For me, nice clothes are a means to express my personality, my mood of the day and to try and look OK! There are so many more important things that require our time and attention (relationships, our friends and families, people around us,for example).
No matter where life takes you, there is always an opportunity.
Wise are they who recognise these openings after seeing them. The obstacles are stepping stones in disguise. Just because you have trained yourself in a particular field does not mean that is the only place you can excel in. I am a psychologist specialised in geriatrics, which really has nothing to do with fashion but here I am running a unique line of clothes for children!
I trained in France and in the US and specialised in hospice care and in supporting families who have a parent suffering from Alzheimer's disease.
I believe in teaching my children by being a good example.
We are fortunate to have a good life, health and prosperity, but not everyone in the world is so lucky. In 2003, my husband and I decided to spend the summer away from Dubai trying to be more useful to others in need of help. We came to know of an old people's home in Occupied Jerusalem. They took care of poor and/or sick elderly Palestinians.
Because of my affection for elderly people, we went there with our two young kids for six weeks. It was an amazing experience, meeting the Palestinian workers, the families and of course the elderly people. As always, we went there to give, but it is was we who received so much! We learned about generosity (giving when you have nothing or so little), about welcoming people, about joy in the midst of pain.
We also discovered more deeply what the Palestinian people were suffering - their daily pains, humiliations, difficulties.
After such an intense experience, it was hard coming back to Dubai and going back to our daily comforts. We wanted to try and continue to support the home.
As I have always loved to sew and try to be creative, I started off with a one-time sale where I painted camels on kids' T-shirts and made a few costumes. My friends were very supportive so I began to think about creating a brand for kids based on solidarity.
I wanted to create a long-lasting relationship between people who are fortunate enough to have a good life and others less fortunate.
That's how the concept started.
I was fortunate to meet Dina Saleh, from S*uce, who was trying to start an embroidery project with the NGO Palestine Children's Relief Fund (PCRF). I was very enthusiastic about the idea and went to a refugee camp in Lebanon to meet the women. It is part of a women's empowerment programme and tries to help poor women in the refugee camp to earn a living by creating beautiful hand-made embroidery work.
I was so [inspired] when meeting these wonderful women that now all my pieces have some hand-made embroidery.
I pay them per piece and am very proud to say that I have already sent $10,000 over three years for all their wonderful work.
I really make sure each piece is perfect, as I believe otherwise customers will only buy once.
The clothes from our line are purchased by two types of clients.
Firstly, the ones who buy just because they like the pieces and, secondly, the ones who also buy because it is based on solidarity. The clothes are for kids up to ten and for moms, with a matching mother-daughter collection.
My goal is to target teens asI am getting some demand for this age group, the moms saying they are having a hard time finding nice pieces (not too childish and not too sophisticated either).
I am just launching a new collection and have created asmall series of polos for boysand their dads. It's just for fun asmy friends have been asking meto do something for men. It's about surfing as I have picked up on this sport with a lot of pleasure and I hope to sell them in the surf shops around Dubai soon.
