With little dabs of paint and a few too many heavy brushstrokes, Farah Omar, a painter and architect in her own right, is creating original hand-painted scarves as opposed to computer-generated designs.
Farah Omar’s vibrant scarf lines features abstract prints, illustrations and architectural designs inscribed with grooves that create shimmering, rhythmic patterns. Worn as a headscarf, loosely hung around the neck or even wrapped several times to create a ‘choker effect,’ Farah Omar’s scarves serve up serious style, adding volume and dimension to any outfit.
“When I was young I painted what I saw, I couldn’t see beyond what was tangible and physically in front of me. As I grew up I leaned more towards abstract art, but I always felt there was more to experiment with so I started painting on different mediums. One day I tried silk, and it looked like a scarf…” said Omar, with a giggle.
After creating her first batch of 10 paintings on silk material, her heart was setting on launching a scarf line but faced an early hurdle. To replicate her designs, she had to scan her paintings off silk material – a process not available in Egypt at the time.
“I started contacting companies I found online in China, I did not know who these people are or if I’ll ever see my 10 scarves (that took months of work) ever again if I send them to them. Everyone thought I was crazy, but honestly, I always had faith in humanity,” continued Omar.
She finally launched her eponymous brand in 2014, introducing Frisky – a fun and playful collection, featuring ice-cream cones, unicorns and smiley faces. Inspired by nature, her second collection of evening floral scarves not only showed that the brand was quickly evolving, but that it fit neatly into the traditional art category.
“I kept falling more in love with the flow of the dye on silk, the first collection was cool, the second is just timeless,” says Omar. 
With a colourful, wearable take on the world map, Farah Omar’s third collection, City Love, commemorates her four favourite cities. Enthralled by the white houses and fuchsia and blue shades of Santorini, the lakes and glandules of Venice, the red telephone booths of London and the bicycle culture in Amsterdam; Omar beautifully captures the essence and feel of each city in every scarf.
“I just launched a funky fourth collection, featuring parachutes, bags, shoes, chairs. Enough with classic for now!” asserts Omar. “And really, what is fashion if it’s not change and experimentation,” she says.
Omar also expanded her fashion range to include fine jewellery under her brand. “Jewellery design fulfils the architect in me. My scarves and paintings bring out more of my artistic side,” she says. Reinventing the classic infinity sign, Omar created her signature symbol of two geometrical interlocked rectangles to represent everlasting love and eternity. Every item carries a meaningful message, presented impeccably with a card explaining the symbology of the piece.
Embracing online retailing, Farah Omar accessories are found online and in Rax Concept store. Check out her Instagram page here.
