient Stone

A familiar story from the good ol' Grimm Brothers, (the bait-n-switch bride one, in case you were wondering) but set in classical Persia. The girl tells her sorrows to the magical stone until one day it shatters and the sleeping prince is revived.
Another beauty for the illustrations and the story is still a lesser-known one that you and kids will enjoy reading.

My Father's Shop

Published by Kane Miller who do a wonderful job of bringing foreign children's books to the U.S., this charming story is about the sprightly Mustafa whose rug-seller father agrees to give him an old, worn carpet if Mustafa can manage to learn more languages to entice tourists to his shop. A fun and charming story.

This happened to me in Fez! The 5 or 6 year old daughter of a magic herbs shop owner went through 4 or 5 languages before hitting on English with me (surprisingly it wasn't the first)...

The Travels of Benjamin of Tudela

Benjamin de Tudela, a Jewish scholar from Al-Andalus and a near-contemporary but far less-known of Ibn Battuta (still beating out poor old Marco by a century or so, tough luck) who also traveled far and wide. While following Benjamin's travels we also learn what it was like to travel by land and sea back then. Illustrated with a nod to the style of medieval manuscripts.

The Adventures of Abdi

We don't care that Madonna "wrote" this. We care about the incredible illustrations by husband-wife team Olga Dugina and Andrej Dugin. The detail is on par with orientalist paintings and far more imaginative (think Heironymous Bosch without the apocalyptic weird stuff, but with other humorously weird stuff, like oversized turbans with people tucked into them, set in the Sahara). (And yes it's available in English, this was the largest pic I could find).

The Tabbouleh/Tabbouli Song

Soon to be remixed by Nancy Ajram and Amr Diab ;)

And hey - in Lebanon they eat it with coffee, but in Libya they eat it with Qaddafi!

The Review! Shopping in Marrakech

Whether you’re as familiar with the Mrakchi souk as the city’s street cats or if you’re planning your first foray into this desert oasis, this little book from the Little Bookroom is a great guide.

Shopping in Marrakech's author, Susan Simon, has done a splendid job not only in providing you with useful information (I didn’t even know a number for the “tourist police” for annoying hecklers existed) – including five very do-able and very different walking paths– but also in highlighting the wide array of stalls, boutiques, artisans and funny characters you’ll see during your stroll.

Now, don't be fooled; Morocco may be a developing country but Marrakesh is a tourist mecca and can be expensive. You could have a $10/14 Euro salad and $6 fresh juice in a glass (which can be had for about $0.75 in Jmaa el Fna, but then, you wouldn't have the pleasure of a solely European clientele with their macintosh computers surrounding you) or you can eat a huge meal with drinks for about $6. It all depends on what you're ready to spend and the experience you're looking for.

In this light, I think the publishers and the author have done an excellent job of finding opportunities for people of every price range, and of singling out the products that cover the range of traditional and modern and are one step above similar items being hawked in the gigantic souk. I saw so many shops in here that I didn’t even catch a glimpse of when I was in Marrakesh (but then, I was a first-timer, and with an impatient shopper :) ) that I want to go back RIGHT NOW and visit some of these places.

Must stops on my list, highlighted in Shopping in Marrakesh:

-The gorgeous gorgeous Scenes de Lin - everything you could want in linen decor, including things you could only envision in your most vivd dreams

-The congregation of jewelry shops in the Mellah (Jewish Quarter)-where you can get the gold louis coin earrings popular with Moroccan ladies of a certain age (and that are so beldi ("old school") that my husband makes fun of me for wanting them) - quite lovely.

-Sellers of loose beads, sold by weight

-Tajines, pots and paraphernalia galore - I bought several brightly colored small ones as serving dishes at and my husband had to rip me away from the sleeker pottery selection (just check out those unusual glazes below, swoon!) at Akkal.

-The beautifully detailed children's caftans and togs at Alrazal

-The chicly embroidered monochrome silk and linen caftans at Moor

-Youssef & Abdelhadi in the metalworkers' souk, where you can purchase a tinman-esque orange blossom (or rose) distiller

-I'm going to stop here, you have to check it out for yourself and I'd be here all night listing my must-sees!

They’ve also thought of the practical side of things: the book is small and light enough slip inside your purse (but large enough to be enjoyably read), the photos by Italian fashion phtographer Nally Beelati are so beautiful it could easily be a diminutive addition to your coffee table collection, and the descriptions and directions are useful and enticing.

My only complaint is that the cover is not a bit more durable (I’m envisioning me splashing mine with my morning café au lait or mint tea, seated at the central tables in Jmaa el Fna before I set off on another adventure through the winding corridors…) – though making it hardcover would surely add to the weight; you may just want to put a protective laminate on yours to protect it from sloshing harira soup and boisterous tablemates.

Vendors and goods pop up like mushrooms and while Susan Simon has compiled a thorough selection of well-established places for you to visit; I do hope though, that wherever you travel you will make a point of patronizing businesses run by both locals and foreigners. Spread the wealth. :)

Marrakesh retains its legacy as a major trading post on the caravan routes and no matter how you get to the Red City you’ll enjoy walking along the ramparts and through the alleys of the grand souk. And when you're totally tuckered out from traipsing through the souk, visiting the Palais Glaoui and watching a chicken dance on a musician's heard, don't forget to stop by the enchanting Jardins Majorelle where it's at least 10 degrees cooler and is another oasis within the oasis of Marrakesh itself.

Head over to the publisher's website for more pics and ordering information.

