A Gift Guide for Mother’s Day by Ala Mairi

I often get asked how I come up with Ala Mairi’s innovative and unique designs. And I always give the same answer: it’s all down to our cross-cultural design process.

I started Ala Mairi with a vision to combine the intricate embroidery skills of Pakistan’s craftswomen with the traditional hand-looming weaving, an art integral to Scottish history and heritage.

The creation of each Ala Mairi garment begins with the inspiration I find around me-whether its Shetland’s…

Ala Mairi launches its second collection of luxury ethical garments.

The collection is inspired by ‘Fair Isle’ and ‘Shetland lace’. In 2011, founder and designer, Fatima Mahmood travelled to the Scottish highlands in search of independent handloom weavers and lace makers. It was there where she witnessed the intricacy and detail of the artisans work, and, indeed it was this research that helped instigate the creation of the Ala Mairi brand. The memory has resulted in the dream-like…