The House

In Aisha's words

Aisha'z Collection began at home, and from a passion for elegance I inherited from my mother.

My mother liked to have her pieces made her own way: she chose the details and the cloth, and her tailor made them to her taste. From that world I began to try cuts of my own for the abaya.

It started with a plain black wrap abaya I designed for myself; then I cut it for family and friends. As the requests grew, I began to add my own touch to the designs, working with the craftsman who had done my mother's hand embroidery.

From there came one of the first designs I was known for: an abaya with a large hand-made rose on the shoulder. It was much asked for, and little by little a personal passion became the beginning of a real venture.

My first big step came with showing my designs at ZAI, among international names. I invited family and friends, and their response to the designs and the craft was the encouragement I needed to continue.

From the beginning I chose to put my name behind what I design, with confidence, at a time when a Qatari designer appearing under her own name was less common.

That is how Aisha'z Collection began: from a love of detail that passed from my mother to me, and from a piece designed for myself to a label that carries my own vision of the abaya.

Today the same idea is at the heart of every design: pieces designed with care, made to order, and finished by hand, which makes them personal and distinct.

Aisha'z Collection — designed by Aisha Al-Naemi.

How a piece is made

A piece is cut after you order it, to your size and your length — sizes S to XL, lengths from 48 to 60 inches — so the garment is made to you rather than altered afterwards. The handwork follows.

Most pieces are ready in 2 to 3 days, or 4 to 7; each piece's page says how long it takes. At busy times, allow two weeks or more on top of the making time. Production time is separate from delivery time. We deliver within Qatar and across the GCC.

The cloth

Cloth is chosen for the design rather than bought in bulk. Crepe for weight and fall. Organza and shantung where a design needs more structure. Chiffon where it needs to float.

The handwork

Most pieces carry hand embroidery — down the front, along the sleeves, at the edges. The house calls it مطرز · MUTARRAZ: one unvowelled word that reads as the embroidered and as the embroiderer. The motifs are hers — floral, geometric, stars, botanical. Some pieces carry beads, pearls or tassels, worked by hand. Where a piece is plain it is plain by design.