3 nights in Marrakech

& what I wore

It was my second time in Marrakech and my second time sick in Marrakech. My first trip there was maybe 10 years ago and after a few short days in the sun I ended up with the flu and stayed in bed the last day while my friends went to the nearby Atlas mountains. When we showed up for our flight the next day, not only did we find it to be cancelled but the airport just appeared to be “closed”? I’m still puzzled by it, but we ended up hailing a taxi to Casablanca only to have our driver stop a quarter of the way there at a gas station and work out some sort of a deal with another gentleman whereby we ended up sitting in unsecured folding chairs in the back of a van while a few goats took our seats in the car we’d been in. Some money was exchanged as well. It was a freezing, zero cell service, dark, long, early morning ride to Casablanca but we made it.

Onwards and upwards with a moodboard for this trip.

Marrakech Moodboard: Hair inspo, Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca, Brigitte Bardot color palette & necklace inspo, Jane Birkin everything inspo, image from the film The Forgiven ( I recommend reading the book before or on a trip to North Africa), The Getty’s in Marrakech, Valentino Spring 2016 hair inspo, Veruschka in the 1960s in an amazing caftan that reminds me of this one, Paco Rabanne, Bianca Jagger & Yves Saint Laurent.

This time in Marrakech would be my first trip and first overnight away from my daughter. She would stay with her grandparents in Paris, where we’ve been since leaving Honolulu. The trip was to celebrate the 40th birthday of one of my close and very chic friends. She and her husband rented a riad and invited some very lucky friends for a 3 day celebration, complete with themes and dress codes for each night. A dream! — I love dressing with direction. And except for being under the weather, it was a dream. I will say, if you are going to be sick somewhere, Marrakech is not a bad place for it to be. The land of tea and spices, and the hospitality of its people is unmatched. The strongest infusions of lemon, ginger, and honey were brought to my room in tea pots set on little engraved silver trays around the clock. I was personally escorted to pharmacies and when I ducked into little shops the owners would often offer me a deep inhale of eucalyptus crystals in hot water. These things plus the Doliprane from the french doctor in our group got me through.

The first night there, we went to El Fenn for drinks and a beautiful and bountiful dinner. Huge painted ceramic bowls heaped with couscous and slow simmered lamb and fragrant chicken and fish. Big baskets of hot bread. To get to the rooftop, we walked through a boutique on the first floor that was such a burst of texture and color, I still think about it and regret not taking the time to look through it.

Rosie Assoulin pink burnout pants. The red velvet mules with glass heels are The Row and I found one pair on Vestiaire. I’m loving pink & red together. If I had seen this vintage John Paul Gaultier set earlier I would have bought it and worn it this night of the trip.- it’s amazing! Table setting at El Fenn. Great updo.

The next morning we set off to walk the medina. We stopped at Mandala Society for a Moroccan spiced coffee. It was infused with cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, ginger and pepper. Then my spidey senses drew me to the most beautiful caftan shop, deep in the souk. I took my friend back there before we left to share the secret and we were in agreement that that if The Row were to make a version of the silk wool jacquard caftan coat I was coveting that yes, indeed, they would price it at about 18k. This is coming from someone who worked at The Row for 10 years (her) and someone who bought The Row for Bergdorf Goodman for 10 years (me) so we claim some expertise. My favorite part of each day was going back to the riad for tea. Real moroccan mint tea brewed for hours with green tea and perfectly sweetened. Then poured from about two feet above your tiny silver encased tea glass and served with the most delicious ghoriba cookies. I’m still craving this combo back in Paris.

I’m wearing a Ralph Lauren silk cashmere t-shirt which I’ve been loving lately to bring a little more richness to an outfit instead of a cotton tee. This one, this one & this one are similar. The sweater is a sold out Paco Rabanne but I found this scarf which would have the same effect draped over your shoulders. If I had to do it again I would wear these closed toe espadrilles instead of my sandals. My corduroys are old Celine but a chino would be great too, I’m intrigued by these Alex Mill. We’re going for a bit of a desert explorer vibe. My belt is something my mom picked up on one of her first modeling trips to Egypt when she was in her 20s. I wear it a good amount and also love it over a simple black dress. I found a treasure trove of silver belts that would accomplish the same thing. Isabel Marant, old Gucci & Loewe and vintage YSL. For this trip I wanted to wear lipstick with chocolatey/coppery undertones, and this one called Tiger by Merit was perfect.

The Medina.

I may be biased because it’s my husband’s brand but this jacket he was wearing was perfect for exploring the medina, it has lots of invisible pockets.

Juju Vera earrings, Old Celine scarf as belt, sold out Khaite bodysuit, By Any Other Name jacket and pant (sadly, the brand no longer exists) I am also obsessed with these Bottega Veneta earrings. For a bodysuit or top under a suit I think the key is for it to not be too flat, it has to have some texture and be substantial like this heavy ribbed viscose or it should have an interesting neckline, not just a scoop, so it doesn’t feel too sporty.

Grand Café de la Poste. Since it is often likened to Rick’s Café Americain in Casablanca, I thought of slight Ilsa vibes with light colors and soft tailoring.

Top row: Jardin Majorelle & YSL Museum. I’m not sure where my scarf is from but This one and this one have the same hand-done paisley feel. Juju Vera earrings again. Bottom: My bag is The Row, not available anymore but this is a similar shape and this one is almost the exact shade of chocolate brown. I like this Old celine scarf as a belt right now bc of the shades of brown and the square design that creates a V when folded. This YSL has both those features. Same for this toteme.

All images at Riad le Clos des Artes. Top middle: the birthday girl with roses in her hair. Bottom right: The four pairs of pink slippers & shoes I bought in the souks. I think I’m still upset that these Charvet slippers didn’t fit me well bc they are amazing.

L'ourika Caftan shop that I mentioned earlier. This is one wall of 3 rooms filled with all different exquisite caftans. I think every woman should own one snake ring, they are good luck! Here and here are a few beautiful ones. There are so many vendors with shoes and slippers. if you look closely some stand out from the others.

Comptoir Darna . My gown is St. John in my current favorite pink & red combo, it is floral embossed magenta - it felt on theme for Arabian nights but not to literally. Also, a pro tip from my best friend Gabby: when I couldn’t find any of my shoes bc they are in storage and needed a giant heel for this gown quickly, these were perfect. A very inexpensive shoe for when you need a lot of height and the shoe won’t be seen but it also wouldn’t be bad if it was.

For the last night I wanted to try to recreate the gold snake hair from the Valentino 2016 show (image in moodboard at top) Didn’t turn out quite like I envisioned but still fun. This St. John gown however, did turn out exactly as envisioned in the perfect deep coppery desert brown shade I was searching for, for the sparkling soiree, Midnight over Marrakech at La Mamounia. The matching gold cuffs I’m wearing are not JuJu Vera but I wish they were and am looking to upgrade to a pair of these or these.

Link to a shop I curated of the things I wore and recommended as well as all the other things I would have bought and worn if I could! Antique berber silver cuffs I found on ebay, a Brigitte Bardot look alike necklace (from the moodboard), a gold rope Bottega hair pin, a vintage YSL safari jacket, some gorgeous caftans and more.