Written by Dena Burton
Photographs by Fabian Lopez
Set against the night sky and crisp winter air was my chance to be amongst the first to experience Diafa De Maroc. It was an exclusive experience modeled under the rich Moroccan tradition of “Diafa”- meaning hospitality. Featured was an extensive collection of luxury antique Moroccan rugs and poufs all curated by Los Angeles native Emmy Ellison.
The evening lent itself to a personal tour of Emmy’s studio as well as a beautifully orchestrated sit-down dinner where guests of diverse industries enjoyed specialty Moroccan inspired drinks and Moroccan cuisine. To conclude the evening, we were presented with a more detailed demonstration of the rug collection presented by Emmy herself. As the evening drew to an end, I felt compelled to get a more in-depth scope of the life of Emmy Ellison and the journey to the birth of Diafa De Maroc.
Being in Emmy’s home for our interview gave me license to decode more about Emmy's upbringing and what eventually led to her passion. Being raised in North Carolina by a mother who was an interior designer greatly influenced her passion for design and textile. “My mother had an incredible eye for editing and curating beautiful scenes and landscapes around the house,” Emmy recalls. This, no doubt, set the stage for Emmy to become the high-end curator she is today.
After her studies at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Emmy did production design for 10 years. Soon after, Ellison made the decision to take a break and raise her children. It would serve as a double blessing with her nesting instincts taking over. Emmy began focusing on her own environment, surrounding herself and family with the things she loved.
It was a trip to London for an art event that eventually led her to first visit Morocco. “I immediately fell in love with the textures, the culture, the smells, the buildings, and the people," she says. A hard trip to bring to an end was also the beginning of something special and a passion for which she lives- the birth of Diafa De Maroc.
When asked about her most important accomplishment to date, she doesn’t hesitate in highlighting it’s taking her passion through to completion. Although she occasionally gets overwhelmed by the administrative aspects of the business, Emmy remarks, “It’s not really work if you love it, you never work a day in your life doing the things you love.” She discusses several nuisances on the road to bringing the business to fruition. There were some hard lessons learned along the way, like adapting to the Moroccan culture of doing business slowly. “They take their time to nurture relationships,” Emmy points out. At any given time she’d find herself having tea during 5-hour lunches. She emphasizes the importance of learning to do business and negotiating in a different country. Typically, Emmy ventures outside of the major city and goes to the regions where the rugs are actually crafted. This lends itself to forming friendships and relationships within the villages. As part of this slow and intentional process of curating the rugs, Emmy sits for days and combs through every rug herself. Emmy expounds she has an innate intuition about which rugs need to come with her. It is the foundation of the Diafa De Maroc experience. Ellison brings the Moroccan culture and journey to her clients and integrates the aspects of hospitality and cuisine to provide an all-encompassing encounter.
As our time together waned, we took a walking tour of the house and studio. Her favorite rug hangs on the wall like a piece of art. Emmy offered me a quick lesson on how to differentiate the rugs based on regions, colors, dyes, piles, and minerals. When asked to expound upon what makes the Diafa De Maroc rugs so special and what sets her apart from other curators, she illustrates several reasons. “I handpick all the rugs which allows me to see them in their natural environment,” she clarifies. “Because of my love for the pieces, I take great care of them which in turn lends itself to having the buyer understand why the piece is important and why I bought it.” Lastly, she notes, “I want to take the hospitality shown to me in Morocco and translate that into the experience of the customer.”
As for the future, Emmy plans on traveling to Marrakesh and reestablishing things she had in the works pre-pandemic. “I’m planning to build an atelier so I can manufacture new contemporary Moroccan rugs done in the traditional weave.” she happily says. Ellison is also considering the establishment of an annual or bi-annual show collaborating with other creatives to design rugs.
As I drove away from the beautiful Moroccan themed oasis, I pondered a couple of things Emmy shared which inspired me. First, per Emmy, is the affirmation that “Life is too short not to be surrounded by objects that truly bring you joy.” One I will be more intentional about implementing. Second, was that she’s so in awe of how the seed of a dream has actually materialized into great accomplishments forged through sheer passion, desire, and determination. Important lessons we can all take from the evolution of the Diafa De Maroc experience and the phenomenal Emmy Ellison. -