THE BLUE-STRIPED PLACEMAT
DESCRIPTION
Composition
100% jonc de mer
Color
Natural & blue stripes
Dimensions
31 cm x 40 cm
Origin & production
Hand-woven in Nabeul, Tunisia, by our master weaver Tawfik, who knows all the tricks of the trade.
Care
Hand-clean with warm water and gentle soap.
Details
Each placemat is hand-woven on a loom with meticulous attention to every detail, which may result in slight variations between each piece in terms of size, color or finish.
SEA RUSH CALLED "SMAR"
The smar, a plant grown in fields regularly flooded by sea water, gives the fiber its resistance to humidity.
The preparation of the rush takes place during the summer, and involves harvesting the rush, drying it in the sun for two months, then storing it for three months to make it more supple.
The mats are woven on a horizontal loom, requiring twelve hours' work to produce 3 meters of matting.
THE CRAFTMAN & HIS WORKSHOP
Behind the light blue doors of this small workshop, where the local cats come to take refuge, Tawfik, a rather reserved craftsman with deep blue eyes, welcomes us to share his craft: sea rush weaving. Carpets, placemats and baskets are laid out all over the workshop, and the eyes don't know where to look.
A notebook and pen to record our contact details. His telephone, dating from the 2000s, is never switched on. To communicate with him, you have to go through his son or his wife, or arrive unannounced at his home. Knock knock, we discover a modest house with an interior courtyard featuring an orange blossom distiller and a singing bird.
After collecting our placemats, we leave with a bottle of orange blossom water.
