From Moroccan Souks to Your Living Room: The Art of Global Mixing with Stephanie Rudloe
In this episode, I talk with designer and shop owner Stephanie Rudloe about her work with Marrakesh Designs and her long collaboration with Moroccan artisans. Stephanie shares how she first fell in love with Moroccan craft, from rugs and doors to brass lighting and pottery, and how these handmade pieces bring depth and character into our homes. We also explore how to layer just a touch of Morocco into everyday interiors in a way that feels natural and personal without going overboard or being overly thematic. What we find is that certain Moroccan objects and motifs have been design staples for many decades in America.
Watch this entire episode on YouTube HERE
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Meet Stephanie Rudloe
Stephanie studied art history and crafts before finding her way into the world of Moroccan design. A chance meeting at a dinner party led her to collaborate with her future business partner, Mohamed Elmaarouf, and together they opened a shop in Chelsea Market. Their business grew from custom rug orders for design legends like Albert Hadley and McMillan into a full collection of rugs, lighting, doors, pottery, and other Moroccan treasures.
Behind the Doors of Marrakesh
Stephanie described the experience of entering a riad in Marrakesh: the narrow alleyways, the heavy wooden doors, and then the quiet courtyards with fountains, plants, and cool rooms tucked off to the sides. She explained that Moroccan homes often keep their beauty hidden inside rather than displayed on the exterior, which makes being invited in feel like entering a sanctuary.
Markets, Food, and Everyday Beauty
We talked about the everyday details of Morocco that inspire her work: communal bread bakeries, olives bought from street vendors, and lamb slow-cooked in a pit. She mentioned how even practical containers like woven baskets are handmade and beautiful. For Stephanie, these small, ordinary experiences are part of what makes Moroccan design so rich and meaningful.
Rugs That Tell Stories
Stephanie walked me through the different kinds of rugs she sources:
Flat-weave Zamore rugs, often laid out on rooftops or courtyards for gatherings.
Pile rugs with traditional diamond motifs, symbols of protection.
Berber blankets that can be used as throws or even made into curtains.
She shared how Marrakesh Designs works directly with women weavers in the Atlas Mountains, paying them fairly for their work and sourcing wool from local sheep. While some rugs are vintage, many are new pieces created at home by women balancing family life with weaving. Stephanie believes these rugs carry the “imprint of the human hand” and bring soul into a home.
Beyond Rugs: Doors, Lighting, and Craft
Rugs may be Morocco’s most famous export, but Stephanie also loves sourcing antique wooden doors, sometimes found through hidden antique dealers or rare estate sales. She sees them as portals that add depth and character to a space, even if they’re repurposed as cabinet doors or decorative panels.
She also works with artisans who create brass filigree lighting, hand-cut with jeweler’s saws. These lights cast intricate patterns on walls and ceilings, turning light itself into a design element. Moroccan brass trays and folding tables reflect the nomadic lifestyle, designed to be packed up and moved, while pottery ranges from everyday cooking tagines to green-glazed Tamegroute bowls.
Tile, Plaster, and Custom Projects
We also talked about zellige tile and gebs plasterwork, both traditional Moroccan crafts that Stephanie incorporates into custom projects in the U.S. She described a dressing room in Cambridge where the floor was laid with blue and white rosettes inspired by a mosque arch in Casablanca. For Stephanie, these projects are “couture for a room,” crafted to fit the space exactly.
A Little Goes a Long Way
When I asked how people can bring Morocco into their homes without overdoing it, Stephanie’s advice was simple: start small. She suggested a mirror with an arched top, a lantern with a candle, a ceramic bowl filled with fruit, or a single rug. Even the smallest piece, she explained, carries the story of the artisan’s hand and brings warmth and authenticity to a home.
Talking with Stephanie reminded me how much meaning there is in the handmade, and how even a single object can shift the feeling of a room. Her approach is not about filling a house with Moroccan design, but about choosing pieces with intention — pieces that connect us to a place, a culture, and the hands that made them. I hope this conversation gives you ideas for weaving a little more story and soul into your own home.
Until Next Time
-Zandra
