Malabar Trading in Bridport has always had a strong association with Istanbul and we source products such as vintage kilims, silk ikat cushions and genuine turkish towels from our fantastic suppliers in and around The Grand Bazaar and from further afield in Turkey.
In October 2018 we visited again to meet old friends and make new ones. We pounded the streets visiting carpet sellers, cushion embroiderers and jewellery makers. We drank lots of apple tea and spent hours selecting suzanis from Uzbekistan. We sat with refugees from Syria who have brought their carpets to Istanbul to sell.
We travelled further inland to Konya and down the coast to Antalya to meet weavers, restorers, coppersmiths and many more skilled craftsmen and women.
Fiona spent hours inspecting kilims and choosing only the best. We always have customers waiting for our new stock so we were very excited when our purchases followed us home to be hung in our ever-changing shop.
