THE NOT SO BLONDE TRAVEL

When I was walking around Sidi Bou Said with my mother a few days ago I had two goals. First have a bambalouni and second have a mint tea at the  Cafe Des Delices  while enjoying this terrific view.  the famous bambalouni But my little touristic visit had an added bonus: I discovered Casa Belle Arti, a store which sells Tunisian souvenirs and gifts, inspired by tradition, but with a new fun touch.  The fouta is a piece of thin patterned cotton or linen fabric originally used by men and women to wrap around themselves at public baths. Now they are used at hamams and beaches mainly. As a Tunisian girl who lives in the US since 8 years now, I of course have one fouta in Tunisia at my parent's house, one in Florida at my brother's house and one in NYC.  Now I get to add to my collection a beautiful fouta dress I found at Casa Belle Arti. Well to be accurate, two fouta dresses - I just couldn't choose. Plus my mom was kind enough to buy one...

Us New Yorkers love black. We live black, we breath black: black is our color. But we also love red lipstick, and bold bright accessories are our bff's. What better than a statement necklace or a funky clutch to brighten an all black outfit? So for those of you that are in "need" of bright and beautiful accessories, there are three designers that you have to check out: AMULETTE Creation by Samia Mbarek, TAMARZIZT by Oumaima Tamarzizt and DS by Dorra Sassi. All three are from my native country, so perhaps I am biased, but I don't think so. I truly believe their work is beautiful and that all of us should be all over them before they are huge super stars and we can't afford buying anything from their beautiful collections. I could go on and on about how original their creations are, but pictures are sometimes worth a thousands words. And honestly, I wouldn't even know how to describe their work. I am not a professional jeweler, I am just a professional shop...