Tipped

Vivid colour, argan oil, and coffee

January 22, 2011

I love the vivid clean colours — of the furniture, of the bright red and green and blue tea glasses and the pottery, and of the clothes — that I see when I visit Omar Serroukh's shop. To give myself something more fun to wear than the grey and black and pastel of English clothing, I've bought men's tops here: Moroccan tunic shirts with wide flared sleeves and deep V necks embroidered along the edges, the embroidery black or white against a vibrant blue or turquoise body colour.

Last time, I also bought my latest pair of what you might call Aladdin trousers. These — also known as harem pants in English, "qandrissi" to Moroccans, and sirwal in Arabic, and shown in my photo at http://www.j-paine.org/dobbs/qandrissi1.html — are baggy and really comfortable. Their knee-deep pockets mean I can carry cards and keys without losing them down seats. The pair Omar brought back from Tangier for me this time were aqua blue with subtle orange cross-threads, and made of a velvety corduroy that felt reassuringly warm against yesterday's 3°C North windchill. Exotic, but comfortable and colourful without being garish, going very well with the tops.

As presents, I also bought a bottle of rosewater perfume and a container of musk cubes. These look like sugar lumps, but you rub them on clothes to perfume them. They last for ages. And I got a bottle of argan oil. This is made from the nuts of the argan tree, which apparently grows only in Morocco. It is an excellent aftershave to soothe one's chin after scraping away with a less-than-razor-sharp Mach 3, and you can also eat it: it's said to be rich in antioxidants, vitamin E, and essential fatty acids.

After buying, I sat and watched an entertainments manager negotiating for the hire of a Moroccan fountain. A nice way to relax and chat while enjoying the coffee that Omar had made for me. "Fez" is a great shop.

Jocelyn Ireson-Paine