Malaika Linens’ new collection is a treasure trove of Egyptian-inspired designs

The stars have aligned and our homeware dreams have come true as Malaika launches their new Cosmic Dreams collection – and every piece benefits women and refugees in the brand’s adopted home country of Egypt

By Emma Becque

10 February 2022

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Egypt’s cultural legacy is hard to overstate: the mythology, architecture and visual imagery of ancient Egypt is instantly familiar and constantly fascinating. Everyone from avant-garde artists and authors to Roman emperors, 20th-century occultists and neoclassical antiquarians has delved into, debated and adopted it as their own, and Egypt remains one of the most recognisably “ancient” places in the world’s cultural consciousness. And its visual culture is truly ancient: the pyramids were older to the first-century Romans who conquered them than the Romans themselves are to us today.

In the world of textiles and interior design, Egyptian cotton has, of course, long been a byword for quality. Malaika Linens, a company founded by two Ecuadorian friends living in Egypt, is one of the most recent enterprises to join this proud tradition, and woven closely into the fabric of the business is a conscious initiative to improve the lives of women in Egypt who are facing adversity. Their latest collection of homeware, Cosmic Dreams, is both a reflection of the country the brand’s co-founders Goya Gallagher and Margarita Andrade have adopted as their home, and a charitable project that champions the work of local craftswomen.

From ceramics derived from moulds used by the ancient Egyptians to hand-embroidered napkins featuring calligraphic stories found in the ancient tombs of Cairo, Cosmic Dreams promises more than just the twinkling stars that adorn the collection (though these are utterly charming). The collection is also imbued with a deep fascination with Egyptian mythology. “This collection has women in mind,” explains co-founder Goya, “particularly paying homage to an Egyptian goddess, Nut.” Nut, appropriately enough for Cosmic Dreams, was the Egyptian deity who ruled over the stars and the firmament, as well as an embodiment of motherhood; she is a savvy patron for Goya and Margarita to have chosen for their collection.

The reasons for this are twofold: Malaika is not only committed to championing powerful Egyptian deities, but they are also enhancing the lives of hundreds of women in Egypt through their charity, Threads of Hope.

How classical antiquity continues to influence and captivate designers

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Goya and Margarita established Threads of Hope alongside Malaika in 2004 as an independent training and production centre for hand-embroidery, corded work and khayamiya (a decorative appliqué textile local to Egypt). These days, Threads of Hope trains around forty underprivileged Egyptian and refugee women every two months: weekly, the women visit the centre to collect work to embroider from home. Working from home is at the core of Malaika’s model, and offers women the chance to earn an income whilst also being present with their families. Once proficient, the women are given employment opportunities with the work provided by Malaika Linens, Threads of Hope’s collection and local and international designers.

In Arabic, malaika means “a collection of angels”. It is a term that perfectly conveys the story behind this homeware brand.

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The Cosmic Dreams collection tells the tale of the goddess, Nut, who governed the sky and stars in Egyptian mythology.
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The Cosmic Tablecloth is adorned with astronomical symbols, with visual references to the surrealist works that artists Jean Cocteau and David Hockney created in the wake of their respective visits to Cairo.
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The Cartouche and Zig Zag napkin sets feature an embroidered hieroglyph design.
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The Tutankhamon Candelabra is handmade in white alabaster.

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The Serendipity Placemats feature the Coptic cross, each hand-embroidered by the women of Threads of Hope to tell the story of the Coptic denomination of Christianity.
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Other accessories to highlight in the collection include toiletry bags designed in an array of colours picturing the Egyptian Eye of Horus.
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The ‘Zigzag’ napkin in blue.
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The Serendipity placemats.