Inside Fashion Designer Shatha Essa’s Elegant Dubai Home

The creative’s mansion is all about personalised luxury that echoes an ethos of thoughtful selection​

Light and airy, grand yet restrained, Shatha Essa’s home is strongly guided by a vision of subtle luxury. Founder and creative director of her eponymous luxury womenswear brand, Shatha is a self-confessed perfectionist, who has created a dream family home that marries aesthetics with practicality.

Nine years ago, Shatha picked the home for its central location in Dubai’s Jumeirah neighbourhood; her office is less than a minute away. “I feel it is important to feel safe and resonate with the people and community surrounding us, which is what we love most about our home,” Shatha expresses.

“My mother is from Dubai and my father is from Abu Dhabi, where I spent my childhood years, so I call both emirates home. As Emiratis, we grew up in homes that had three to four different seating halls. One hall for our everyday get-togethers, another slightly more formal hall to entertain close friends or family, and then the formal majlis, secluded from the rest of the house for the guests’ privacy,” she continues.

The majlis décor is refreshed every summer, a tradition in Shatha’s household. This season, the look is inspired by a raffia carafe she spotted in Matches Fashion’s London flagship store. “I got carafes, glasses and cutlery from Matches and hunted down handmade goods to complete the look: macramé placemats from Istanbul, raffia palm and fish napkin holders from Colombia, and plates from Ralph Lauren,” she explains.

“Furniture was selected with both aesthetics and practicality in mind,”

Shatha Essa

Shatha pivoted away from tradition with a petite and cosy entertainment room upstairs, and a semi-formal living room downstairs to receive guests. “When designing my home, I had to be practical, but I also wanted the spaces to look good,” she shares. “We will not be staying here forever, but I wanted it to be comfortable, while utilising every inch of space. As we grew as a family, our needs changed, and the house evolved with us.”

Whimsical yet well thought-out, the playroom is the fulcrum of the house for Shatha’s sons, Hisham and Essa, and daughters, Hessa and Hind. The space includes a kitchenette, a mini supermarket, a slide, and a secret spot for hide-and-seek. The furniture and accessories are from leading brands like Nobodinoz, Konges Sløjd, LIEWOOD, Milton & Goose and Happy Little Folks. Concealed cabinets have designated storage for costumes, arts and crafts supplies, toys and board games.

Shatha’s style mantra is to stay true to yourself. This ethos is also echoed in the Shatha Essa ready-to-wear line, which comprises dresses, kaftans, separates, abayas and eveningwear. Each season, the brand collaborates with female artisans from diverse cultures, showcasing traditional craftsmanship and embroidery techniques, while nurturing jobs in rural communities.

In the clothes she designs, and in her home as well, the palette is focused on muted colours and rich details. “I studied interior design and ended up in fashion design,” Shatha enthuses. “The two worlds are so interconnected: I apply what I learnt in my interior design process in my fashion business. And that is how I approach life too; it takes many trials until one succeeds.”

While inspired by her love of the signature classic contemporary style of interior designers like Sophie Paterson, Hanne Gathe and Vincent Darré, the home also reflects Shatha’s real life. Electric punches of blue elevate the largely white décor: white is Shatha’s favourite colour, while blue is her husband’s. “So it is a bit of both of us in the house,” she says with a smile.

The décor of the majlis was inspired by a cloud-grey chain motif rug. “I knew I wanted it as soon as I laid eyes on it,” she says. “After ordering it, I was informed it was out of stock. But I was fixated on it and I usually do not take no for an answer – ask my husband! So, I spent 10 days looking for it all over the world. On day 11, I found the exact rug in a California shop that stocks Eichholtz. Luckily, I could order it online and that is how I started decorating the majlis.”

“As we grew as a family, our needs changed, and the house evolved with us,”

Shatha Essa

Her love of the Dutch brand springs from childhood summers spent in the Netherlands. “I would say 80 per cent of my furniture is from Eichholtz, while the remaining 20 per cent is from the American brand Caracole. Furniture was selected with both aesthetics and practicality in mind.”

A meticulous collector, Shatha’s discerning eye for craftsmanship and creativity shines through in the accessories; all the lighting sconces are from the John-Richard collection while the artwork, collected on travels, is by local artists from diverse places, including Santorini, London, France and South Africa. On Shatha’s honeymoon, the designer fell in love with a sculpture in Neiman Marcus in the United States. Mingling Circles now makes a statement hanging above the sofa upstairs. “There are so many rooms I redesigned over the years, but this one was a keeper. This wall has remained untouched ever since.”

“I like each room for different reasons, at different times of the day,”

Shatha Essa

The designer was similarly lucky with vintage wallpaper from an Italian supplier visiting Dubai. As he only had enough to barely cover one wall, Shatha mixed and matched a few designs she liked. Downstairs hangs an authentic Murano glass chandelier, a serendipitous find from the Selva store in Dubai. The sizeable collection of coffee-table books includes limited-edition titles from Taschen, Assouline, Rizzoli, David Zwirner and Thames & Hudson, all serving as inspiration for Shatha’s style.

“It is hard to say which is my favourite space,” Shatha admits. “I like each room for different reasons, at different times of the day. I love my kids’ bedrooms when I tuck them in and we talk about their day. I love my me-time in the living room upstairs after everyone has gone to sleep. I also love cooking and spending time in the kitchen. Honestly, I love our house because it is our home; it is where all our memories are being made.”

Photography: Efraim Evidor

From Harper’s Bazaar Arabia’s December 2022 issue.