A star turn in Morocco

A stone's throw from Essaouira's ramparts is a cavernous whitewashed villa. Step through the traditional wooden door and the interior is not typical of this laid-back Moroccan town, but a fusion of 200-year-old Moorish architecture and 20th century retro-cool.

Think whitewashed walls accented with bright flowery cushions, cowskin and hand-made Moroccan rugs and an African beaded chair in one of the podshaped bedrooms.

The whole organic labyrinth is illuminated by shell chandeliers by Joe Columbo and Verner Panton. Today, the finishing touches are being put to Dar Baida (White House), and this blend of Moorish-troglodyte-meets-Gaudí-garishness is set to become one of Morocco's coolest houses in which to chill.

Dar Baida is the latest creation of Londoners Emma Wilson and Graham Carter, the partnership behind Lost, an Islington interiors shop whose celebrity clientele includes Anna Friel and the Beckhams.

Gutted and revamped this summer, Dar Baida is the kind of place where style and privacy come as standard. No doubt in search of just that, it has already been booked by the crew of Oliver Stone's movie Alexander the Great, who move from Marrakech to film in Essaouira later this month. The hell-raising antics of bad-boy actor Colin Farrell have been causing something of a stir at Marrakech's top hotel, La Mamounia.

Dar Baida is Wilson and Carter's latest project. The first, Dar Emma, in the 18th century town's medina, has been attracting a steady stream of honeymooners in the know, musicians and media types since Emma began renting it out four years ago. A bit of a work in progress, Dar Emma has now been totally refurbished with a newly extended kitchen and cosy corner fireplace in the salon.
{break}

Patterned tiles dating back 150 years cover the ground floor. Up two flights of skewed stairs, flanked by rainproofed thuja wood banisters, lies a sun-bleached roof terrace. The core of the house is roofless, letting light pour on to the stairs and ground floor. Ivory-wash tadelakt walls - a marble-smooth mix of cement, stone and pigment - add to the airy vibe, akin to the whitewashed suites of the nearby timeless classic Villa Maroc, overlooking the Atlantic.

The open-plan ground floor reveals the house's most striking features: a fired-tile lounge where a horseshoeshaped stone sofa upholstered with cushions cut from smouldering red Moroccan rugs and an open log fire dominate. Objets trouvés from Essaouira's vast beach - skulls, driftwood, even a perished football reimagined as a couscous bowl - provide the pared-back decoration.

"What I've created looks Moroccan but is palatable for Westerners," says Emma. "I source from junk shops here, not the tacky tourist places. I found a half-finished sheep skull made out of thuja wood, which is cool. I seem to have a thing about skulls. There's the whale skull in the lounge, too. I tease Graham that when he dies I'm going to put his skull on the wall."

Way to go

Stephen Lucas stayed at Dar Emma (Tel: 07768 352 190, www.castlesinthesand.com), which has two double bedrooms, from £500 a week. Dar Baida has three double bedrooms and costs from £1,200. Meals at Dar Emma are around £10 a head. Airport transfers can be arranged for about £35.