We’ve all experienced them. Those grey, cloudy days that make our minds wander off to somewhere else. Somewhere calm, quiet and sun-drenched. Chances are high you’ve imagined a green oasis with ancient olive trees, the smell of a rose garden, stylish swimming pools to dive into and drinks to be had with views on the Atlas mountains. Well, that sounds like paradise, but it is in fact Beldi’s Country Club. A family-owned Moroccan douar just outside Marrakech that’s been turned into a hotel, restaurant and spa, as well as a place of creation. UNC’s 100% recycled glassware find its origin in Beldi’s paradise, and so it’s time for you to meet it.
The Hotel exists of 28 breath-taking suites, individually furnished in the Beldi style. Beldi’s Country Club had been built to resemble a Moroccan village, with narrow alleyways, shady court yards and riads. Staying there doesn’t only rest your mind and heart, but it also inspires you. Part of the impressive douar, is the Beldi glass-blowing workshop. Next to creating their own olive oil and bread, they also make their own plates, vases, ash trays and other pottery, linen and…glassware!
Made of 100% recycled glassware, the Verre Beldi glass holds true to the tradition that started in 1946, at the Casablanca factory. In 2013 the factory owner in Sover, Ain Sebaa, abandoned it, leaving customers and employees empty handed and without a future. Luckily, the Beldi group stepped in, making sure this iconic object remains part of our daily lives, rather than ending up as a long-lost treasure of the past. Together with old teams of the Casablance factory, they build a modern factory inside the Beldi Country Club. Hand-blown by craftsmen, the Beldi has revived the method of production by creating a workshop with the last glass blowers in Morocco, and exports the glasses worldwide. Not only do they respect the environment by using only recycled glass, but they also create jobs for craftsmen with strong skills. A new home to a beautiful piece of glassware.
Beldi glasses are manufactured from two tons of recycled glass per day. Flat glass and glass bottle waste is heated up to 1600 degrees for 24 hours to melt together. The blown glasses are cut by hand, using an oxygen and gas flame. The debris goes back into the furnace, to melt again. The finished glasses are places in an annealed furnace for 3 hours and then washed and transported on a carriage rail to their storage location.
Something tells us you’ll look at UNC’s Morocco glasses a bit differently now that you know that the Beldi spirit is in them. You might just get a taste of paradise with each sip you take.
You can find these products at our webshop http://www.urbannatureculture.com