The story of our new ceramics from Morocco

Sarah has always dreamed of adding ceramics to our Table collection, and a chance find during a family trip to Morocco earlier this year made that dream come true.

As a lover of travel, Morocco has always been on my list of countries to visit as a family, so this Easter we decided to go with another family and take our children on an adventure.

We based ourselves in the outskirts of Marrakesh at the beautiful Beldi Country Club – a tranquil oasis, scented with orange blossom, the perfect place to retreat to after the hustle and bustle of Marrakesh medina, which was only 20 minutes away by car. Highlights included visiting the beautiful Marjorelle gardens and Bahia Palace, trying the delicious tagines, and local sweet pastries, and of course exploring the medina with its wonderful mixture of textiles, spices and traditional Moroccan crafts.

We contrasted that with a few days in the countryside, one hours drive from the city, staying at Kasbah Beldi. Here, we went on walks, went horse riding, camel riding, visited the local recycled glass factory, and hand embroidery group, dined under the canopy of an enormous 700 year old pistachio tree and relaxed by the pool.

My mother is a ceramicist and I love pottery but finding a style and a supplier that I could work with at SARAH.K has been proving elusive for many years, until a chance discovery on this family holiday.

We had heard of an artisan ceramics factory just outside the city so we jumped in a taxi and went to explore. We soon discovered a treasure trove of the most amazing pottery.

Made from the local red clay that has been used to make ceramics in Morocco for centuries, all the pieces are made by hand on a wheel and then hand glazed using a slip glaze technique and then fired at 960 degrees.

Unlike the traditional intricate floral and geometric designs of traditional Moroccan earthenware, these craftsmen have used slip glazes to create the most beautiful marbled effects in shades of greens and blues.

The bowls and plates are all safe to use as tableware and are all such individual beautiful pieces, all unique works of art with different marbled patterns, tones and colours. They could also be hung on a wall to create a striking and original display, and will make the most wonderful gifts.

I hope you love them as much as I do!