SPOTTED GLASSES
The traditional, blown 'Beldi' glasses that come from Morocco are decorated by hand by women in the Atelier beldine co-operative.
Tradition and modernisation
Atelier Beldine was established by Dorine Herbecq. Her parents are Dutch, but she was born and grew up in Cassablanca, and is a great admirer of traditional handcraft. Dorine discovered that the manifacturer of the 'Beldi' glasses was closing down the factory because of competition from China. She gave the glasses a 'new look' by having them decorated by hand. This has helped to give the factory new life.
The Atelier Beldine women's co-operative
Dorine's wish to improve the life of the women living in the Moroccan countryside was the initial link. Six years ago she established the Atelier Beldine, where she now teaches ten women how to decorate the glasses by hand. She offers the women work outside the home, social contacts, and their own income, which enables them to achieve a social status and to make a contribution to the family income which is more than welcome. The women work 6,5 hours a day, 5 days a week.
The decorations
The women paint the white or black spots by hand on each glass and then flatten the brush strokes with a sponge, after which the glasses are fired. They then add the gold spots, and the glasses are put in the kiln again. Dorine has designed these spotted glasses exclusively for nooosugar.nl.
Photography: Bonnita Postma
These unique bags are designed bij the French designer Domino Leserre, and knitted by the women of Lalla Mika.
The designer
Domino Leserre studied at the well-known "Cours Brecot" fashion academy in Paris and began her career in 1969 as a designer for the French fashion house of Dorothee Bis. Since then, continuing her work as a designer, she has travelled all over the world until 2000, when she established Lalla Mika and finally settled in Morocco.
Lalla Mika
During her holidays in Morocco, Domino was always disturbed by the number of plastic bags she saw lying around everywhere, in the countryside, hanging from trees, in the cactus plants, and on the beach. She began to collect the bags, and as a result of her creativity she began to knit with them, making rugs for her holiday home. Very soon afterwards she decided to have the rugs made in Morocco by women living in the countryside. She settled in Marrakesh, where she opened the atelier. In 2000 she established the brand name Lalla Mika, which means " Madame Plastic". She now has 20 women working in the atelier.
The womens' co-operative
The women are very happy in the atelier. They love drinking tea together and discussing everything with each other. The money that they earn is very welcome in the family, and the work also gives the women social status. They work hard, the knitting and crochet work is highly intensive, and they take an average of three days to make a large bag.
Rycycled bags
The plastic bags that are knitted by the women come from various places. Domino's family, friends, and acquaintances collect them in Morocco and in France. They must be clean and undamaged, and often come from a supermarket or local shops. They are mostly black, because Moroccans do not like to let other people see what they have in their bags. Other colours are more difficult to obtain. The knitted bags are also sold in other countries, for instance in the well-known fashion houses of Comme des Garcons and Sonia Rykiel, and in the Caravanne home furnishing store in Paris. In the Netherlands they are only sold by nooosugar.nl
WOVEN MATERIALS
The weaver of the unique striped materials and cushions is Mohammed.
The weaving mill
The weaving mill is a family concern, and Mohammed is
now the third generation of weavers. The looms are in an
old 14th century caravanserrai in the middle of the old
Medina. Mohammed's grandfather started weaving in 1942,
and now there are 14 weavers, including Mohammed's
father and uncle. The old wooden looms were hand-made
by the family. The chain theads are all attached to the loom
by hand, and it takes one man five days to attach 92 metres
of chain thead.
The stripes
Mohammed has a unique feeling for colour. he begins by selecting threads with the colours he wants to use, and then uses his imagination to make up the shuttles which determine the width of the stripes. Weaving a length of material of 3 metres takes him about 1,5 days. No to pieces of material are ever the same, so every piece that is sold by nooosugar.nl is unique.
The material
The woven material is approximately 3 metres long and 1.70 metres wide. Four cushions can be made from the width of one peace of material, so there are never more than four cushions that are the same. The treads that Mohammed uses are mainly cotton and rayon. Rayon,
which is made of the agave plant, hase a subtle sheen, and is often called vegetable silk.
