i. Fès brocade

The Fès brocade is Morocco's ceremonial fabric par excellence. Natural silk, sometimes mixed with cotton, woven with a gold or silver thread that forms motifs in relief — flowers, stars, calligraphies. It is used for the wedding caftan, the dfine, ceremonial belts.

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Weaving is done on vertical looms with six pedals. The maâlem follows a mathematical pattern that determines, line after line, where the metallic thread must come out. It is one of the longest crafts to learn: an apprentice begins to weave independently after five to seven years.

ii. Sabra, agave silk

Sabra (from tsabra, agave in Darija) is a plant silk drawn from the leaves of the agave cactus (Agave americana), which grows in Morocco's semi-arid zones. The leaves are crushed, washed, combed to extract long, silky fibres, then spun and dyed.

Sabra produces fabrics that are shiny but light, resembling natural silk without its cost. It is used to make bedspreads, cushions, scarves, curtains. The Marrakech-Safi region is the epicentre of this weaving.

iii. The Rif mendil

The mendil is the traditional striped fabric of the women of the Rif and the Chefchaouen region. White cotton striped with red or black, woven on a horizontal loom, it serves at once as a skirt worn over the trousers, a shawl and a carrying support (women knot it across the shoulder to carry children or goods).

iv. Wool of the Middle and High Atlas

Wool weaving covers every use: carpets, capes (akhnif, burnous), blankets, winter garments. The regions of the Middle Atlas and the central High Atlas are the main producers. The most common loom is vertical, wooden, and the work is almost exclusively female (except for the men's cape, whose making can be mixed).