When I was in Morocco on my honeymoon last year, I was struck by the country’s beautiful sense of design, especially with interiors. The place was a riot of color and ancient-feeling artifacts. Battered wooden shudders were painted bright turquoise. Bountiful potted plants spilled from cracked ceramic pots. And entire walls were covered in silver and ceramic Hands of Fatima, otherwise known as Hamsa.
These palm-shaped amulets are a good luck talisman in both Judaic and Islamic traditions, which makes it a cross-cultural symbol I can really appreciate. I now have four Hands of Fatima from my travels on my wall, and I’ll be collecting more as I find them. One semi-addition to the collection? This tank top.
I picked up this little tee at — where else? — the lobby of the Exhale in Flatiron. I guess you could wear the shirt for an extremely low-impact workout like yoga, but I prefer to wear this with jeans and leather sandals. (Cotton tanks like this get drenched when you work out, and the loose fit means the shirt will flip toward your chin and expose your belly whenever you’re doing an inversion.)
My favorite detail? The open back. I took it as an opportunity to wear one of those fancy and otherwise useless sports bras I picked up at the sales rack at Lululemon. (Only suckers and addicts shop Lulu gear at full price.)
With such a laid back vibe, I skipped a heavy-duty handbag and rocked an organic cotton tote I nabbed at a Miami farmer’s market. The purchase supported the Little River Cooperative — an urban farm initiative in Miami. (The tote is also available in pink/green, which you can buy here for $11.)
If only all my outfits had this kind of good karma. PS: If you ever need interior design inspiration, check out this blog of Moroccan interiors. (Or this Pinterest page! Or this book!) Here’s a taste of how the Hands of Fatima are used in the decor. Dreamy and bohemian!
