Photo: Instagram.com/rawdis
The world has seen plenty of couture on red carpets, but the same on a desert? Not so much. Enter, Somali model Rawdah Mohamed who was recently seen posing on the sand dunes of Doha for Instagram, dressed in Qatar’s first couture fashion house, no less. The Oslo-based Vogue Scandinavia fashion editor created her own fairytale moment wearing a princess gown from Tiiya, founded by mother and daughter design duo Shaikha Alanoud Alattiya and Shaikha Shaikha Al-Thani.
The soft beige number featured a flared-out skirt with a rippled hem and was adorned with embroidery in an enchanting pattern of red orchids and golden leaves growing from a garden. Seen blowing in the desert breeze were the statement sleeves of the dress, which came with floor-grazing embroidered tulle. Mohamed complemented the subtle color of the gown with a solid cream hijab, and a minimalistic beauty look. The model’s makeup look borrowed from the shades of the desert to feature a bronzed look complete with matte pink lips.
Launched in 2015, Tiiya was the first “made in Qatar” brand whose product was something other than oil and gas. The fashion house has since come to be known for its designs inspired by history and nature. This particular piece worn by Mohamed was picked from the Athenaeum Collection, which looked to its namesake Pall Mall-based centre for the study of literature and science for inspiration. The red orchids on the gown are said to symbolize the “symbiotic contribution of both men and women in the fields of science & literature.”
