I am a Boston-based fashion and surface pattern designer originally from Cairo. I find inspiration in ethnic clothing, embroidery, and crafts, as well as feminine vintage silhouettes and often combine both influences in my designs. 

The history of fashion fascinates me. I love learning about how the clothes we wear relate to the social, political, and art movements of the time. I am especially passionate about researching my Egyptian cultural heritage. I am also interested in the traditional clothing of West Asia, East Africa, and Eastern/Central Europe, regions where my great grandparents were from.

I caught the sewing bug as a child watching my mother make beautiful clothes for herself and matching outfits for my sister and me. By the age of 10, I could use a sewing machine and started making myself clothes from Burda patterns. In my teens, I started collecting fabrics, first by “borrowing” fabrics from my mother’s and grandmother’s collections, and then by exploring the wholesale fabric and notions markets in Cairo where I grew up. In high school, I started making handbags out of brightly colored striped Egyptian cotton duck. The bags caught my friends’ attention and turned into a small business throughout college.

As an adult, I finally pursued my passion and formally studied fashion design to expand my skills. In addition to improving my sewing skills, I learned to drape, draft my own patterns, and design a cohesive collection. I also discovered my love for surface pattern design and watercolor illustrations.

Lately, my primary medium and research interest has been embroidery, with a particular focus on South West Asia and North Africa. I am also a collector of traditional dresses from around the world.

Education

Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Boston
Fashion Design Certificate

​The American University in Cairo, Egypt
B.A. in Integrated Marketing Communication

Workshops

• “Palestinian Tatreez: Identity & Resistance”
  • Middle Eastern Studies Program, Tufts University, Medford, MA (Fall 2025)
  • Arlington for Palestine and 1for3, Arlington, MA (Summer 2025)
  • Arab Student Alliance (ASAL), Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA (Spring 2025)
  • Professionals of Color in the Environment (POCIE) and Black Girl Environmentalist, Cambridge, MA (Winter 2025)
  • Black Girl Environmentalist and Boston Liberation Center, Boston, MA (Summer 2024)
• “Stitching Time Together: Embroidering Motifs from Egypt’s Siwa Oasis”
  • Summer Institute for Technical Studies in Art (SITSA), Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, MA (Spring 2024)

Shows

• Harvard Staff Art Show (2020-2025)
• MassArt MADE Holiday Market (Winter 2020-2021)
• Windows of Harvard: Art From Our Community (Summer 2020)
• MassArt MADE Spring Market (Spring 2020)
• MassArt LUCID Fashion Exhibit (Spring 2019)
• MassArt Wearable Art Exhibit (Fall 2012)
• Boston Fashion Week (Fall 2012)
• MassArt REVEAL Fashion Show (Spring 2012)

Publications

• “Fashion Influences in Family Archives: From Syria, Yemen, Zanzibar & Egypt.” Daftar, Afikra, Zeenah Edition, January 2026.

Contact me

Follow me on Instagram @roba.khorshid