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Stories from Palestine told through dresses

The history and culture of Palestine are told through the language of threads.

Taita Leila is a new social enterprise reinterpreting Palestinian embroidery and celebrating the culture of the Holy Land. Here, Aseel, a fashion student, is modelling TL's Yaffa piece. [Osama Silwadi/Al Jazeera]
Taita Leila is a new social enterprise reinterpreting Palestinian embroidery and celebrating the culture of the Holy Land. Here, Aseel, a fashion student, is modelling TL's Yaffa piece. [Osama Silwadi/Al Jazeera]
By 
Raya Al Jadir
21 Jun 2016
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For years Noora Husseini had loved her grandmother’s stories and it is this love that led her to find a way of documenting and retelling these tales.

Noora set out to show that Palestine is in fact full of “rich and beautiful history as well as a colourful culture”, which is what Taita Leila project is all about.

The project brings together Palestinian history through a different language: The language of thread. The core idea of the project is to produce modern clothing inspired by traditional Palestinian dress as well as revive and restyle the embroidery. 

The first thing that draws attention to the project is its name: Taita Leila. Taita is an Arabic term of endearment for grandmother and Leila is the lady who is the inspiration behind the project.

Her full name is Leila Hussein Fakhri Khalidi, author of “The Art of Palestinian Embroidery” that retells the stories of old traditional dresses from Palestine. 

Leila left Jerusalem in 1946 and wasn’t allowed back into what became a divided city. “I left from West Jerusalem and since [then] I only saw East Jerusalem,” Leila explains. Living in Beirut, she became the head librarian at the Palestinian Liberation Organisation Research Centre and headed a research unit for Folklore and Folk Arts and Crafts.

The unique aspect of Taita Leila is that everything about and associated with the project breathes Palestine; clothes are entirely made in Palestine, fabrics are sourced from local factories or vendors in the region, women are employed to hand-embroider the designs, even their website was developed in Gaza. 

Traditional dress varies considerably depending on region, class, status and taste. This language of threads hides interesting stories about the people in this area.

Those behind the Taita Leila project want to tell these stories. For example Jerusalem – Leila’s hometown – did not really have a “thoub” (traditional dress) because it was a metropolis so people adopted modern dress.

The type of costume found there was either very modern, reminiscent of early 20th century New York or influenced from Ottoman dress.

Nablus, on the other hand, did not have a lot of embroidery because people were too busy working in the fields and this is where the famous Palestinian saying “I am not working so I embroider” comes from.

These are precisely the kind of stories that Taita Leila tells through their designs.

Noora Husseini and Alaa Shari in Beitunia, their small office at the Work Factory in the industrial area of Ramallah.  [Alexandra Sturgill/Al Jazeera]
Noora Husseini and Alaa Shari in Beitunia, their small office at the Work Factory in the industrial area of Ramallah. [Alexandra Sturgill/Al Jazeera]
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The Jerusalem room at Dar el TIfel Museum,' a place of inspiration for Taita Leila's team. [Noora Husseini/Al Jazeera]
The Jerusalem room at Dar el TIfel Museum,' a place of inspiration for Taita Leila's team. [Noora Husseini/Al Jazeera]
Bahieh and Noora shopping for fabrics at Abu Munzer's shop. Bahieh is the manager of the women's cooperative in Kobar. [Rafia Oraidi/Al Jazeera]
Bahieh and Noora shopping for fabrics at Abu Munzer's shop. Bahieh is the manager of the women's cooperative in Kobar. [Rafia Oraidi/Al Jazeera]
Alaa Sharif is Taita Leila's first full-time employee. "Ethical educational fashion is the best form of fashion," she says. [Alexandra Sturgill/Al Jazeera]
Alaa Sharif is Taita Leila's first full-time employee. "Ethical educational fashion is the best form of fashion," she says. [Alexandra Sturgill/Al Jazeera]
Photographer Osama Silwadi is the author of the Queens of Silk photo collection. [Noora Husseini/Al Jazeera]
Photographer Osama Silwadi is the author of the Queens of Silk photo collection. [Noora Husseini/Al Jazeera]
Taita Leila strives to represent Palestinian dresses inspired by various regions of Palestine. This is a Ramallah top. [Osama Silwadi/Al Jazeera]
Taita Leila strives to represent Palestinian dresses inspired by various regions of Palestine. This is a Ramallah top. [Osama Silwadi/Al Jazeera]
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Instead of a typical fashion show, the Taita Leila team asked participants to play a game: Guess which area in Palestine inspired the piece. The first one to get the right answer wins her favourite piece. [Doa Sharaf/Al Jazeera]
Instead of a typical fashion show, the Taita Leila team asked participants to play a game: Guess which area in Palestine inspired the piece. The first one to get the right answer wins her favourite piece. [Doa Sharaf/Al Jazeera]
Introducing the core team behind Taita Leila:  Noora Husseini, right, with Shahrazad Odeh, left, a human rights lawyer, and Alaa Sharif. [Doa Sharaf/Al Jazeera]
Introducing the core team behind Taita Leila: Noora Husseini, right, with Shahrazad Odeh, left, a human rights lawyer, and Alaa Sharif. [Doa Sharaf/Al Jazeera]
Taita Leila's Bethlehem top is modelled by a fashion student. [Osama Silwadir/Al Jazeera]
Taita Leila's Bethlehem top is modelled by a fashion student. [Osama Silwadir/Al Jazeera]

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