Gift-giving has always been an art form for Maison Shukr, and for its special Ramadan collection the atelier has launched a new collection of its scent-infused prayer mats.
Derived from the Arabic word for gratitude, Maison Shukr first began as a bespoke Moroccan rug atelier. Today, it’s a soulful brand defined by tradition. “Morocco is well-known for its craftsmanship. This is something we’ve always wanted to honour,” says the maison’s French-Moroccan co-founder Karim El Fatih, whose eye for beauty was honed as a high-jewellery consultant for high-net-worth clients. For co-founder Rabii Alouani Bibi – whose family history of carpet manufacturing spans across four generations – the desire to work on Maison Shukr came from a deep cultural responsibility. “If we stop practising this craft, we will lose a precious aspect of our heritage,” says Alouani Bibi. “These thousands of years of manual dexterity are something no machine can replicate. It defines our human history.”
The carpets are made by women in Morocco’s Chichaoua province, using sabra – a cactus-silk usually reserved for kaftans – infused with the scents of orange blossom, jasmine and rose. “Combining the scent and the spiritual seemed obvious to us regarding an object intended for prayer,” explains Alouani Bibi. “The choice of fragrances – orange blossom and rose – was our intention for tranquillity. These scents help you to relax and encourage you to disconnect from the outside world.”
Working alongside the female weavers whose practice spans across three generations in the Marrakech-Safi region, the two business partners knew they wanted the process to be collaborative from start to finish. “Everything is done by hand, from spinning the silk to hand-knotting,” says El Fatih. “Each mat has around 29,000 knots and takes roughly two months to complete, with the artisans guiding the colour blending. We never want to impose on their creativity.” Alouani adds to this, “Even if we control the quality, process and manufacturing, we quickly find that the weavers infuse it with their own energy through inspiration found in the moment. This almost always ends up different from what we imagined,” he says. “The result is often sublime.”
From the manual process of spinning the silk yarn, to handweaving and dyeing the finished product, the 29,000 knots required for each mat roughly contains 33 fibres. This labour of love finds itself at an intimate crossroad for its co-founder. “Growing up surrounded by spinning looms and the scent of wool and dye has certainly played a big part, but it’s not entirely the reason,” Alouani Bibi explains. “It's something deeper. We’re forming an invisible string of connections – to those who dye the wool, the weavers and inevitably those who acquire it – all condensed within the object of a carpet.”
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Together, the Moroccan atelier has continued to expand, this time focusing on its most recent edition: a unique Ramadan collection with a bespoke wooden box including a prayer veil and a bottle of the signature perfume used during the rug's initial weaving process. “The new collection will be available in a combination of 15 different hues focusing on the colour Ivory,” Alouani Bibi adds. “We wanted to formulate a striking visual richness with a muted ode to nature.”
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In Islam, the concept of gifting is rife. Sadaqah jariyah refers to continuous charity (whether through planting a seed, gifting a Quran or a prayer mat) which leaves a beneficial legacy for humanity. All these acts end up rewarding the giver themselves in the afterlife. “I actually hadn’t known about this. A friend of mine informed me of this. And in a funny way, it just reassures me that I’m on the right path.” Growing up in Paris as a child of Moroccan immigrants, the notion of Islam and religion was distant enough, but always lingering for El Fatih. “I don’t know if it’s an age thing, but I find myself more spiritual than ever. Our [prayer] mats are for all religions.”
“For me, creating Maison Shukr is part of a process of perpetuating, passing on and reinventing our rich heritage,” says Alouani Bibi. “It's a way of adding my own knot to our long family tapestry and ensuring its continuity.” On a final note, he adds. “Above all, it is an act of remembrance.” @maisonshukr
