Moroccan Rugs: A Story of Amazigh Symbols

Tameslouht, where we source all of Maslouhi’s products, is an Arab village. This might seem like an obvious statement, but the indigenous people of Morocco are actually Amazigh rather than Arab. Most people colloquially refer to Amazigh people as “Berber” (although there is a controversy surrounding this term– it is a derivative of the French word for “barbarian”), and the influence of Amazigh culture across all aspects of Moroccan society is something that sets the country apart from its Middle Eastern, Arab counterparts.

Many of the traditional Moroccan artisanal designs are informed by the Amazigh aesthetic. Geometric designs, colorful patterns, and heavy metals are prevalent throughout the traditional handicrafts of this culture. Are you a fan of wedding blankets and their glitzy sequins? You might not be surprised to find out that those are, in fact, traditionally used in Amazigh wedding ceremonies!

Tameslouht is located in the Al Haouz province of Marrakech. It stands alone as the only Arab village among its Amazigh neighbors. The aesthetic of the artisanal products that are produced in Tameslouht, however, is heavily informed by the boldness of its Amazigh neighbors.

One of our more recent sourcing adventures has been in rugs. Maslouhi artisans do not traditionally produce rugs, so we have moved further back into the mountains to work within Tameslouht’s artisan network to locate rug weavers (everyone knows a cousin or an in-law or a friend or a sister’s best friend or a….). And we’ve been so excited with what we’ve found.

As you can see, these rugs have a uniquely geometric look. All of the symbols can be decoded– most referring to nature– and can be woven into a narrative about live in the villages where these rugs are produced.

We’re so excited to be expanding the scope of our work and celebrating Morocco’s Amazigh culture. For more information about our current stock of rugs, please shoot us an email: creation.tameslouht@gmail.com!

Atlanta Arab Festival, 2018

We just completed our second pop-up shop/ festival of 2018 at the 13th annual Atlanta Arab Festival!

Sponsored every year by the ALIF Institute, this cultural celebration is a dynamic opportunity to be immersed in the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes of the diverse Arab world.

This year, Maslouhi had a booth at the festival!

Mustapha enjoys his breakfast from Leon’s International Foods!

We loved the opportunity to meet so many people– Arab and non-Arab– and talk to them about where our products come from. Every product sold by Maslouhi has an incredible origin story, both within the locally-sourced materials and the people who transform them into objects of beauty.

What products would you like to see at our next pop-up shop/ festival booth?

Some Christmas Cheer!

For the month of December, we’re trying something new: product giveaways!

Each Friday in December, we’ll be promoting one of the artisans’ products on our Facebook page. All you have to do is follow the directions (like, share, tag someone, etc.) and you’re automatically entered to win the featured product! We’ll announce the winner each Monday. And that’s it!

A Day in Tameslouht with Anjali Power Yoga

This past week, we were visited by a group hailing from Philadelphia, PA and Charlotte, NC. The common thread between these two cities? Anjali Power Yoga Studios!

Returned Peace Corps volunteer Lucia coordinated a week-long yoga retreat for practitioners from these studios in Marrakech, Morocco. In addition to planning what sounded to me like the most fabulous crash-course in all of the fabulous things that Marrakech has to offer, Lucia also highlighted some of the most authentic things, as well. This included teaching everyone survival Darija, discussing customs and traditions, making sure to taste all of the local fare, and, most importantly (in our opinion!), visiting the town of Tameslouht.

Our morning involved meeting at the most popular cafe in town, ordering a round of nss-nss coffees, and engaging in a discussion about Tameslouht. The retreatants had many questions about the economic life of Tameslouht, the women artisans, and the religious aspect of Tameslouht and its zaouia, or ancient Sufi religious school.

We walked through the town, stopping spontaneously at the olive oil processing center. Tameslouht is famous in the region for its aromatic and absolutely delicious olive oil. We watched the olives get mashed and pressed, all while smelling the beauty of the distinctive oil.

Afterwards, we arrived to Abdelilah’s house, where two of Maslouhi’s women artisans, Meriam and Rabiaa, awaited us.

The retreatants learned the art of basket embellishment, a popular craft that has ignited the tourist markets in recent years. Although no one got anywhere near close finishing their baskets in the time allotted, everyone went home with new knowledge of a craft that they were seeing everywhere in the souk.

We enjoyed a massive and delicious lunch in the zaouia, and then went on a tour of some of the different properties of the religious complex.

The last part of our day in Tamesouht involved a visit to some of Maslouhi’s other artisans: our weavers! We had the pleasure of catching Si Hassan, who is one of Tameslouht’s “m3allam,” or master weavers. Two of the brave retreatants even tried their hand at the loom!

We at Maslouhi genuinely enjoyed our time getting to know Anjali Power Yoga Studio’s retreatants. We hope that you all enjoyed your time in Morocco, and in Tameslouht especially!

—

If you have a group coming through Marrakech and would like to visit the artisans of Maslouhi, engage in a workshop, eat a traditional lunch in a beautiful, ancient religious school, and see what life is like in a rural village, let us know! creation.tameslouht@gmail.com

 

A Little Northern Detour

Last weekend, we traveled to the gorgeous coastal city of Assilah. Suffice it to say, I’m in love.

One of the loveliest surprises of this blue and white haven is its small but robust artisan community. Mustapha and I met, talked to, shook hands, and exchanged business cards with several extremely talented artisans. We are so excited about the new products that we’re offering in the Maslouhi shop:

Assilah Scarves

We arrived in the old medina at 8am– several hours before any of the artisans opened up their shops. The first stall that we saw, we ended up spending over an hour in. Anwar, a young man with an impeccable eye for color, was generous with his time. He showed us his loom, a variety of blankets and scarves, and answered a ridiculous amount of questions from the two starry-eyed foreigners. We have two designs currently for sale on Etsy and are also taking wholesale orders.

Geometric Fringe Basket 

We cannot get enough of these gorgeous baskets! Woven with two colors of yarn and held in place by a sheet of a plastic rice sack, the materials are traditional but boast a modern style. The colors radiate the northern charm of Morocco– inherently colorful and bold. We are currently accepting wholesale orders for these beauts.

Vintage rugs and wedding blankets

Everyone is always looking for a “rug guy,” someone who has the right connections and will sell you coveted Moroccan rugs for a decent price. We’d pretty much given up on Marrakech, to be honest– with such a high concentration of tourists willing to pay inflated prices, there’s really no incentive to build a relationship with a business and offer reduced prices. Additionally, these middle men often completely stiff the rug weavers themselves. Not the case in Assilah. Mustapha and I had to ask several times to make sure that the price quotes that they were giving us were in dirhams, they were so low. We didn’t leave with any carpets in-tow, but do officially now have a “rug guy”– so let us know if you are looking for a tufted wedding blanket or kilim rug!

---

Our trip was unintentionally successful. We met a lot of wonderful artisans, experienced the not so famous (but incredibly warm) northern hospitality, and have a lot of new products to offer our customers. Shoot us an email if you see something you like or have any questions about ordering: creation.tameslouht@gmail.com!