Born with a passion for creativity, Amal Al Jamali has successfully created her exotic signature in the fashion world. Gifted as a souvenir for the royalty and the rich, Amal’s designer clothes have put Oman fashion couture on the world map. She is one of the few designers in Oman who merges the traditional and the modern into a single entity and preserves the authentic touch.
From her famous clothing line to furniture and accessories, her urge to create exclusive designs have spurred on an array of classic and elegant pieces. Amal’s unique touch has earned her a loyal and elite patronage from around the world. Her high-end fashion clothes are the dream of every woman. As a child, Amal loved to be innovative. Her first foray into the world of designing began by cutting out her party dress.
“I never knew how to draw. So, I cut the design by hand and gave the tailor. After I wore my new dress, I knew everyone was impressed and noticed it wherever I went. I knew it was different. Even my neighbours began to send me the fabric and ask me to do something for them. ‘You will become great when you grow up’, they told me, and I was so happy!” she recalls.
Those prophetic words paved the beginning for the most exotic designers in Oman. After her education, Amal was employed as the Director of Training and Staff Development at the Ministry of Social Affairs. But post-marriage, she decided to spend time with her children.
“I knew within me I wanted to do something, something novel, and this feeling grew in me daily,” she says.
As her children grew up, she relaunched herself by crafting old Omani silver jewellery, and her curiosity with the metal drew her to the Abayas. She tried to put some colour and glitter into the traditional black garment while retaining the custom design. After her initial success, she began printing designs into the fabric and added embellishments that fascinated her customers. She started designing necklaces and bags, which incorporated ancient Omani embroidery into modern designs.
“Pure Omani designs are my inspiration,” Amal says, “Each and every design is unique. Most of them are handwoven and therefore every piece is special in its own, it reflects the spirit of the east with its magnificent history.”
Inspired by her roots and culture, her designs are eye-catching with their vibrant colours, exquisite texture and scintillating patterns. Amal Al Jamali has participated in and organised various fashion shows in and outside Oman and has been honoured with awards for her excellence in designing.
One of Amal’s best designs was the ‘Omani Echoes’ collection launched at the Omani Opera Galleria, in collaboration with the Omani artists. She used their best paintings and local photographs to replicate the Omani landscape and culture and amazed the crowd with the incredible apparel.
Being the first Omani designer to turn the Galleria into a fashion runaway, Amal Al Jamali celebrated it by designing a dress on the Opera House. The awe-inspiring Opera dress turned out to be her most popular piece ever made. That single dress bought her fame across the oceans and is displayed at the Opera Galleria for all to admire.
“This dress is close to my heart.” Amal says, “Among the French, I came to be known as the ‘Omani who designed that Opera dress’, and I got a lot of customers for my clothesline, furniture, and handbags.”
Another noted exhibition of hers was the ‘Enchanted Garden’ collection, which was set in an enchanting background of flowers and ethereal colours. Each dress in the collection was arranged with a luscious cake decorated in the corresponding colour and design.
The highlight of this event was a magnificent robe, featuring the special red rose named after Late His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said, printed on silk satin fabric with Swarovski stone, with a neckline adorned with pearls and stones. The belt was set with pearls and the dress accompanied a long-tail silk chiffon red flower print. The attire was created in tribute to Late His Majesty Sultan Qaboos Bin Said in celebration of the 45th National Day. This fashion-for-a-cause event was held to fund the Women Empowerment Programme of the charitable organisation Dar Al Atta’a and was a source of awe for all.
Amal Al Jamali sources her exquisite fabric from Oman as well as abroad. The material for accessories come from Italy and is made in Oman. She uses gold-plated jewellery in both her clothesline and handbags.
Amal explains her designer clothing is set at an affordable price for everyone. “I don’t want to restrict my designs only to the rich. I want everyone to have access to my work. So, you can find my lowest prices to be at 200 OMR, which of course, after the pandemic is reduced again to 150 OMR.”
The pandemic did affect her business, but she focussed on another line. She created masks, abayas and jalebiyas, a long colourful tunic with embroidery on the neckline, and handbags, which sold well during the pandemic. She expanded her passion to singular furniture pieces which blended the east and west.
Amal is still fresh with new ideas and plans to go online in future. Currently, her collection is available at Sunset Fashion Clothing Boutique in Alasfoor Plaza at Qurum and her Instagram @amaljamali. “I’ve been in this field for more than 16 years. It is not easy to create a name in the fashion world, you can do it if you love it. You have to build your name and work slowly up,” Amal says, “Each dress is like a story for me, each one created with love and passion!”