Cooperative Nahda · Souq El Hed
WHERE YOUR MONEY GOES
SIZE
3m 50cm x 2m 45cm x 3cm — 11ft 6in x 8ft x 1in
WEIGHT
19700 g
MATERIALS
Tadout - Wool, Dyed Wool, and Cotton
PRODUCT ID
#6134
Beni Ourain style rugs are pile knot rugs intricately designed and are used as two sided rugs in Oued Ifrane. There is the summer side, when the pile side is placed face down on the ground to keep things cooler. During the winter, the pile side is placed up to keep things warmer. You can find these carpets with natural wool from the local sheep or cotton yarn bought from the village market. Depending on the size of the rug, it can take weeks to create. Each knot needs to be individually tied and cut, so one person is only able to create a meter in two weeks.
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MEET THE MAKERS
Fatima Haddash
When Fatima Haddash was young, her family picked up from the southern village of Tinghir and moved to Oued Ifrane. Despite her distant roots, everyone in her village now affectionately knows her as ‘mama.’ Fatima knows how to make all the types of carpets that Association Nahda creates. With every carpet she sells, she hopes to use the money to invest it in the future of her eight children and many more grandchildren.
Hanan Sadaoui
Born in 1980 in Kasr Moui, in the region of Errachidia (28km away from Goulmima). Hanan Sadaoui moved from her hometown to Khemisset with her family and learned how to weave from her mother. When she got married, Hanan moved with her husband to his village (Oued Ifrane) where she joined the association he founded for the local weavers. Hanan is the proud mother of two, a boy and a girl and she hopes to develop her weaving skills and help her husband in developing opportunities for their local communities.
aicha mhdaoui
Aicha Mehdoui was born in Oued Ifrane and specializes in all the products that the association produces. She hopes to use her income with the sales to build a new house in the village.
Fadma Mehboub
Fadma Mahboub was born in 1972 in the outskirts of Oued Ifrane. Her family moved into the village to make it easier for her brothers to go to school although she didn’t get the same opportunity since she never enrolled. However, she got to learn to weave and has become a renowned Hanbal and Zamora carpet weaver. She has recently joined the association in order to help the women perfect their Hanbal technique and find a space where she can meet like minded women.
VISIT THE VILLAGE
Cooperative Nahda hosts visitors in their village — share tea, watch the artisans at work, and see the craft up close. Visits start at $14 per person, and most of it goes straight to the group.
Souq El Hed, Morocco · about 2 heures 17 minutes from Fez
