Swahili Chic: Living in Style on the East African Coast

(Hardback)

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Description

Swahili Chic unveils an exotic approach to gracious living, from a 2,000-year-old culture rich in beauty and sophistication. Swahili Chic happens where the coral atoll islands of East Africa meet the warm Trade Winds of the Indian Ocean, mingling the scents of fragrant cloves and tropical flowers in a land where African kings, Arabian sultans, Chinese sailors, American whalers and French pirates met to trade jewels, spices and colourful fabrics. And, best of all, Swahili Chic can be achieved anywhere in the world! In this gloriously illustrated book, the globe-trotting style expert Bibi Jordan introduces Swahili shule - the Swahili school of deisgn, architecture and graceful living that instils a sense of simplicity, sensuality and spirituality into any interior. Swahili Chic features the astonishing coral palaces and historic travellers' inns of UNESCO World Heritage Sites Lamu and Zanzibar, as well as romantic seaside cottages and the eco-adventure resorts of Mombasa and Malindi. Each chapter details the region's rich past, with fascinating facts about African culture and history, and highlights the most intriguing and inspirational aspects of the local decor, making this an ideal book for both the armchair traveller and the peripatetic adventurer as well as decorating devotees. In the final section, Bibi offers her inimitably chic assistance in integrating aspects of Swahili Chic into any decor, bringing the beauty, colour and grace of this timeless culture to the modern home, wherever in the world it may be.

Reviews

'A fascinating insight into African culture and history' - Evening Standard
'Elegant and informed' - Independent on Sunday

Author Bio

Bibi Jordan is an avid traveller, entrepreneur and author/photographer. Her first book, Safari Chic, was also published by Thames & Hudson and was hailed by Harper's Bazaar as 'a must-have for the style-hungry'.