Set the mood: lanterns

moodboard

Whether as a single piece or a whole cluster, a beautiful lantern is the perfect way to bring an exotic mood into your room.  What's your favourite way to set the mood?

desire to inspire

soukshop.com

desire to inspire

Cathy Leighton

Textile love: Moroccan Wedding Blankets

apartment therapy

Rich in Berber tradition and ceremony, these beautiful handcrafted textiles are so at home in modern interiors.  On the floor, on the wall and, of course, on the bed, they bring a dose of warmth, texture and sparkle.  How would you use a Moroccan Wedding Blanket in your home?

design*sponge

table tonic

table tonic

table tonic

rachel best

decor8 via table tonic

Colour Shot: Yellow

image: design sponge

These yellow cushions bring a little ray of sunshine into this exotic Moroccan courtyard - a perfect soft and sunny juxtaposition against graphic ikat-inspired floor tiles and the black wire classic chairs.  Do you love it too?

Textile love: Ikat

Elle Decor

Ikat has been the flavour of the month for quite a while for interiors and fashion, and rightly so.  It can add a perfect dose of pattern, colour and exoticism to a modern interior or outfit.  Do you think it's become old news?  Am I allowed to still love it?

design sponge online

diane bergeron interiors

madeleine weinrib

madeleine weinrib

urban outfitters

Ethnic injection: the statement chair

 

Are you bored with your bland contemporary interior decor?  A statement chair - or two - could be just what the doctor ordered - bringing a riot of colour and pattern in one compact package.

Publish Post

images: absolutely beautiful things

Happy Easter!

image: alisaburke.blogspot.com

Hope the Easter Bunny has been good to you.

Just a dash: on the floor

image: Jakob Solgren via desire to inspire

An exotic rug can really rock a modern interior - the perfect antidote to white on white.

Want it now: Moroccan Pouffe

image: casasugar via tabletonic.blogspot.com

Every home needs a Moroccan Pouffe.  It brings an effortless dash of comfort, colour and glamour to any room.  They're available in a huge range of colours - from brights to pastels, metallics to naturals - and if you hunt really hard, you can find them with some amazing embroidery and embellishment. Love Love Love!

image: tabletonic.com.au

image: Simo Med

photography: Katie Preece - styling: Cathy Leighton

image: le souk

PS buy Moroccan Pouffes online at Table Tonic

Colour Shot: Blue

image: elledecor.com

Sometimes a punch of colour is all you need to bring a space to life.  These tables - in a traditional Moroccan style but a very unexpected colour - add zing to this graphic courtyard.  Traditional patterns, shapes and materials partnered with a contemporary colour palette creates a space that would be at home in any country - and makes the heart beat just that little faster.

Inspiration from: Morocco

Exotic.  Overwhelming.  Intriguing.  Moroccan design is intoxicating, a riot of pattern, colour, texture.  This is where The World Collective journey begins.  These images from Peacock Pavillions, a guesthouse near Marrakech, had me thinking - how can I bring a slice of this beauty into my own world?  Should I replicate this dramatic stencilled wall in the bedroom of my own modern apartment?  Perhaps a rustic side table or exotic rug would do the trick in the loungeroom.  Or a lantern or two to set the mood....

Images from: decor8blog

Noss noss - what else?

image: Cathy Leighton

OK, so I know this is supposed to be a design blog.  But I wanted to share something from Morocco that has truly impacted my day-to-day life.  Coffee coffee coffee!!  Or more specifically noss noss.  A noss noss means 'half half' and is a delicious small glass off hot milk, espresso shot topped with a scoop of froth.  Oh, and served with a couple of sugar cubes.

On a recent trip to Morocco, I enjoyed at least one of these every day.  I loved the whole experience of sitting in a cafe with my travel buddies watching the world go by while we enjoyed our caffeine hit.  And a good noss noss is not just a treat for the taste buds - it can also be a treat for the eyes, as the coffee and milk merge together in beautiful ever-changing ripples.   It is truly a little slice of heaven in a petite glass.

I have continued my quest to create the perfect noss noss back home in Australia - with varying results.  The quest continues...

Hello fellow citizens of the world

Today it begins... an exploration of this small world of ours through the eyes of design... a search for how a little something from a far away place can inject warmth and excitement into life through what you wear, eat or look at... a look at how people around the world find inspiration from other lands.  Because bringing a piece of life from other worlds and cultures into your home and heart can make life so much better - even if it's just a slice!

We hope you enjoy sharing in this little world adventure.

Todra Gorge - June 2010