Calla Haynes launched her brand Calla in 2009 and was best known for her homemade prints. She has received several design awards, including the Grand Prix of Design in Paris, the Dorchester Fashion Prize and four nominations for the ANDAM Award (French Fashion Prize). In 2015, the Canadian designer left for Paris and chose to quit her eponymous collections, aiming to transform her remaining textiles into something else. 'That was quite a difficult decision; my textiles were a huge investment and the most precious part of my work. Reselling them was not an option because the prints were so personal," Haynes said.

So Haynes wanted to do something meaningful with her fabrics, and one day the circular light bulb went on. She had always loved the Boucharouite rugs from Morocco, and it seemed like a special way to reuse her textiles. For two years, she sent boxes of scraps of fabric to weavers in Morocco and they created about 20 rugs that she presented at an exhibition in Paris in 2017. 

It became her now famous Boucharouite project: a collection of rugs made from recycled textiles in collaboration with women weavers in Morocco. She not only works with her own textiles, but also uses fabrics left over from luxury brands in Paris to commission new Boucharouite rugs.

The collaboration in Morocco tasted like more and resulted in a collection of Babouche slippers, handmade from upcycled vintage Berber carpets from the Souk of Marrakech. In a limited edition, as only about 20 pairs per carpet. The slippers have unique texture details and are also comfortable to wear. With this, the Calla brand makes an important contribution to preserving the regional tradition of Morocco while also directly supporting local artisans.

Of course, in such a unique process, not only the carpet is relevant, but the finish also plays an important role. All slippers are made by hand. 'They are made by our shoemaker Ahmed, in the Souk in Marrakech. He cuts the antique rugs by hand with scissors and uses a paper pattern; the Babouche slippers are lined with locally sourced lamb leather dyed with natural vegetable dyes,' Haynes says.

The Calla x Soul-sister collection is an exclusive and limited edition. Lize determined the Babouche models in Calla's Paris showroom and then worked with Haynes to select the antique Berber rugs. We are proud of this circular collaboration!