For lovers of cosmetics (like me) and lovers of perfumery, Morocco, is one of the ideal destinations to enjoy, learn and inspire on its culture and traditions.

My first day consisted in visiting of intense way the Medina of Marrakech. Walking throught the streets, I noticed that they abounded some establishments, known like herbalist's shop, where sold a big fan of species, plants, atmosphere, pigments, cosmetic, and make-up of natural origin and in the majority of the cases they sell to bulk. Can ensure you that these shops were an authentic rainbow of colours. The most curious thing, is that this business really was set up as a tourist attraction and in the end I let myself be carried away by a very friendly seller who offered us the typical Moroccan tea, while he explained all the assortment of products they had.

I, like a kid with new toy, remained me hypnotised with the variety of colours so cheerful and alive and with the desire to discover products that never had seen. For example, the Aker Fassi, a piece of mud used like lipstick based of extract of poppy and pomegranate with the form of covers it of the tajine, used traditionally by the berbers women to make-up the lips and the cheeks. It suffices with wetting the mud so that it appear the pigment and can employ directly in the face.

I was fascinated also by the big variety of solid perfumes for atmosphere, mainly, to base of orange, amber, musk, between other essences. In a burner of essences of ceramics, adds the mix of a little piece of the solid perfume with water, forming a paste. Down of it, light the  sail and with the heat goes giving off the essence of the perfume by all the stay, as they have it in the riads.

The second day we went to visit the 5 valleys of the Atlas (Ourika, Oukaimeden, Asni, Sidi Fares and Tahnouat). There, we could know an association of Berbers women that manufacture the very famous argan oil by traditional way. There was a woman that was the manager to explain us so much the process of obtaining of the oil, and also showed us the catalog of products, from black soap, used to scrub the skin, until essences for the scalp and creams to base of collagen and argan to reaffirm the face. Besides, there was nonagenarian woman grinding the seeds of the argan commissioned also to move all the knowledge to the new generations of women on their traditions. During the visit, they gave us to test a honey of the argan flowers, argan oil edible and a lard of peanut with argan, to show us present us that the argan also employs in feeding.

The third day we displaced to Essaouria during the day, and, of way, could contemplate the forests of the Argania spinosa, autochthonous of the zone. In some trees, we observe goats gone up to the branches as if they were statues. It is true that the goats usually go up to the argan tree to be able to eat the shell of the fruit, but these only do it the months of June and July, when the fruit comes out. The rest of the months, really treats of a setting so that the tourists can see it, do photos and can earn for that. Also, we visit another association of women, a bit bigger and modernized that the one of the previous day. The style of visit was very similar, but the girl that gave us the explanation described in more detail the process of obtaining of the argan oil. 

The women recollect the fruit in June and July before the goats eat the shell and spit the seeds. In spite of that the seed is the part that really uses, the goats the one who spit and purchase a very intense and unpleasant smell. After the collect, store all the fruits so that the rest of the year can follow with the process of manufacture, in which it separates the shell and grinds the seed with a manual grinder. The liquid that obtains mixes with water boiling, leaving it repose during 3-4h until forming a paste. This plasticene is molded and pressed with hands to extract argan oil. Apart from being a manual and traditional process, take advantage of all the waste that is generated, such as the shell to feed the goats and the rest of the paste is used to make black soap. To achieve 1L argan oil need 4,5Kg of seeds, which obtain of 80Kg of fruits of the Argania spinosa.

Cactus oil is another Moroccan ingredient, not so recognized, but also with depigmenting and healing properties Its high price has to mainly to that need 2 tonnes of seeds of cactus to be able to obtain 1L of oil.

Finally, in my last day in Marrakech, I wanted to conclude with the experience of the hammam. The Arab bath or hammam is a traditional bathroom that bases in the cleaning and scrubbing of the skin with the end to clean so much the body like the soul. It is used to be a long ritual that divides in some steps, in which a person soap up you, exfoliate you and, next, applies you a mask or clay painkiller, in an environment with steam. The black soap is the product crashes during the hammam, since it acts like a cleansing mask that leaves act and after withdrawing , a person rubs you vigorously with a glove of kessa by the body to withdraw all the dead skin.

I hope this other vision of Morocco has caught your attention whether you have had the opportunity to visit it or not. After all, getting to know closely other cultures, no only enriches you, but also it shows you other approaches or forms to work and can serve like inspiration sometime die.

After this first edition more payful on the cosmetic I want to encourage you to write your experiences in other cities or countries to be able to us enrich all together.