U2 unveils Fez in "Magnificent"

That book review is comin' soon...'Till then sit tight and enjoy this beautiful new video Magnificent from U2 (they won't let us embed it argh!).


Image courtesy U2 website.

Upcoming review of Shopping in Marrakesh

My inbox received a pleasant surprise last week when I got a request from The Little Bookroom to review their soon-to-be-released Shopping in Marrakesh on the blog. After a quick bit of research on the specialty travel & destination publisher's catalog - (Patisserie Paris, Paris Chic & Trendy, Bars Cafes Restaurants of Buenos Aires, Markets of Paris, Jazz Guide NYC - these guys know what I like!)... I loved visiting Marrakesh and had a feeling I'd enjoy the book.

A few days later I found a little nondescript envelope reposing in my mailbox, but as soon as I took it inside the house I found it snatched from my hands! After fighting with my husband over who got to open the package (he won), we then fought over who got to be the first stick their nose furthest into the book and ogle all the pretty pictures (I won, but only after some vigorous verbal head butting and setting a lure of a pot of mint tea on the table so he'd drop the book).

It's due out tomorrow and you can count on a full review of Shopping in Marrakesh then! (Until that time, check out the preview pics on the publisher's site).

Cheers,
LL

Happy Mother's Day!

There may be hope for us humans yet, based on this:

Talk about a mother's love...

For all the mothers out there, Happy Mother's Day, you are treasured every day.

Lalla Fashion Friday: Zahra Couture

I'm starting a new weekly feature - Fashion Fridays - focusing on fashion and designers from or inspired by the Mediterranean and Middle East.

Velvet silham (cape) over a sleeveless caftan in the same tarnished-bronze/moss colored material.

Coming shortly after the Caftan 2009 fashion show in Marrakesh, (still no pics yet), we're featuring Moroccan-dutch designer Houda el Fechka, creator behind Zahra Couture, couture, ready-to-wear and bridal caftans, takchitas and sundry.

Houda tends to stick close to the caftan beldi, or "traditional caftan" - focusing heavily on couture detail and sumptuous fabrics though definitely putting her own flair into the cut.

Note the detailed woven-button seam down the back (quite unusual), the low cut back, and the corset-tie belt. Whew! Elegant and sensual.

Nevertheless, she's quite inspired. Check out this dress from her bridal collection, with its off-center sfifa & akaad seam and the veil-cum-sleeves that I absolutely LOVE:

P.S. a rhinestone crown is a typical wedding accessory in Morocco and Western-style white wedding dresses are becoming more prevalent, usually worn at the end of a wedding. -These parties go on all night so the bride undergoes several wardrobe, makeup, and hairstyle changes.

Another from the bridal collection - not sure why the model looks pissed (or is that what she passes off for attitude?) but the embroidery on this takchita is detailed and plays beautifully off of the cream-vanilla-white and honey palette.

I have to say, normally I would not like either of these fabrics on their own, even though I dig black & white. However, I kind of think this tskchita makes it rock. Love the flattering neckline.

Yay! A happy model - and why not in this cute little number. Now in this ensemble Houda's taken a lot more creative license- a sleeveless top dress with many side slits, an unusually shaped belt and off-the-shoulder sheer underdress. Swoon.



My only critique: improve and update the website!

Aphrodite's island

NY Times spotlighted an old house for sale in the town of Ozankoy in Cyprus. I can't say much for the interior (besides the kitchen, check out that interior well!)

But the grounds are enticing:

Your own hammam...
For after your swim...
And before your stroll to your favorite cafe by the citadel.

All images courtesy NY Times.

Global Cinco de Mayo

Feliz Cinco de Mayo!

In homage to the thousands of gifted Mexican artists, architects, musicians and unrecognized but no less talented artisans, here's a small dose of Mexican cultural appreciation from around the globe:

Irma Sharikadze, Georgian (Caucasus, not Alabama's neighbor) photographer and artist, channels the spirit of perhaps the most widely recognized Mexican woman in the world, eclipsing even La Malinche: Frida Kahlo

Check out that chunky jewelry - they're often featured in her work.

See Irma's work on flickr but her website features her full portfolio, including awesome collages, in larger sizes.

Speaking of La Malinche, the "mother of a nation", Laura Esquivel's (remember Like Water for Chocolate?) novel by the same name is an interesting read and assay in non-Western story telling. Not as great as some of her others but fascinating for the unique ideas inside it, including trying to get into the mind of the woman who changed the history of the world.

Mexican textiles are some of the most beautiful in the world; very imaginative designs created by indigenous women and still worn in daily life. This Huipil is one of many in Teyacapan's collection, and she gives a great deal of detail if you wish to learn more.

A clip from the documentary I can't wait to see La Tercera Raiz:




The Storm God Tlaloc on a wall Oaxaca - via Ilhuicamina

- also the name our friend who moved to Mexico recently bestowed upon his companion, a hairless Xoloitzcuintli ("Xolo" for short) native to Mexico and once considered sacred.

Finally, my thoughts go out to to everyone in Mexico as they struggle through the shadow this flu has cast over them - may it end soon and may you be safe.

Fuente de los Deseos in San Miguel de Allende, courtesy Joven_60.

Zellij vitrine

Love these patterned window stencils from Melanie Royals of Design Amour.

Just like punchwork Moroccan lanterns, they create beautiful designs all around as light shines through.

She also does unusual but stylish murals.

More ideas, including lots of Moroccan tile stencils, at her website Modello Designs.