Sitting in the comfort of his elegantly decorated atelier, Rami Al Ali fiddles nervously with a roll of silk on the glass table at his feet.
"It's an evaluation of six months' work and it's important I get it right," he said trying to put the pending reviews of the critics in perspective. "It's the difference between being accepted or not."
Despite admitting nerves may be getting the better of him ahead of his latest collection reveal at Alta Roma in Italy this week, the irony is Al Ali couldn't wait to get his hands on those first edition newspapers.
"I am being compared with the work of designers who have been working in the industry for such a long time," he said. "So I always look forward for the day after the show when the critics start writing about the show."
Alta Roma is one of Rome Fashion Week's "all-eyes-on" events and Al Ali booked himself a spot for the fourth year running and presented his Syrian design talents via Italy to the world. Selected to appear alongside haute couture greats including Fausto Sarli, Lorenzo Riva and Gattinoni, among others, Al Ali arrived with his Persian Princess collection.
Unusually inspired by Persian carpets, the dresses appeared to get the Dubai-based designer's trend, vision, and philosophy for this season haute couture across.
Now, not normally one to judge when it comes to fashion stakes I probably shouldn't question an expert, but rugs? Really?
Painting exhibition
"It's not a new idea for me," said Al Ali. "It's an idea I saw a long time ago. Travelling in Iran I attended a carpet exhibition. I'm not an expert on carpets and I don't really know how to value them. But when they opened the carpets it was like a painting exhibition. Each one has a different emotion and it just took me."
Al Ali's carpet-inspired collection, comprising some 30 dresses and one bridal gown, quite literally transports emotion from the floor to female form.
"First I tried to translate the feelings. When you see a beautiful carpet what do you feel? "That's the same expression and emotion I wanted my dresses to convey."
Next followed the colours, details and carpet structure, something Al Ali said he had no shortage of when it came to visualising his pieces.
"The mix of silk and wool, pure silk, the way the rug looks a different colour from different corners," he said, his passion and creativity unexpectedly bubbling to the surface catching even him off-guard. "Even the back of the carpet the computerised drawing of front. The concept of knots per inch, something which determines the value of each carpet, can be spotted in many of my designs."
In Italy however it's not just about the dresses and Al Ali makes his own translation from dress maker to director.
"It's about designing an image not just the clothes," he said. "The set, stage design, choreography, music, hair and make-up all this helps boost the theme of the collection."
Showing internationally inevitably means taking your collection to the world which in turn, Al Ali hopes, means to Hollywood.
Al Ali has already worked with countless Middle Eastern celebs, as well as Ivana Trump, who wore a piece from his Peacock collection for Elton John's White Tie and Tiara Ball just weeks ago.
"We are now starting to work with the Hollywood celebs and there are a couple of names we are in negotiation for collaboration with," he said but insisting he remained tight-lipped until all have signed on the dotted line.
"Rosanna Davidson - daughter of singer songwriter Chris de Burgh is also a fan. Dressing celebrities is an added value for sure."
Born and raised in Syria, Al Ali graduated from the College of Fine Arts in 1995 and started his fashion career in Dubai and Beirut with some of the region's leading fashion houses.
Al Ali's muse is typically Mediterranean, sophisticated, elitist, intricate, graceful and very refined but who should be wearing these latest dazzling creations?
"Persian Princess is very glamorous, very rich, very detailed. It's red carpet material. Grand. It's for a very special occasion for a very elegant, special woman."
Now we just wait for what the critics say.
