Maroque
Newsletter
Welcome to
the fourth Maroque newsletter. This one is sooner than they would
normally be, but I had such a lot I wished to share with
you.
In this newsletter I would like to tell you about
the new seasonal range on Maroque, to have a look at a festive Moroccan dining
table, with some ideas that could be used to add a little Moroccan magic to your
table, and also to tell you about the launch of Bhatik, a sister site to
Maroque.
Seasonal gifts
section
Christmas is almost here, it seems no time between
barbeques and baubles, where has the year gone?
I have to confess I love
Christmas, from the hectic last minute
shopping to the presents under the tree,
so I have had great pleasure in constructing a seasonal gifts section.
I have pulled ideas from across the site and added
quite a few new ones, here. I have divided the sections into gifts for
her, gifts for him, and gifts for your home.
There is also a "make your own basket" feature, where you can choose to add a wicker basket to your shopping
selection and we will put all the
gifts you have chosen into it, before sending it
off to you.
Moroccan festive table
Moroccan hospitality is legendary. When you are
invited as a guest to a meal in Morocco, there will be numerous dishes piled
high. Moroccans tend to eat until fully satisfied, a state called
shaban.
Food is served with formal elegance. A heavy
circular table is laid with ornate copper and silverware, but no cutlery;
chunks of bread are used for scooping up
morsels of food, using the thumb, forefinger and middle finger of the right
hand. To use fewer fingers is considered mean,
and to use more somewhat greedy.
A festive meal may run to many
courses, but would often start with b'stilla, thin pasty filled with either a
chicken or pigeon mixture, and flavoured with cinnamon, followed by small meat
kebabs. Next a tagine would be served with bread, followed by couscous with a
selection of salads. The dinner is
completed with slices of fresh fruit and pastries, washed down with a small
glass of mint tea.
While you may not wish your festive meal to follow
these lines, the bright and bold colours of the traditional ceramics can add an
unusual touch, and table top lanterns with coloured glass make a change from
traditional holly-decked candles.
Bhatik
Following on from the success of Maroque, I
decided to look at Indian interiors and some of the design influences that
affect them.
I was staggered at the depth and complexity of the
country and its culture, and the quality of the craftsmanship was
superb.
I have only just started to scratch the surface of
this huge area, but have pulled my initial thoughts together with a selection of
furniture, soft furnishings and gift ideas.
If you would like to have a look the address
is www.bhatik.co.uk, and any comments
would be most welcome.
I will be running a separate mailing list for
Bhatik, which you can join here if you want to see the site
develop over the coming months - I don't
expect to mention Bhatik in future Maroque
newsletters.
Have a very enjoyable Christmas, and a happy and healthy New Year. I hope to write again in February.
Any comments you have on the newsletter you be
greatly received.
Kind regards
Julie Woodard
Maroque