How to Create a Moroccan-Inspired Reading Nook

A reading nook is one of the most intimate and personal spaces you can create in a home — a corner defined entirely by comfort, good light, and the permission to disappear into a book. Here is how to create one with Moroccan design influence.

The Essential Elements

Every reading nook needs three things: somewhere to sit, good light, and somewhere to put the book down. Everything else is optional but contributes to the experience.

The Seating

A Moroccan leather pouf is the ideal reading nook seating for several reasons. It is low — which creates a cosy, ground-level intimacy that a standard chair doesn't offer. It is compact — taking up less floor space than an armchair. It is moveable — you can adjust position based on where the natural light is best. And it adds the warmth and character that a plastic or fabric alternative cannot match.

The Light

A floor lamp positioned 60–80cm from the pouf, aimed to illuminate the reading surface without glare, is the ideal reading nook light. Choose a lamp with a warm white bulb — 2700K is the most flattering and least tiring for the eyes. Avoid overhead lighting alone — it creates flat, shadow-free illumination that is tiring to read by.

The Moroccan Elements

A small kilim rug defines the nook's territory on the floor. A brass lantern on a low shelf or beside the pouf adds warmth and visual interest. A woven basket for books or magazines grounds the space. Together these elements create a corner that feels deliberately designed rather than accidentally arranged.

Making It Private

Reading nooks benefit from a sense of enclosure. A corner position is the simplest solution. Tall bookshelves on two sides. Heavy curtains that can be drawn. Or simply a canopy of fabric hung from above that creates a visual boundary between the nook and the rest of the room.

Create your nook: Our Moroccan leather poufs and kilim rugs — handmade in Marrakech, ships from Italy.